Sidebottom proves a class act
When England were beating all comers during the period 2004 to 2005, the potency of their pace attack had much to do with it. Subsequent losses of form combined with injuries, particularly to Simon Jones, meant that the 'awesome foursome' have never bowled in tandem again and England have had to face up to the permanent absence of Jones and the reduced effectiveness of Andrew Flintoff.
In such times, replacements need to be found and quick and the England selectors deserve a lot of credit for backing their hunch that Ryan Sidebottom might be just such a man. First picked against Pakistan at Lord's in 2001 on the back of some excellent spells in county cricket, Sidebottom found test cricket a very tough baptism and in the absence of the swing he so easily found in the first class game, his bowling looked ordinary to batsman and spectator alike and he was quickly discarded.
6 years on after a period of re-learning his trade allied to a move to Nottinghamshire and the 2007 version of Ryan Sidebottom proved to be a completely different proposition. Right from the word go, Sidebottom has looked every inch the international opening bowler, providing both accuracy and movement in both limited over and test cricket. His ability to beat right handed batsmen on the inside of the bat combines with a knack of finding the edge of the plethora of left-handers in world cricket meaning Sidebottom is always 'at the batsman', offering very little for them to hit whilst relentlessly threatening their vulnerable off stump area.
Critics of Sidebottom point to a lack of pace yet the speed gun in New Zealand during the recent 20/20 series showed him nudging 90 mph on occasion as he consistently released his zippy swingers at a pace exceeding 85mph. Left armers are rarely fast with only Wasim Akram and the Australian Mitchell Johnson springing to mind but Sidebottom is no slouch and he looks to have increased the speed with which he bowls in the last year, perhaps due to the strenuous conditioning programme which England have undertaken and he along with the remainder of the team in the 20/20 games looked fitter and stronger than before Christmas.
England's one day cricket really looks to be going in the right direction after years in the wilderness and the penetration allied to the control that Sidebottom supplies at the start of the innings has a lot to do with that. The test side need to rekindle that winning mentality and if it does happen, expect a lot of 5 wicket hauls from the long haired left armer who has demonstrated that just because a player doesn't make the grade right away, he shouldn't be dismissed for ever.
Wello
