England eye Ravi Bopara as Paul Collingwood’s replacement in Tests - cricket news
Ravi Bopara has made it clear that he wants a place in the English team after the departure of Paul Collingwood. England is searching for a player who will replace iconic all-rounder Paul Collinwood in Test matches. Collinwood retired from Test cricket after
he successfully defended Ashes series in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 in December, 2010.
Collingwood used to bat at the number six spot in the batting line-up. After his retirement his place in the team is up for grabs. Many players’ names have emerged as the surrogate for the cricketer and amongst them the most likely candidate is Ravi Bopara.
Bopara is considered a batsman who can bowl but recently he has been bowling long spells for his county sides, thus indicating that he is more of an all-rounder than just a batsman. In a recently concluded match, Ravi bowled 39 overs and a week earlier he
bowled 31 overs against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Northamptonshire-c824. This clearly underscores his intentions of making a name as an all-rounder.
Ravi is a medium pacer and bowls wicket to wicket. He is not a wicket taking option and he may take a wicket here and there but he is more of a container. Colly played a similar role during his time in the England team. Eoin Morgan is the strongest competitor
for Ravi. The only advantage he has over Morgan is that the left hander is just a batsman and can’t bowl.
The strategy applied by the English team in Test matches favour Ravi because they play four specialist bowlers in the team and need a back up bowler and the medium pace of Ravi can be of great help for the Poms.
Ravi was asked to play in the Indian Premier League but turned down an offer from http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Rajasthan-c837 Royals that was worth £150,000. He did this in order to focus on his Test career and it seems he is desperate for the spot left by Colly.
"I sat down with Goochie [http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Graham-c60529 Gooch] and had a little chat. I knew what he was going to say but it was good to hear it anyway: ‘I don’t think you should go. You’ve got a great opportunity to grab a Test spot and hopefully
stay there for the next 10 years,” said Ravi.
Ronnie Irani, former England cricketer, gave a similar speech to the all-rounder. Ravi has played a lot of cricket under Irani and he thinks that the former English cricket knows everything about him, so his advice really mattered for him.
Ravi stated that he would have been playing in the IPL had he been part of Test team but since he is not part of the team he has to ignore the lucrative league and focus on regaining a place in the squad.
“My main aim in my career is to play Test cricket for England. I really enjoyed the two seasons I played at the IPL, but I don’t think I’m missing out now. My action has become more repetitive and I know where I’m putting the ball more often now,” said Ravi.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Durham-c782 are other entrants for the all important number six spot.
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