Parallel Lines

If you’ve seen the film Sliding Doors you’ll know that it contains two different plotlines that run in parallel throughout the film. One plot assumes the heroine catches a tube train she’s running for – the other assumes she misses it.

(If you haven’t seen it, don’t go out of your way to – it’s rubbish. I’m merely using it to illustrate a point)

The point is this – any thoughts you might have about the future of the England cricket team have to contain two separate plotlines;

The first assumes that at some stage in the next twelve months Freddie is fit – the other assumes he never plays for England again.

If you read all the reports in this morning’s papers, , consider the past history of the accursed ankle and factor in intangibles like ‘for God’s sake, he’s got to get better, he’s the best all rounder we’ve had since Botham’ – I’d say it’s a 50:50 bet on which scenario plays out.

What happens in the first instance is pretty straightforward – he gets fit, maybe for the winter – bats 7 when we go with a four-man attack (something that having Monty means we could do quite a lot abroad) and with Prior at 8 the batting has real depth. If we need five bowlers, then he goes back to his old No. 6 position and it’s business as usual.

It’s the second scenario that can give you palpitations and forces you to start using the word ‘if’ far too often for comfort so you end up sounding like a demented Rudyard Kipling. If Simon Jones can make a full recovery, if Alan Donald can make something decent out of Ker-Plunk, (thanks, Harry!) if Harmison grows up (just our luck to have a strike bowler with the psychological fortitude of a ten year old girl) if Matty stays fit and if Broad turns into what we hope he will, then we might just be able to overcome Freddie’s absence from the bowling attack. Again, in a four-man attack with three of the ‘ifs’ plus Monty it’s not looking too shabby.

Batting-wise, scenario two is less problematic. You have a 1-6 of recognised batsmen – who by the end of the West Indies series should all be averaging in the high seventies, Prior at 7, then four bowlers with The Pies, KP and Vaughan as emergency back up. If 5 bowlers called for, Prior could (just) go 6… but it makes for a heck of a long tail.

All this assumes that another all-rounder doesn’t develop - Bopara perhaps?

It doesn’t make for comfortable consideration, but it’s something we need to face up to. It's better that than having to watch 'Sliding Doors' – trust me.