If Keaton Jennings bats with the same composure and confidence as he speaks then England may be on to something. He was presented to the press at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday after a training session in which he batted – and bowled – for a long time.
Currently England are more interested in his batting. The universal expectation is that Jennings will become Alastair Cook’s new opening partner, though he did not fall into the trap of assuming that would be the case when he walked into the press room with a ready smile, an unmistakably South African accent despite his four seasons at Durham, and an easy, polite manner.
Ideally Jennings will bring freshness and energy to the camp and, rather more importantly, much-needed runs at the top of the order. He will not have come across many world-class spinners while playing at Chester‑le‑Street in the past few years. But he is manifestly up for this challenge.
His world has changed rapidly since the injury to Haseeb Hameed prompted his call-up from the Lions.
“In the last 12 hours turning up with the guys in Dubai has been a little surreal,” he said. “Meeting the guys for the first time calms the nerves a little bit, especially for a guy like myself. I want to get along with my team-mates and try to drive that process. The last couple of hours have been really satisfying, to get to know the guys, play some football and break some ice.”
Ben Stokes, Jennings’s Durham colleague, has aided that process. “He was on my football team in the morning and he got stuck into me. Stokesey has been brilliant at breaking the ice and as a team man he’s been one of the better ones.”
Jennings’s passage into the England team has a familiar ring. His mother hails from Sunderland; his father, Ray, from Johannesburg, played as a wicketkeeper against the rebel sides touring South Africa in the 80s and has since become a formidable coach – and not the type of man with whom you would like to pick an argument.
Jennings went to the same school, King Edward VII in Johannesburg, as his father and a host of other South African cricketers, including Graeme Smith, Quinton de Kock and Stephen Cook. He captained South Africa’s Under-19 side but after finishing school, in 2011, he left for Durham. “The guys up north made me feel very welcome – Stokesey, Colly [Paul Collingwood], Woody [Mark Wood], they’ve been three of the main drivers along with Mark Stoneman in helping me settle down and pave my life in England,” said Jennings. “At the moment I’m feeling very comfortable and very English, despite my accent.”
His father coached him in his youth and Jennings Jr says they have a very good relationship. He sometime refers to him as “coach” rather than “dad” and he speaks about him with refreshing candour. “I remember when I was nine or 10 we went to the nets. We were training and it was one of those days when I decided not to listen. He threw me the first ball, I got out. Second ball, I got out. He said: ‘You get out one more time and we’re going home.’ He threw me another ball, I got out. He put his bag down and walked off. From that day forward he was ‘Coachy’.
“I’m probably closer to him than I am to anyone else in the world, as a father, a role model and a coach. I’m blessed to have a person I trust with my life and who will guide my career. The outward persona is of a very hard, concrete man; in the family house he’s very loving and gentle.”
Jennings’s career takes on a new dimension this week with the scrutiny of millions as he prepares for a Test debut at the Wankhede Stadium. It will be more daunting than opening the batting at Chester-le-Street, but he sounds up for it: “I don’t think of it as pressure. I have always been told pressure is a privilege. It is one of the things Dad tried to drum into me as a kid. I like to think I bring a bit of positive energy and a smile to the group. I am generally quite a happy guy. Hopefully this week we can land a few jabs and a few haymakers.”
The inclusion of Jennings is likely to be one of two changes to the England side for the fourth Test, starting on Thursday, which England must win to have a chance of levelling the series. Stuart Broad was off his long run in training and the expectation is that he will replace Gareth Batty in the side as England opt for a bowling attack with four pacemen and two spinners for the first time this winter. This potential change will not reflect any notion that the ruddy pitch at the Wankhede Stadium is unlikely to help spinners, just the simple fact that England’s third spinner, whoever it has been, has not contributed much throughout the tour.
It is remarkable that England have won their past two Tests in Mumbai – in 2012 and 2006. It would be mildly astonishing if they made it three in a row.
