Follow UsOllie Pope was under severe pressure from the outside, heading into the first Test against India, on June 20 (Friday) at Headingley. His numbers were far too inferior to be England’s No.3, especially against top sides like Australia and India, where he averaged 22.05 despite a 196 against India in Hyderabad.
With Jacob Bethell breathing down his neck, Pope had to prove his worth, and he did, with a fine century against Jasprit Bumrah and co, off just 131 balls. The situation was no rosy when he walked in to bat at 4/1, with Bumrah making the ball talk.
Ben Duckett, who watched Pope manoeuvre past the early phase, said that it was clear in the dressing room that he was going to play.
"There's noise outside of a dressing room, but there's no noise in it," Duckett said. "We're not having discussions in the dressing room about who's going to play. It seemed pretty clear coming into this Test match [that] if a bloke scores 170 a few weeks ago, he is going to play this game."
Duckett also shut down any talks of England replacing him, stating that he’s England’s No.3.
"If someone needs you to get around him, we'll do that; if someone needs to be left alone, we'll do the same," Duckett said. "What's been going on through Popey's head for the last few weeks, I don't know. But to be told two or three days out that you're playing is probably a good thing… The way Popey's dealt with it has been superb and just sums up and proves why he's England's No. 3."
As one would have predicted, Bumrah was India’s best bowler in the innings, with figures of 3/48, and threatened to take a wicket every time he bowled. Duckett, who himself got a reprieve off Bumrah’s bowling, revealed that things could have been a ‘lot worse’ on day two for England.
"He [Bumrah] is the best bowler in the world," Duckett said. "He's extremely hard to face. He's good in any conditions; he's good in India on the flattest pitches ever and when he's coming in down the hill [at Headingley] with the lights on and it's swinging both ways.
"I feel like we minimised the damage early on. It could have been a lot worse today… He is just a world-class bowler, and you can't let someone like him just bowl; he's too good for that. You've got to still try and put him under pressure, and try to put the bad balls away."