'It was after the Oval Test and Baz came over and said: 'You're in. You've had a great summer in terms of stepping up to lead the attack and I want your experience. I feel you can have a really positive impact on the other players, on and off the field. I can't guarantee selection but we want you to fulfil that role for us this winter.""
With that, Chris Woakes was folding up his England whites and popping them in the suitcase for the first time in two and a half years. Destination? Multan, for the threeTest series against Pakistan that begins on Monday. The mission? A series win, naturally. But, on a personal level, a correction to the numbers and narrative that make this return to life on the road a very Brendon McCullum selection.
At home, the figures are stellar and worth repeating. Fresh from 24 wickets at 20.25 in a 5-1 Test summer, Woakes has 137 at 21.59 on home soil. It is the lowest bowling average for any seamer in England with 100-plus victims, bar Fred Trueman and Alec Bedser. The strike rate - a wicket every 42.9 balls - is bettered by no one. Throw in the runs from No 8, the professionalism, plus the small matter of two World Cup winner's medals, and McCullum, always sunny side up admittedly, wasn't hyperbolising when hailing a "remarkable cricketer" during the season.
But chatting over a flat white in Birmingham last week before flying to Pakistan, Woakes, acknowledged the flip side; those 36 wickets at 51 on the road that have kept the chatterati going during the course of his 11-year Test career. He is not immune to the eyebrows raised at this overseas recall, the jokes about confiscating his passport, nor is he consumed by them either. The backing of his head coach and his captain, Ben Stokes, is plenty.
Denne historien er fra October 04, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
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Denne historien er fra October 04, 2024-utgaven av The Guardian.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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