Caddick had a dreadful time in the West Indies against their left-handers Lara, Adams, Chanderpaul and Arthurton. Now, in his comeback Test, he was faced by two more lefties, Saeed Anwar and Shadab Kabir, and once again was unable to get the ball in the right place.
Only Dominic Cork, semi-fit, and Mark Ealham have the ability to get close to the stumps and keep the left- handers guessing around middle and off. I wonder when England will again have automatic bowling choices as do Pakistan with Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed, with more than 500 Test wickets between them.
Despite the weight of runs, the Headingley pitch did offer enough help to justify Atherton's strategy on the first day, given a clearer understanding of its nature.
When the ball barely carries to the wicketkeeper, it is not the bowler's lack of effort, it has simply hit a soft patch. The bowler must not react by trying to ``bang it in''. Similarly, when the odd one flies through shoulder high it will definitely not repeat itself if the bowler shortens up to the normal length he associates with that angle of bounce. Bowlers must be very patient, an examination of temperament that Chris Lewis and Waqar have clearly failed by some margin.
T HE three century-makers, Alec Stewart and Pakistan's Ijaz Ahmed and Moin Khan, all take a step back and across with the right foot to give them time and balance against the faster bowlers.
It is sad that Graeme Hick has been unable to learn this trick. When he first played for England versus West Indies and found himself struggling for time, he did ex- periment with this key move, quite successfully I thought at the time, but then reverted to the front foot which he still does. John Edrich tried to get him thinking ``back and across'' in South Africa but to no avail.
Stewart's return to form is as agreeable as it is unexpected. By the end of the South African tour he was literally playing ``French cricket'', feet together and both pointing straight up the pitch. He was not much better against India, playing the ball way out in front of him and barely in control.
Signs of confidence were returning at Lord's a fortnight ago, but there was nothing to suggest such revitalisa- tion. Perhaps England's difficult situation at Headingley forced him to be more positive, putting him in position for the stroke a bit earlier, giving him better balance in defence and attack.
Talking of pleasure for the spectators, what an ab- solute charmer little Mushtaq seems to be, and how whole- hearted. A couple of stops he made in the field after bowling for hours set a superb example. Did you see his tongue- waggling act when Jack Russell was nearly bamboozled by the googly? Keep watching. I cannot wait for a repeat.