Former skipper Nasser Hussain reckons it's good that England's selectors choose to look beyond the struggling Jonny Bairstow but he failed to understand why Jos Buttler was picked for the wicketkeeping job in New Zealand instead of a quality specialist in Ben Foakes.
Bairstow made only 214 runs from 10 innings in the Ashes and Buttler managed 247. But while the former got dropped, latter was retained in the squad announced on Monday (September 23) to face off the Black Caps in November.
"One confusing element to the squad, though, is that I can't say that Jos Buttler is a better keeper than Jonny Bairstow. I don't believe he is," Hussain wrote for Daily Mail. "Buttler might not even be Lancashire's second-choice keeper if he were to play county cricket. Sure, maybe leave Bairstow out for a better keeper like Ben Foakes. But this switch?"
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"Bairstow averaged 23.77 as a wicketkeeper-batsman in the recently-concluded Ashes series; Buttler 24.7 as a batsman. Buttler would no doubt argue that he got stuck with the tail a few times but that goes with the territory of batting at number seven. It doesn't add up."
Hussain thinks it shows a genuine lack of foresight that England continues to waver between Craig Overton and Chris Woakes.
"I have always said that, with any selection you make, you should be looking at what might happen one step down the line. Take Craig Overton, for the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford," Hussain wrote. "They picked him and left Chris Woakes out, even though Woakes' bowling statistics in English conditions are magnificent."
"Then, they picked a tour squad (for New Zealand) for which they left out Overton, and went for Woakes, whose stats away from home are abysmal. They have either got the initial Overton selection wrong, Woakes' winter pick wrong, or arguably both."
Hussain took a direct jibe at chief selector Ed Smith saying this "short-terminism" isn't holding England in good stead.
"What I don't like is making one-off selections for Tests, something I have felt this particular England selection panel do. In any selection you make, think of the repercussions."
"Ed Smith clearly takes a different view. He tries to analyse selection in every single game but that can over-complicate things and promote short-termism. It is then hard to make longer-term judgments on where the side is," he added.
"They've probably seen this as an opportunity 'to have a look at people'. It's not a saying I have ever liked. Once you get selected for England it's because people believe you are an international player, based on what you have shown in county cricket."
England will play two Tests in New Zealand. The series won't be part of the inaugural World Test Championship.
(Inputs from Daily Mail)
