Brearley the best mentor for England (16 June 1999)

16 June 1999

Brearley the best mentor for England

Dickie Bird

Like all cricket enthusiasts, I sometimes sit at home with pen and paper and imagine myself to be an England selector. I jot down a list of names, juggle them around, and eventually come up with my best XI.

Following England's inglorious exit from the World Cup, I have been at it again this week. And I have come to the conclusion that the only way of escape from England's present predicament is to build a Test team around Graham Thorpe, Nasser Hussain, Mark Ramprakash, Darren Gough and Alan Mullally.

Those five were top of my list. Then I pencilled in Chris Lewis, of Leicestershire, as the all-rounder in the side. I know he has had his problems, but this fellow has so much natural ability, and I would give him another chance. If my fellow selectors did not agree, then I would go for Gavin Hamilton, of Yorkshire.

It is so important that England have a genuine all-rounder in the side because that position has created so many problems. England have never replaced Ian Botham. Simple as that. He was a truly great player and we may not see his like again. But that all-rounder slot has to be filled. And I believe Lewis is the best England have.

Having sorted that out, I would look to complete the team with young players who were mentally strong and had the potential to play in a lot of Test matches. I would then back my judgment and keep them in the side, irrespective of early results or initial lapses in form.

Take South African Jacques Kallis as an example. He had a very lean start to his Test career and if he had been playing for England, he would probably have been left out, and that would have been the last we would have seen of him at international level. But the South Africans persevered with him and he is now one of the best all-rounders in the world.

It is, however, so important to bring in players with a belief in themselves.

When Bjorn Borg played at Wimbledon, he would walk out on to that famous Centre Court for the first time and say to himself: "Who will I meet in the final this year?" When Jack Nicklaus strode to the first tee in a major championship, he would be thinking: "I wonder who will finish second?" All the greatest sportsmen are like that. Mentally strong.

Instilling that self-belief into players is far more important than concentrated coaching. It is all too easy to coach natural flair and ability out of youngsters. Indeed, I do not believe, when players have reached the point where they display the Three Lions proudly on their chest, that there is any need for a coach to the England team. The ideal format, in my opinion, is a manager, a strong captain and a strong senior professional.

Thorpe would be ideal for the last role, and I would go for either Hussain or Ramprakash as captain. If I had to put my head on the block right now. I would probably go for Hussain. He is a very tough character who knows the game and in many ways reminds me of the Australian attitude to Test cricket.

Which leaves the manager. And I feel that the England and Wales Cricket Board must move heaven and earth to try to persuade Mike Brearley to come back into the game and take over the reins. He was a great captain, a brilliant tactician and is superb at man-management. He always had the respect of all the players - and umpires, too, for that matter.

In addition, I would call upon the back-up of Botham, who is the greatest all-round cricketer England have produced in the modern era.

And the vast experience of Graham Gooch and Mike Gatting, as members of the selection panel, would also be there if required.

People may argue that the World Cup proved that England are simply not good enough and would struggle no matter who was at the helm, and I have to confess I was very disappointed and sad to see them go out before the Super Six stage.

After all, I had tipped them to win the competition because, as I saw it, everything was in their favour. Matches were being played in May and early June when moisture on the squares and in the air would help players who had been brought up in such conditions. And I honestly thought the selectors picked the right players at the time.

However, even if England are not good enough now, I am sure that Brearley, within the framework I have suggested, would bring about a big improvement in fortunes. If anyone can do it, he can.

If there is one criticism I can make of him it is that I was not always sure what he was talking about. He accused me of being neurotic. I asked him to explain.

"Well," he replied, "you get halfway down the M1 for a fixture down south and you'll turn round and go all the way back home just to make sure you've locked the door, set the burglar alarm, and turned off the gas fire." As if I would.

I also remember him saying to me when we were chatting after play one evening: "Dickie, there is no such thing as an absolute certainty, only the certainty that befits the subject. What is certain or accurate for a carpenter is not certain or accurate for a geometer."

Now what the hell does that mean? All I can say is that when it comes to giving lbw decisions I always had to be absolutely certain, whatever Brearley might think, and there have been times when he has had me to thank for that.

But he would still be my choice as the ideal England Test team supremo.

Source :: The Electronic Telegraph