Liam Dawson is an excellent choice to come into the England squad, and probably the team, for next week’s fourth Test against India at Old Trafford. And he has a chance now to show what he can do before the Ashes.
I’ve always thought Dawson is a tough cricketer, as well as a talented one. He’s got 18 first-class hundreds, 15 five-fors and knows his game inside out – as everyone at Hampshire has been telling us ever since he last played a Test in 2017.
I understand why he drifted out of England contention. Not everyone is happy to spend a long tour carrying the drinks, especially when there are so many lucrative franchise offers out there. But relations seem to have thawed and Dawson clearly impressed Brendon McCullum when he returned to international cricket during the recent T20 series against West Indies.
You feel for Shoaib Bashir, but that’s the nature of the game: an injury opens the door for someone else. And Dawson has the chance to show what a competitor he is, not just with the ball, but with his all-round game.
If he goes in at No 8, that could be the start of a seriously strong lower order, possibly with Gus Atkinson, who has scored a Test century, at No 9, and Brydon Carse, who batted so well at Lord’s, at No 10.
It’s clear, too, that England have moved on from Jack Leach, who has a good relationship with Ben Stokes but lacks Dawson’s all-round qualities. And that could be important when England decide which spin bowlers to take to Australia this winter. You need steel to succeed out there, and Dawson has it in abundance.
Liam Dawson is an excellent choice to come into England’s squad for next week’s fourth Test versus India
Dawson clearly impressed Brendon McCullum when he returned to international cricket during the recent T20 series against West Indies
It’s also interesting that the selectors have gone from one extreme to the other – from picking Bashir based on watching social-media footage to selecting a bloke who already has international experience and has done the hard yards in county cricket.
England seem to be moving away from the really left-field selections, such as Josh Hull for last year’s Oval Test against Sri Lanka, and saying to the county game: if you score runs and take wickets, you’ve got a chance. Sam Cook got the nod for the Zimbabwe Test, now Dawson is in the mix again.
It’s a good pick, and a fillip for domestic cricketers around the country.
