England clinched a first home series whitewash of Pakistan with an eight-wicket win in the third Test at Edgbaston, but who stood out from Joe Root's side - and who didn't? A Test match to forget for Duckett. In fact, it has been a pretty miserable series as a whole, with his first-innings 17 at Lord's serving as his highest score.
He did, however, notch England's only Test ton of the summer against New Zealand at Trent Bridge, so his place at the top of the order isn't under threat - at least for now... Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player He was also a bit butter-fingered in the slips this week, dropping three chances, albeit his two put down in the first innings didn't prove too costly as Pakistan were still bundled out for 133 in only 33.5 overs. It has been a bit of a back-and-forth affair with regards to Gay's place in the starting Test side going forward, with the Durham left-hander seemingly locking up his spot with another battling half-century in the first innings - his third such score this summer.
But then his second-innings duck has somewhat opened up the debate again, especially given the performance of others who could end up elbowing him out of the way when the currently injured Jacob Bethell likely returns to the team. It was, admittedly, a terrific delivery from Mohammad Abbas that ensured he wouldn't trouble the scorers in the second innings, but it's precisely why he'll be kicking himself with how he got out first time round - dragging a wide one from Razaullah back onto his stumps - when a first Test hundred was there for the taking. Much like Gay, Cox's fortunes and future prospects see-sawed a touch over the course of this Test, as he copped a low one in the first innings - also falling foul of Abbas, lbw - but his calm, unbeaten half-century alongside the skipper on the fourth morning saw England to victory from a positon of peril at 2-2.
It will have been hard for Joe Root not to have taken note of that, as he looks for the right sort of characters to take this side forward. And Cox seems to have character in spades. That was also evident with his keeping, when deputising impressively for Jamie Smith, who sat out the second innings with an injured thumb.
He claimed four terrific catches and a stumping to finally end Razaullah's extraordinary knock. Just when England needed a captain's innings, Root duly obliged, his unbeaten half-century on the fourth morning - just his third of a barren summer by his standards - allaying any fears of a catastrophic late collapse to defeat. Instead, he celebrates a series sweep - England's first at home over Pakistan - on his return as permanent Test captain, though his lbw issues persist after Razaullah was the one to pin him in the first innings, in spectacular fashion with only his fourth ball in Test cricket.
It takes Root's tally to eight such dismissals from his 10 Test innings' this summer. Also, he moved one clear of Australia's Steve Smith and onto 220 in their personal battle to claim the record number of catches by an outfielder in Test cricket. Brook will be another kicking himself for missing out on a hundred in the first innings, with one seemingly at his mercy before he needlessly ran himself out on the second morning.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
