Geoffrey Boycott, a former England player, praised Harry Brook after his outstanding century against New Zealand but thinks that the batsman may find it difficult to handle short balls in the forthcoming Ashes, which will start on June 16.
Geoffrey Boycott referred to Brook as the “greatest natural stroke player England have had since Kevin Pietersen,” but he thinks the Australian seamers, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Pat Cummins, would target him with the short ball since they have the extra speed to worry the batter.
“I believe the Australians will put up a fight against him this summer with the short ball. He automatically hooks up, and because of their seamers’ increased speed and quality, hooking up might be a “getting out” shot. It would be fantastic if he could consistently hit for six points, but it would be asking a lot. Boycott said in his most recent column for The Telegraph, “He went out hooked in his first Test match at the Oval, to South Africa’s Marco Jansen caught at fine leg and Jansen is just lively fast medium.
“He played on hooking Neil Wagner, who no longer has any pace, against New Zealand. The veteran cricketer said, “Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc are faster, and even Josh Hazlewood gets weird bounce.
The England coaches ought to pull him aside and point out these things: Geoffrey Boycott
The 82-year-old continued by saying that Brook should be made aware of this by the team management, and that they must adequately prepare him for the crucial Ashes.
“The England coaches ought to pull him aside and point this out so that he has time to make a small adjustment, lessening the risk of the hook shot. We’ve all erred by hitting the ball and getting out at some point or another, Geoffrey Boycott wrote.
Also, he gave a personal professional example and suggested ways the cricketer may develop.
In 1973, when playing the West Indies at Lord’s, I made my most infamous error. Alvin Kallicharran caught Keith Boyce at the fine leg, and I moved in. It is insufficient to simply hit the ball with your hand and make good contact. The secret is control. There are typically two fielders waiting for you in the outfield, so you must be quite clear about where you anticipate to place the ball. I erred in that,” Boycott continued.
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