England’s Gareth Batty relishes first Test wicket in 11 years
Batty arrived in Bangladesh aged 39 and determined to enjoy his second coming as an England player, however brief it may be.
This article titled “England’s Gareth Batty relishes first Test wicket in 11 years” was written by Vic Marks at Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, for The Guardian on Friday 21st October 2016 14.42 UTCFor Gareth Batty the wait for another Test wicket (his 12th) lasted 11 years. At Chester-le-Street in June 2005 he dismissed Bangladesh’s Mohammad Ashraful. Here, in rather warmer conditions and a much closer game, he had Tamim Iqbal caught behind for 78. This is not a record. The Englishman with the longest gap between Test wickets is surprisingly Len Hutton, who took his second Test wicket in 1939 and his third (Richie Benaud) in 1955.
In Chittagong the colour rushed to Batty’s cheeks as Tamim headed off to the pavilion: he punched the air and let loose a roar of celebration. I suspect Hutton was more restrained upon Benaud’s departure. “Unfortunately that’s me”, said Batty. “If you’re an average player you’ve got to enjoy every bit of success.” Hence he contrived to be both feisty and self-effacing on the same day.
Batty arrived in Bangladesh aged 39 and determined to enjoy his second coming as an England player, however brief it may be. He described his Test comeback as “nerve-racking” despite all those years. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous before … but at least you know you’re alive when that happens.”
Batty was given the new ball by his captain, something he could not remember happening before, and, to borrow his own assessment, he bowled “a pie” first ball, which was cracked to the cover boundary. “But it got a bit better after that.” He settled down to become England’s most accurate spinner, though not necessarily their most threatening.
Gradually Batty drew on his vast experience, which allowed him to conclude: “I leaked 10 runs more than I should have done.” But in this regard he was less culpable than his colleagues. “We bowled some good balls,” Batty said, “but sometimes you have got to hold the game and we could have done that better. But they played well.”
Batty remains in vibrant, optimistic mood. “Wow, it’s been amazing to be back in an England shirt. They had some good partnerships but [Ben] Stokes’ wicket [that of Mushfiqur Rahim who fell just before the close] has brought us right back into it.”
As the senior pro in a fragile spin department, it is his job to dispense wisdom to his spinning colleagues as well as off-breaks to a perfect length. On this surface England cannot allow Bangladesh – 72 runs behind with five wickets remaining – a first-innings lead of any substance.
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