Ollie Pope believes 'brutal changes' are the key to take England forward in Tests

The English Test cricket team recently underwent a transition that witnessed the exit of seasoned pacers like Stuart Broad and James Anderson. With the onset of this summer season, fans also witnessed the phasing out of batter Jonny Bairstow from the team. Anderson’s decision to retire from the longest format of the game wasn’t entirely his own, as the pacer himself informed. Now, England’s interim captain in place of an injured Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope, has explained that the blunt selection decisions will eventually benefit the England Test team. England is currently placed fourth in the WTC standings, with 7 matches remaining until the Test series concludes in the third WTC Final in June 2025.

Ollie Pope weighs-in on the ousting of Bairstow and Anderson from the England test team

The 41-year-old James Anderson announced his Test retirement back in May, with England’s match against the West Indies in July being his last outing for the Three Lions. However, the prolific pacer, during his retirement announcement, stated that he’s “bowling as well as I ever have.” The English management, at the start of summer, informed James Anderson about their decision to ‘move on’ from the pacer’s services in Tests, urging the bowler to bid adieu to the game.

Having completed 700 Test wickets, the timing of Anderson’s exit seemed appropriate. However, with Jonny Bairstow, the ousting has come rather abruptly. The 34-year-old batter featured in England’s World Cup campaigns, both the 2023 ODI one and the 2024 T20 World Cup. Moreover, Bairstow also completed 100 Tests as England toured India earlier this year. However, now with over 6000 runs in his red-ball account, Bairstow has been shown the door.

The exit of Bairstow and Anderson, though staged by the management, has made way for new blood in the team. As Anderson left the team after England’s first Test against the West Indies, Gus Atkinson earned a place in the playing XI. The 26-year-old, in turn, scalped 10 wickets across the two matches in the home series against the Windies. Meanwhile, the 24-year-old wicketkeeper-batter from Surrey, Jamie Smith earned the favor of McCullum and Stokes for the vacant place in the English red-ball playing XI. 

Apparent for everyone to see, the replacements are working seamlessly for England. Moreover, the Stokes-McCullum duo is known for their straightforward decisions within the team, whether on the field or off the pitch. While the decision to push Anderson and Bairstow out of the team might have appeared rather rash to the fraternity and the players themselves, the English Test captain at the moment, Ollie Pope, explained that such calls ultimately side with the team’s well-being.

“With what Brendon did leading into this summer, he made some pretty brutal changes that he thought would take the team to a better place moving forward," Ollie Pope explained in his recent statement. "I think we showed last week. We don't use the term 'Bazball,' but we played 'a different style of cricket,' and I think that is something that can keep taking us forward as a team,” he added.

“When we can be ruthless, we have got to try to be ruthless just to win as many games as possible. Other days we will go out and score a little more freely and potentially take the wickets in a shorter amount of time. It is credit to the guys who have come in. Jamie Smith, the way he played in both innings, is credit to him and shows that we are taking this team forward,” he further explained.

Currently, England is playing a home Test series against Sri Lanka, where they snatched a 5-wicket win over the visitors in the first match. Smith registered himself as the match-winner for the Three Lions as he scored his maiden international century in the clash. The young batter, moreover, boasts an enviable 59.50 average after his first six Test innings.

"Batting still the main thing," says Ollie Pope as he captains England against Sri Lanka

When Ben Stokes sustained a freak injury while playing for the Northern Superchargers in the Hundred, Ollie Pope came in as a natural replacement for the Test captaincy position. It’s been over a year since the batter has been playing as vice-captain to Stokes under the watch of McCullum. Now, with Pope having delivered on his captaincy duties with the first win against Sri Lanka, the batter explained that his ultimate focus remains on his batting.

"Probably one of the things I can improve on this week and the next is making sure you don't do that," Pope said. "You walk off the pitch and, when you're batting three, you get your pads straight on, and you know you could be in whenever. That's probably the main thing—not thinking about all the decisions you just made on the pitch. Just thinking, 'right, now it's time to bat,'” he further explained.

Ollie Pope will remain the English Test captain for the remainder of the Sri Lanka series. Ben Stokes, meanwhile, is eyeing a return during England’s tour of Pakistan, which is scheduled for October. The English team will still look to bank on their slim chance to lock a place in the WTC Final of June 2025. Right now, India has claimed the first position in the WTC rankings, with Australia closing in second.