ENG VS IND 5th Test: Ollie Robinson’s Strenuous Outing in India: McCullum Defends, Injury Bared
In the aftermath of England’s series defeat in India, head coach Brendon McCullum offered a supportive stance for Ollie Robinson, despite the seamer’s challenging performance in the fourth Test.
However, questions surrounding Robinson‘s durability in his third year of Test cricket persist. Let’s delve into the details of Robinson’s struggles and McCullum’s defense, shedding light on the potential impact on his Test career.
Robinson was set up for a major part in the final stages of this five-match series, and following strong performances in the nets, England was granted permission to play the fourth Test in Ranchi. The choice proved to be unwise.
Robinson was unsatisfactory with the ball despite opening the game with his first Test fifty, which enabled England to reach a first innings total of 353. Although he occasionally slowed down to 60 mph, his average speed was in the late 70s, far from the cutting edge that his 76 Test wickets at 22.92 indicate he is capable of. In addition, he bowled six no-balls, maintaining a tense rapport with that front line.
Before Dhruv Jurel was removed from the game at the age of 59, Robinson bowled just 13 overs in the match, all of which came in the first innings, giving India an extra 41 runs in their reply. After that, he was concealed in the field and did not see any action during the second innings as England futilely attempted to defend a target of 192. It was a sobering return to duty following nearly eight months away.
After the game, Ben Stokes stated that Robinson was eligible to bowl and that his underutilization was due to a spinning track. But given his track record of excellence on a range of surfaces and his professed preference for the heat of battle, it seemed like a betrayal of confidence from the England captain to a player he had almost managed to shake out of a slump during his first summer as Test captain.
Robinson appeared listless with the ball, but McCullum disclosed that he was nursing an injury he sustained while batting: “He actually twinged his back while batting in the first innings, which is why in those initial couple of spells, he was down on pace.” We observed that the next day, as his back started to feel better, his pace returned to normal.”
The head coach continued to endorse Robinson, whose last competitive game was the third Ashes Test at Headingley this summer, when a back spasm prevented him from playing, but he was unable to provide an explanation for why such a well-thought-out choice had gone wrong.
“I don’t think it was too soon, it was seven months since his last Test so if anything, it’s probably too long between,” McCullum stated. “Everything he did before the Test match gave us the impression that we would see not just the Ollie Robinson we had seen before, but a greater one.
“He’s obviously not just as disappointed as everyone else, but the most dissatisfied of all, that it didn’t quite work out for him for whatever reason. It is our responsibility to get past him and provide him with the support and self-assurance he needs to be able to go again when the opportunity presents itself. It’s only athletics, right? There are moments when you fall short of your high standards.”
Coming to India fitter and eager to make up for a poor three Tests against Australia the previous summer, the player himself appeared ready to make a significant impression. Despite his consistent good training, there is still a feeling that he could do better.
Robinson signed a 12-month contract with the intention of using it as motivation to prove he was worth a longer-term commitment in the following cycle, amidst a sea of multi-year central contracts. Currently, a man who was expected to take Stuart Broad’s place—even surpassing Broad at times in his first 18 months of playing Test cricket—may find himself further down the ladder, though McCullum indicated he doesn’t lose hope.
“He’s obviously having a lot of pain, and it’s a difficult game for him. He’ll be the first to acknowledge that we’ve all seen Robbo bowl better than he did. All we need to do is work around him and make sure he fixes a couple of the items that didn’t function properly this week. He bowls quite well, as we all know. His track record indicates that he has talent; the only thing left to do is make sure that talent can be released so he may reach his goals.
“We are aware of his skill level, high release point, and ability to move the ball off the seam; his abilities are adequate for this level. We simply need to make sure we figure out how to bring out the best in him.”
England is not exempt from responsibility. They are aware that he is a bowler who need overs to maintain peak fitness, particularly given the length of time between games.
Instead of warming up, the visitors participated in an extremely productive pre-season camp in Abu Dhabi. But looking back, Robinson may have had some midfield experience with the England Lions, which would have been advantageous. The day before the second Test, they played their third match in Ahmedabad against India A, where James Anderson was the only fast in an assault that relied heavily on spin.
Prior to the tour, Robinson and his partner, golf influencer Mia Baker, revealed a new podcast, which caught the management off guard. Throughout the tour, the two have been filming episodes. While most of the content has been harmless, England, who have some creative control over the extracurricular activities of their contracted players, has taken offense at some of the material, especially when Robinson stated the ECB had initially erred in his visa application.
The information was made public while the governing body was frantically trying to resolve Shoaib Bashir’s visa issue, which caused the offspinner from Somerset to arrive a week later than scheduled and miss the opening Test.
The sixth episode, which debuted this week and included Robinson talking about the team’s mid-series vacation in Abu Dhabi, has since been taken down.
It is unclear if Robinson will participate in the fifth Test in Dharamsala. More favourable conditions for seamers mean he might have a chance at redemption, but it’s probable that England will continue to use Anderson, who is two wickets shy of 700 career wickets, along with Shoaib Bashir and Tom Hartley.
McCullum did promise that Jonny Bairstow would receive his 100th Test cap. The 34-year-old has found the series difficult, but after scoring 38 and 30 on a hard pitch in the most recent Test, McCullum is confident Bairstow will celebrate the milestone in style.
Indeed, he will be participating in his 100th Test. We hope Jonny does well. Jonny too enjoys reaching a goal. He will not back down from it. He’s going to play. For him, it will be quite emotional.
Everyone is aware of Jonny’s experience, and as you are all aware, he can be extremely emotional at times, so significant anniversaries like that hold a lot of significance for him. We are excited to share this very special and emotional time with him.
To satisfy their golf itch, most of the team traveled to Bangalore on Tuesday morning. Stokes will be among a smaller group traveling to a Chandigarh resort on Wednesday; their only real itinerary is to see Dune 2 at the theater. Next Monday, they will reconvene in the Himalayan highlands ahead of the start of the final Test on March 7.
While England will aim to return home with a respectable 3-2 victory, McCullum believes his charges will begin a new, more brutal chapter. Now that we have missed chances in the Ashes and here as well, it is time to grow from those errors.
“To be honest, they were better than us not being good enough, but we weren’t quite good enough when it mattered. We had our opportunities against Australia and just couldn’t quite manage to cross the finish line. This group of people is still growing as a unit. As a cricket squad, we are good. We have the potential to be a very competitive cricket side, in my opinion.
There are moments in games when we’re still working on perfecting our technique. I still believe that sometimes we lose sight of what needs to be done right away or become distracted by other thoughts. In those situations, we need to learn how to be fully present, recognize that the game is about to change, try to eliminate all outside influences, make a decision, and see it through to completion.
“I believe this squad will advance if we take such action. Things are moving along nicely. Even though we lost this series and the Ashes, as a cricket team we are now stronger than we were eighteen months ago. And in the next eighteen months, we have the chance to do some very spectacular stuff.”
