England opener Joe Denly is looking forward to making the most of the opportunity at St. Lucia to seal an Ashes 2019 spot, saying his real focus is to score big runs in the third and final Test against the West Indies starting on Saturday (9th February) after debut failure here.
The 32-year-old was drafted into the England squad as a replacement for the misfiring Keaton Jennings at the top of the order for the second Test, but he could not live up to the expectations, scoring only 6 and 17 on his debut Test in England's 10-wicket defeat at Antigua. With the defeat, England lost the series 0-2 to the hosts with the final to be played on Saturday.
Now, the Kent batsman is hoping to get another opportunity at St. Lucia and wants to take it as his Ashes audition to make it to the England squad for the high-voltage Test contest later this year.
Denly told reporters, “Playing in an Ashes series is an absolute dream and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't thinking about it a little bit. Obviously, with the opportunity I have in the next Test it is there, but it is important to try and not think about it as much as possible.”
He continued, “I need to have a real focus on trying to get a score and prove to those guys who think I'm a stopgap, makeshift opener that I have got a future as an opener in Test cricket.”
Meanwhile, Jason Roy could get the nod for the final encounter following the series defeat in the Caribbean but Denly is hoping to get another opportunity on the tour.
He signed off by saying, “I hope they see a future in me opening in Test cricket. It's a great opportunity for me to try and make that position mine.”
(With Reuters Inputs)
