During the 2017-18 Ashes England’s spinners neither offered control nor took a clump of wickets in a spell.
One of the biggest questions after England were hammered was: who would be England’s frontline spinner come the 2021-22 Ashes?
Fast-forward to May 2021 and it seems that Jack Leach will be England’s frontline spinner when England tour Down Under for the Ashes this summer. But England currently have a crop of spinners who are performing consistently in first-class cricket putting their hands up for English selection.
One of those youngsters is leg spinner Matt Parkinson. Hailing from Bolton, Matt and his twin brother Callum rose through the ranks at Lancashire’s academy – well known for producing James Anderson and Andrew Flintoff. In a youth Test between England and Australia’s under-19s teams in 2015 Parkinson made a name for himself by taking nine wickets in the match (6-130 and 3-92), dismissing future Australian Test cricketers Will Pucovski and Jhye Richardson twice.
The hype that Parkinson gained from his England under-19s days would be replicated soon after in professional cricket. As the then 19-year-old Parkinson made his first-class debut against Warwickshire in 2016 at Old Trafford, he couldn’t have asked for a better debut. Dismissing Jonathan Trott in his second over of first-class cricket, Parkinson would pick six wickets on his first-class debut (5-49 off 23.1 overs and 1-74 off 31 overs).
But the young leg spinner would play only four first-class matches during the 2016 County Championship, taking ten wickets at an average of 36.3, a strike rate of 68.5 and an economy of 3.16.
In the 2016-17 NSW Premier Cricket series Parkinson plied his trade for Gordon under the assistance of Stuart MacGill, picking 21 wickets in 11 games at an average of 37.76 and a strike rate of 68.5. Come the 2017 County Championship, Parkinson took 14 wickets in five matches at an average of 22.0 but went at 4.01 runs per over, thus showing signs of inconsistency and inability to control his lines.
As seasons have passed on in the County Championship, Parkinson has struggled to play more than six or seven games a season, but this is more due to injuries and pitches offering nothing for spinners until halfway through the season rather than a lack of consistency. But he’s starting to battle back. Having been a part of England’s Test squads either in the announced squad or as a net bowler since England’s tour of South Africa in late 2019, Parkinson knows what’s required to get into the English Test XI.
In what’s been a first for the young leg spinner, Parkinson has played all of Lancashire’s 2021 County Championship games so far. The result has been 19 wickets in four matches at an average of 19.21, a strike rate of 45.3 and an economy of 2.54 alongside replicating Shane Warne’s ball of the century.
Unlike many modern-day leg spinners who prefer to lure batsmen through different variations and a relatively quick average speed, Parkinson is old school in this manner. He prefers to give the ball a real rip and deceive batsmen with flight and a lack of pace. As he has shown in his short white-ball career for England, Parkinson is not afraid to toss the ball up even after being hit for a few boundaries.
In England’s last two Ashes series on Australian soil they debuted a leg spinner at the SCG – Scott Borthwick in 2014 and Mason Crane in 2018. Neither has managed to make a real impact at the first-class level, with the pair averaging almost 40 with the ball. Compare it to young Parkinson, who has taken 81 first-class wickets in 24 matches, averaging 23.81 with a strike rate of 48.00 and an economy of 2.97. Parkinson is clearly ready for Test cricket, and with England hosting seven home Tests in their summer, he has to be given a chance before the Ashes.
Jack Leach is a good spinner, especially on turning tracks, but he’s not a world-beater who can change the course of a game on flatter surfaces, which is what the English will be encountering Down Under.
In order for England to have a chance of winning the Ashes on Australian soil this upcoming summer, they have to be brave, and that means making some decisions that may be unexpected.
They weren’t brave in India even though Parkinson was perfect for the surfaces there, and Dom Bess’s inconsistency cost England badly. With Parkinson getting a string of games following injuries, now’s the perfect time to blood him before the Ashes.
If Parkinson is England’s frontline spinner for the first Test at the Gabba, Nathan Lyon will have found a worthy opponent who could possibly outbowl him in Australian conditions.
Simoc
Guest
Amusing comments since in Australia it has always been all about pace. We have our best off spinner ever in Lyon but he doesn't win to many tests here. If the Poms have Moeen Ali on board they won't need a second spinner except probably in Sydney. He has had our guys worked out for awhile. And has been showing up everyone in IPL.
Once Upon a Time on the Roar
Roar Guru
Muralitharan played here once and got smashed.
badmanners
Roar Rookie
Well said Brian, it's very hard to bowl spin in Australia and Ashwin finally cracked it last season after disappointing previously so expecting someone as inexperienced as Leach or Parkinson to nail it first time is a big ask. Bowling with the Kookaburra will be England's bigger problem, finding wickets without the swing and seam they're used to. As for batting they will need to find runs from the top order, you can't rely on bits and pieces players to get you to 350-400 it's got to come from the guys picked for that job and aside from Root and Stokes just who have they got?
Brian
Guest
Ashwin & Kumble had a lot of bad tours to Australia before successful ones so asking Parkinson to nail it first time is pretty much impossible unless he's Warner or Mulrathiaran. Leach could offer the control needed to keep pressure on along with Stokes. That leaves 3 bowlers to do the damage just as India did - Archer, Wood/Stone and Anderson/Broad. Even then the way Australia play these days you basically look at Labuschange and Smith and say which bowling styles are most likely to trouble these two quality players
Peter Warrington
Guest
They could repent and pick Malan and bowl them in tandem, his were quite tidy last time.
Peter Warrington
Guest
It would serve us right if England picked a leggie out here and beat us. We should play two at the GAbba, like the good old days. But we will play none. Knuckleheads.
Nudge
Roar Rookie
Yep good point Paul. No doubt whoever the spinner is, Australia will target them. We certainly have a big advantage with Lyon, even though he was ordinary against India
Paul
Roar Guru
I guess the other question for England is whether Leach can do as you suggest and bowl the 30 overs in a lot of innings across a 5 Test series, especially with the Tests likely to be stacked pretty close together. Me thinks Leach and Nathan Lyon are going to have mighty sore spinning fingers by mid-January.
Nudge
Roar Rookie
Yeah sorry, Giles I think was the spinner in 2005 when they got the ashes back. I totally get what you’re saying Paul in regards to where are they going to get there wickets from, but personally I think they have to back in the quicks to do the job. Archer does worry me even though he’s been poor since the last ashes. Australian wickets will suit him so if he’s fit and probably more so, interested, he could be a nightmare for our guys to face. Stokes is a genuine fourth seamer who takes big wickets and with Anderson and Broad still good enough to win a test match off their own back, I think they have enough to pull off an upset without having to take the risk of a young leg spinner. I can’t recall a leg spinner having much of any success here since Kumble in the 90’s. in saying that though, apart from Ashwin last year, not many spinner’s have had success. If Broad Anderson and Archer are all touring and available I think it will be critical for England to have a spinner that they can rely on to bowl 30 overs a day and take 2 for 80 odd so the four quicks can be bowling flat out all day
Paul
Roar Guru
You're right Nudge, Leach is not likely to lose a series for England but I wonder where they're going to get their winners from, especially with the ball? Broad and Anderson are obviously not getting any younger and Archer, after that first terrific Ashes series in 2019, has hardly set the world on fire. Maybe one or two of the other England quicks will come good in a big way, but if not, maybe they do need to look at Parkinson as an attacking option? He badly needs to play a few Tests first though. I couldn't imagine a tougher debut for a leggie, than an Ashes tour in Australia
Nathan Absalom
Roar Guru
Nice article and well researched, it's good to see these sorts of analysis on rising cricketers. I would say that the spinner they choose is only half the issue, perhaps even less, for England's ashes chances. What we saw with India, where Ashwin and Jadeja were quite dominant, is that the respective captains for India used them brilliantly. They brought them into the attack early, had plans for top order batsmen and used them to attack or defend depending on circumstances. Joe Root has yet to show that he's capable of making the right tactical decisions with the spinners he has. He's certainly improved as a captain, but still mediocre in my opinion, although his opposite is hardly a tactician of the caliber of a chess grandmaster. So, whether they play Leach or Parkinson, their tactical use will be of most importance.
Nathan Absalom
Roar Guru
It was Swann who was the spinner last time England won here. But, otherwise, you've described his role quite accurately. Agree with you about Leach, to a point. It's as much about using the spinner they choose correctly as much as it is picking the right one.
Nudge
Roar Rookie
Leach may never win England an ashes series in Australia but he most likely wouldn’t lose you one. Playing a young leg spinner in Australia with virtually no experience can most certainly lose you an ashes series in Australia. I’m pretty convinced that Leach will be the spinner and will play that tight holding role so the quicks can operate all day fresh from the other end. Much like Ashley Giles did the last time England won the ashes on our shores. Giles was a nuggety type batsman as well who got behind the ball and didn’t give his wicket away without a fight, much like Leach, and they can come in handy especially when Broad and Anderson will be taking strike close to the square leg umpire
Insult_2_Injury
Roar Rookie
Agree they won't win the Ashes for England. Leach never will, especially in Australia, but Parkinson will be one step further in his development for 5-10 years time to provide a major impact in Test cricket.
Once Upon a Time on the Roar
Roar Guru
None of England's spinners are in Ashwin or Jadeja's class. Bumrah, and three Mohammads played just as big a part in any case and two years earlier it was mainly Bumrah.
Arnab Bhattacharya
Roar Guru
Disagree about the spinners part. Swann may have averaged 39 in the 2010-11 Ashes, but he bowled good tight spells to create pressure. But that won’t be enough as the wickets here are slower compared to 10 years ago. We saw Ashwin and Jadeja make all of Australia’s batsmen look average most times last summer. Thus spinners do play a bigger part in Australian conditions nowadays compared to before
Arnab Bhattacharya
Roar Guru
Finally given a go this county season and he’s Lancashire’s highest wicket taker. Imagine him in the latter parts of the County Championship.
Arnab Bhattacharya
Roar Guru
I see Leach in the same bracket as Keshav Maharaj. Good but not great. I was very surprised Parkinson didn’t play in India especially on the rank turner for the second Test in Chennai. He’s far better than Dom Bess and hardly gives away a boundary ball - which is rare amongst young leg spinners. He has to get a game either vs NZ or India for the English summer or else England will be stuck in a hole come the Ashe again
Once Upon a Time on the Roar
Roar Guru
If England were to win out here next summer, it would not be on account of their spinner/s but rather their pacemen, the obvious threat being Joffra Archer. Plus they would need to score heavily with the bat, led right from the front by Joe Root with Ben Stokes also playing big innings at vital times.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
Could be an interesting pick. His first class figures are promising. The problem for English spinners, as you say, is that they don’t get used much until late in the season, especially wrist spinners.