New Zealand v England: Chances available for Test places - Trevor Bayliss

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England appeal
England were unable to force victory on the final evening in Christchurch

England could make a number of changes to their Test team this summer if others can stake their claim, says head coach Trevor Bayliss.

Joe Root's side drew the second Test in New Zealand to lose the series 1-0, on the back of a 4-0 Ashes defeat.

County players will get their chance to impress when the domestic season gets under way on 13 April, with England's first Test against Pakistan on 24 May.

"Those early matches back home, I think, will mean a lot," Bayliss said.

"There are chances available - if you're scoring a lot of runs and taking a lot of wickets, you're going to be very close.

"(But) I don't think there's anyone at home putting their hand up at the moment and saying come and pick me."

England lost the Ashes 4-0 at the start of the winter and were bowled out for 58 as they lost the first Test against New Zealand.

England sent down 104.4 overs on the final day of the second Test as they tried to force a victory against Kane Williamson's men.

However, Ish Sodhi batted for more than three hours and Neil Wagner's seven runs came from 103 balls as the two held England off.

"It was frustrating. This week is a big building block for us moving forward," captain Joe Root told Test Match Special.

"I think there's a lot of evidence there is a bit of change in the way we've gone about things in this game. I'm sure there'll be more of that moving forward."

Questions remain over top order

Bayliss added that batsmen Mark Stoneman and James Vince had "shown what they are capable of" in the Test at Christchurch.

Opener Stoneman made 60 and Vince hit 76 in England's second innings but there are still questions over their places at the top of the order.

Alastair Cook also had a difficult winter. He scored 23 runs in four innings against New Zealand and passed 50 just once over the winter - but he converted that into an unbeaten 244 in Melbourne.

"England will leave New Zealand with as many questions as they had when they arrived, which is disappointing," ex-England spinner Graeme Swann told TMS.

"Reading between the lines, I think they're going to continue with Vince, but they're not convinced about Stoneman.

"If I were a young player in the country like Nick Gubbins or Haseeb Hameed, I'd be thinking I can get in."

In the seven Tests England played in Australia and New Zealand, Stuart Broad and James Anderson took a combined 47 wickets at 29.82

The other bowlers took a combined 34 wickets at an average of 72.85.

England tried more short-pitched bowling during the second Test, using Mark Wood as an enforcer to try and unsettle the batsmen.

"We had plenty of options out there and I think that's really promising for us," Root added.

"The more we can harness that and take that forward, the better side we'll be away from home for it."

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199 comments

  • Comment posted by Devonboy, at 12:19 3 Apr 2018

    I'd also like to see some changes before the next test series - starting with Bayliss being replaced as coach. The silence from anyone at the ECB regarding the performance of the test team this winter has been deafening.

  • Comment posted by rayatwitt, at 11:31 3 Apr 2018

    Well trevor.....if the county matches back could mean a lot......perhaps you might go along and watch some?????

  • Comment posted by lenton, at 11:30 3 Apr 2018

    A poor series against Australia and now New Zealand, insufficient preparation, team selection , tactics, why did we bowl so much short pitched delivers today from Wood when Broad and Anderson were moving the ball around. Poor management and poor captain. Need to make changes

  • Comment posted by U16966419, at 15:09 3 Apr 2018

    Strauss and co should've realised by now Bayliss is not the man to run a test squad and that should be his last match in charge but I doubt the ECB will have the gumption to make a change

  • Comment posted by WurzelJ, at 12:52 3 Apr 2018

    All the quotes from Root are unconvincing cliches. Why interview him ? 'A great building block for us going forwards'...my arm !

  • Comment posted by Baztheace1, at 11:25 3 Apr 2018

    This sums up Bayliss and Root. Useless team selection tactics and decisions BEFORE the first test. Chance to put them right not taken for the second test where Livingstone , who Kohli Smith Williamson would have selected without hesitation, sits out a Busman's holiday when the team was crying out for his batting, Leg Spin & Fielding. Bayliss should be fired and Root dumped as captain

  • Comment posted by LD Rob, at 14:21 3 Apr 2018

    Changes: Bayliss not test coach. Root not captain. A balanced attack (what happens after Anderson & Broad?). A proper spinner. Batting at least 3 new players given an opportunity. Tests back on free to air TV. Cheaper tickets for tests. Tests played in high summer. ECB board sacked. More like a revolution!

  • Comment posted by The Black Pele, at 13:31 3 Apr 2018

    @29 I think you'll find Anderson has been carrying the team. Bairstow and Stokes are also class players. Root is wasting his talent and the rubbish he comes out with in interviews is very annoying.

  • Comment posted by Tim Drew, at 12:22 3 Apr 2018

    Very surprised that whether Root is a good captain does not come up in more in these discussions. Whilst I understand that there are not many candidates, IA m not sure what he brings to the role - other than telling us 'we are moving forward' after each defeat and seeming to preside over a private club where it is almost impossible to be dropped from the team

  • Comment posted by Gedders, at 11:07 3 Apr 2018

    England need a proper look at themselves. But they have got to be balanced. Stoneman seems to be getting a lot of flak but he's had to bat with a totally out of form Alistair Cook. The stats above for the batsmen are skewed as Cook literally scored all his runs in one innings. I hope Stoneman is not treated the same as Michael Carberry was in 2015. I also see reasons not to give up yet on Vince.

  • Comment posted by Zayphod, at 14:06 3 Apr 2018

    Trevor Bayliss bumbling estate agent & 1-day coach. Test cricket a very different game requiring great cunning guile strategy & tactics

    He has no medals - not played test cricket

    England Test Team badly let down by ECB not appointing Jason Gillespie as Head Coach who wanted to play Keven Peterson & WIN the Ashes !

    No improvement until he is sacked & a PROPER Test Head Coach is appointed

  • Comment posted by Protoid, at 12:39 3 Apr 2018

    Bayliss has done wonders for the one day team (his specialty) but not convinced about his test match quality. Scraping by without a proper spinner and backup economical bowlers who can't take wickets abroad was always going to fail eventually. I'm sure they'll win all their home series and everyone will forget this just to repeat it next winter. Pace isn't always the answer...look at Philander!

  • Comment posted by MarkG2, at 13:46 3 Apr 2018

    Re post 25 (Fonsboy) - To say test cricket is dead in the UK and the majority of supporters only watch the one day game shows how little you know. We are one of the countries that still love the format and most test match days are sold out! One day and 20 20 is all well and good but after a while it is very 'samey' where as the 5 day format provides the real spectacle!

  • Comment posted by CDawg, at 12:21 3 Apr 2018

    10. Posted by moonsorrow999

    Agreed.

    Wood adds very, very little to the attack. up and down, no swing, no bounce and barley quicker than Broad.

  • Comment posted by Hostamosta, at 09:50 4 Apr 2018

    Here is the issue. The Championship, proper cricket, has been sidelined in favour of junior school T20. it needs to take its place back in the middle of summer, otherwise we will never develop the bowlers we need to be properly incisive. We should all get out and support a few proper county games this summer, let the ECB know that it maters.

  • Comment posted by Ash, at 16:18 3 Apr 2018

    When will england bowlers learn to ball yorkers or at the stump when tailenders are in. Pathetic short balls everytime.

  • Comment posted by Geoff , at 15:11 3 Apr 2018

    Cant see the point of keeping Bayliss , a new approach is needed.

  • Comment posted by Baztheace1, at 14:54 3 Apr 2018

    Re 39 Totally agree Bayliss is not a test coach and everyone on the planet thinks Root is nowhere near captain material Kohli would have had Livingstone in for the first test (he was in the squad) and Leach. Root is an old Victorian style captain in a modern day era.He's abysmal on this tour of Australia and NZ and his non selection of LL bordered on the criminal.Bad decisions in NZ second innings

  • Comment posted by Richard, at 21:29 3 Apr 2018

    Hardly surprising the test team cannot win other than home series. It's the same for all the other countries given the odd exception. Of course what doesn't help our players is the dilution of the county championship and now playing all the fixtures in the cold days of April/May and the rest at the fag end of our wonderful unsunny summers!

  • Comment posted by Baztheace1, at 16:28 3 Apr 2018

    Re65 Yes Graham as you put it "Pick players in form" As Graeme Thorpe the assistant batting coach and David Lloyd put it " The player in form coming into this tour is Liam Livingstone". He bats at 3 which is England's problem position, he bowls leg spin (and who else does) and along with Ben Stokes is the best fielder in the England set up so nailed on for selection.Not with Bayliss/Root in charge

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