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Ollie Pope’s repeated mistakes show England cricket’s state of confusion | Andy Bull

Questions should be asked why young batter widely considered best on the circuit is making same mistakes he did as a rookie

August 2018 and England are playing India in the third Test at Trent Bridge. They are losing, 32 for two in the fourth innings and 489 runs behind. Joe Root is in, batting with the team’s latest call-up, Ollie Pope. Pope had made his debut at Lord’s the week before, when he became their youngest middle-order batsman since Denis Compton, 70 years earlier.

Here, he hits his first ball through cover for one four and his third through gully for another. Handsome shots, but they betray a vulnerability, too. India’s bowlers hold that line outside off stump and, soon enough, he edges a catch to third slip for 16.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/3nwhrK2

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