Harry Brooks has announced himself on the international stage in a grand manner. The start he has had in his career has nothing short of incredible. Ofcourse, these are early days and he still has a long way to go. The signs however are promising. Will Brooks attain the greatness and stardom, only time will tell. As of now, we can only marvel at the incredible Harry Brooks.
Brooks has 4 centuries so far. The latest hundred was something extraordinary. Not for nothing is he being talked about in the same breath as some of the current excellent batsmen. Take the example of his 4th century. England lost their 3rd wicket before they scored 25. Anyone else or any other team will want to take things slowly. Play out the initial overs, wait for the bowlers to tire, the wicket to ease out before launching into an attack. Not so Brook. He launched into an all-out attack right at the outset. It showed this confidence he has on his batting ability. You must be really good if you have to overshadow someone with the ability of Root. Brook did that with nonchalant ease.
The bright start
One particular shot stood out for its sheer brilliance. Tim Southee was at the top of his run up. He started and gathered steam. The ball was pitched right on the off stump line. Brook wsa ready for it. He lofted straight over the head of the bowler. The ball sailed into the stands. It was a monstrous hit. On any ground, it would have been a 6. The precision, the power and the class was clearly seen. Brooks says,
“The position of the game makes that decision, to be honest. The ones in Pakistan were amazing and good fun, but they were all very flat pitches. Today wasn’t a flat pitch. It’s a good cricket wicket, but not a flat pitch where you can smack it everywhere. I’ve done that a little bit, but it’s a pretty good pitch.”
He has already scored more than 800 runs. Only Gavaskar & Bradman have scored more than Brooks at the start of their career.
What makes a lot of cricket watchers be in awe of Brooks? For starters, the runs he has scored already. Two, the conditions where he has scored those runs. Granted, Pakistan pitches were as flat as it could get. No seam no bounce and no spin. Just plonk your foot forward and hit through the line. However, the conditions at New Zealand are vastly different. Particularly on the first day where the ball moved. One could guarantee that he will be successful in England & in South Africa too.
His litmus test awaits in Australia and India but that is for later. England are not slated to tour Australia for another 3 years and India for another 2 years. Third, the tempo of his batting. Bazball is fine. Stokes and McCullum encourages everyone of the English batsman to play an aggressive brand of batting but to bat in such a fashion for someone who is quite new, it takes a lot of courage.
The return of Bairstow
Brooks has replaced the injured Bairstow. England could not have wished for a better replacement. However, what happens when Bairstow returns? Surely, Brooks cannot be dropped after his series of blazing innings. It will be cruel. Bairstow will have to be accommodated as well for he was the epitome of Bazball cricket before Brooks took that to stratosphere. How is England going to accommodate him? They may replace Pope but he hasn’t done anything wrong either. There is a spot at the top with the continued lack of performance on the part of Crawley. Bairstow is an opener in white-ball cricket. Would he be willing to do the same in Test cricket too?
Wrapping up the incredible Harry Brooks
Brooks maybe incredibly talented but it is too early to talk about him being a great player. A potential great player, yes certainly. He needs to prove himself in India and Australia. Until then, comments about his greatness can be reserved. Afterall, Root himself hasn’t yet scored a single hundred in Australia.