Ollie Pope keeps England alive with vital hundred for his career

Ollie Pope glanced to the sky but otherwise celebrated his finest Test hundred in a modest fashion despite the importance of the innings both personally and for England.

Pope’s fifth Test century was his first against one of the two world’s best teams – India and Australia – and in time could be regarded as his coming of age performance. That can only be judged in hindsight and on future performances but with another 16 Tests this year he has the opportunity to fully establish his career.

So far he has been an inconsistent, streaky player who has struggled to convert a first-class average over 50 to Test success prompting concerns he could be the next Mark Ramprakash or Graeme Hick.

Sometimes it is because Pope takes Bazball to extremes. He starts as if he has downed five espressos and was excitable again at the start of this innings playing a reverse sweep second ball that just eluded slip but once he was set, blossomed into a fine player to watch.

 

Four years ago he toured India during the Covid series and despite reaching 20 in four innings made nothing higher than 34. He looked befuddled by the turning pitches and lacked a plan against spin other than to try and take it on. He was similarly overawed on the last Ashes tour and his last series against Australia ended on a bum note in the summer with not just his injury but also as the instigator of the adrenaline fuelled hooking approach to the short ball barrage that cost them the Lord’s Test.

There remained question marks over his temperament in high pressure situations and this was one of those. England were in trouble against the best attack in the world in their own conditions and he had looked skittish in the first innings, once again too keen to be the man who imposed himself.