Ollie Pope has credited Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum for removing “a fear of getting out” as England ready themselves for one last push in Pakistan. Rewind 12 months and the mood could scarcely have been more different, England’s players finding themselves locked in the dressing room of the Adelaide Oval and forced to rewatch their dismissals after a 275-run defeat to Australia.
But with England 2-0 up in Pakistan and hoping to become the first visiting team to claim a 3-0 clean sweep in the third Test, which begins on Saturday, Pope has singled out the captain and head coach for the team’s switch in mentality – with his own career relaunched in the process.
“I feel a new player at the minute, to what I felt in the past playing for England,” said Pope, having made scores of 108 in Rawalpindi and 60 in Multan while also acting as the team’s wicketkeeper to allow Stokes an extra bowler.
“I’ve been a bit more consistent. I’ve stopped fearing getting out. The two guys at the top [Stokes and McCullum] have helped me grow … not confidence, but the freedom to express myself, how I want to play. It’s been great for me, hopefully I keep that consistency.”
Batting-wise, the results have been remarkable, with more Test centuries from England batsmen, 21, than any previous calendar year. They have been spread around too, eight players having made at least one, a fair leap from 2021 when only Joe Root (six) and Rory Burns (one) did so.
The 21st century came from Harry Brook in Multan, a second of the series to underline the widespread belief we may be witnessing the dawn of a generational talent. The 23-year-old’s success is a very modern tale too, as he has credited his time playing for Lahore Qalanders in the Pakistan Super League for precious knowledge of the pitches.
Brook’s match-winning 108 in the second innings, a calculated 149-ball affair after rapid-fire scores of 153 and 87 in the first Test, was a case of atoning for his dismissal on day one – an ill-judged attempt to launch Abrar Ahmed from the crease that handed Pakistan’s new mystery spinner his fifth wicket in remarkable a match haul of 11.
The Yorkshireman said: “I was very disappointed with the way I got out in the first innings, so I wanted to stamp my foot down and get a score in the second. I spoke to my school coach back home, Martin Speight [of Sedbergh school], and he was like ‘I know you’ll learn from it’ and I did.
“I’m picking [Abrar] fairly easy, I don’t want to say too much – I’ll probably get out to him next Test. He is a ‘mystery’ bowler, with the flicker, which is like a leg-spinner, and then a googly. I’m sure he’ll have a couple more tricks up his sleeve.”
On his lack of emotion at reaching three-figures, he said: “I’ve never been one for massive celebrations. I’ve always had that inner confidence to be able to score hundreds and score big runs. I don’t just want one or two hundreds, I want plenty.
“I think I slot into this team fairly well. I’m generally quite an aggressive player who always looks to score and put the bowler under pressure, so it suits my natural game.”
Brook’s rise may create a logjam in England’s middle-order long-term, once Jonny Bairstow returns to fitness. But while Pope has kept wicket on this tour – a product of Ben Foakes missing the first Test with illness – he has no designs on the role long term.
“I’d still love to tie down No 3, make that my own,” he said. “That will be my primary focus. Foakesy is a Surrey teammate, the No 1 keeper and great to learn from, but it was just a way to get an extra bowler in these conditions.”
