How Pope managed to get out of a Stew

OLLIE POPE revealed a heart-to-heart with his mentor Alec Stewart helped pave the way for his timely return to form against New Zealand.

- Rory Dollard

Pope's association with the former England captain runs deep, with the 61-year-old overseeing his rise through the ranks as Surrey's director of cricket.

And it was Stewart, below, who who Pope sought out after a poor series in Pakistan - in which he averaged just 11 - raised difficult questions over his role in the side.

Some those questions of were answered with his first-innings knock of 77 here for England a score that was 22 more than he managed in five innings combined on the spinning pitches of Multan and Islamabad. And he credited Stewart with helping him find focus.