England’s men’s Test players could be denied any team practice before next summer’s series against Pakistan because of a congested calendar that means the first Test at Headingley starts two or three days after the Hundred final at Lord’s.
While next year’s Hundred dates have yet to be confirmed by the England and Wales Cricket Board, the final is pencilled in for Sunday 16 August, with Monday a reserve day. This would leave England players involved in the final possibly having to travel to Leeds the day before the Test match, which begins on the 19th, with no time to practise with their teammates.
The packed schedule risks a repeat of the poor preparation that has undermined England’s white-ball side this week in their one-day series against South Africa, who sealed a 2-0 victory with a five-run win at Lord’s on Thursday.
South Africa had won the first game at Headingley on Tuesday by seven wickets after England had been unable to train as a full squad beforehand, with Joe Root, Will Jacks, Tom Banton, Rehan Ahmed, and Saqib Mahmood all travelling the day before the game, having played in the Hundred final between Oval Invincibles and Trent Rockets on Sunday.
“In an ideal world we’d have liked to meet up yesterday and train yesterday, train today and go into the game as a group,” said Harry Brook, the captain, this week.
England have taken decisive action after back-to-back ODI defeats against South Africa, resting the weary Ben Duckett from the forthcoming T20s and recalling Sam Curran for the first time this year.
There have been calls to give Duckett a break ahead of this winter's Ashes, with the lively left-hander looking unusually subdued in the one-day series against the Proteas.
The 30-year-old was off colour during his stint with Birmingham Phoenix in August and was unable to find rhythm as South Africa wrapped up wins at Headingley and Lord's. He will now sit out the three 20-over games against the Proteas next week.
Harry Brook, England's white-ball captain, had rejected the idea that Duckett should be rested in the immediate aftermath of the narrow defeat at Lord's, but there has since been a rethink behind the scenes.
That includes an olive branch for the previously out-of-favour Curran. The Surrey all-rounder has not played for his country this year, an exile that coincided with head coach Brendon McCullum taking over the reins of the white-ball team, but has put together a strong season on the domestic circuit. Curran has been added to the T20 squad to face South Africa and will also join the three-match trip to Ireland this month.
Meanwhile, pace bowler Matthew Potts will not be making the trip to Malahide and will be made available for Durham's County Championship conclusion instead. PA Media
Given the technical and mental adjustments required when moving from shorter formats such as the Hundred to Test cricket, the lack of practice time could be more problematic next summer, even allowing for the scale of England’s defeat at Headingley. They were bowled out for 131 in 24.3 overs, with South Africa completing a rapid victory in the day-night game just as the floodlights came on, with 175 balls to spare.
To make matters even more challenging, the new Hundred owners will be demanding more appearances from England players next year after several sat out the opening round of games last month as the competition started the day after the thrilling conclusion of the five-match Test series against India. London Spirit were without Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Jamie Overton for their first game against Oval Invincibles at Lord’s, which led to a complaint from Nikesh Arora, leader of the so-called Tech Titans consortium which has bought 49% of the franchise.
A similar problem is likely to present itself next year, as the draft schedule for the Hundred has the competition starting on 21 July, two days after the conclusion of England’s three-match one-day international series against India at Lord’s.
England also have five Twenty20 games against India in July after a three-match Test series against New Zealand in June, before the August Pakistan series and six further white-ball games against Sri Lanka in September. Brook and several others may be required to play in all six series, as well as the Hundred, in an unrelenting schedule.
While the coach, Brendon McCullum, has opted to rest senior players from three T20s in Ireland his month, there is little prospect of him doing so against better opposition next summer, not least as England are eighth in the International Cricket Council’s one-day rankings and only the top eight are guaranteed a place at the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.
