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 Australia 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 Northamptonshire. 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 Rajasthan
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 [Essex and England batting coach Graham
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.
James Hildreth, skipper for the England Lions, and Ben Stokes the 19-year veteran cricketer for Durham are other entrants for the all important number six spot.
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