What have England learned from their Test summer?
England won five of their six games but slipped to a disappointing defeat to Sri Lanka.
England signed off their Test summer with defeat by Sri Lanka at the Kia Oval, but leave their red-ball season firmly in credit after winning five of their six games, including a 3-0 whitewash of the West Indies.
Here, PA looks at what they have learned over the course of the last two months.
How happy should they be with five wins from six?
Make no mistake, the deck was heavily stacked in England’s favour and they were well fancied to run away with both. For the most part they lived up to expectations, clinched the key moments and racked up some handsome victory margins. But falling at the final hurdle will be a frustration, particularly as they had the chance to be the first England side to win every match in a summer since the class of 2004.
The selectors made some big decisions this year. Did they work out?
Were there any misfires?
What did Ben Stokes’ injury teach us?
Where does the Test team go next?
England remain the busiest side in the world game and complete their World Test Championship cycle with a three-Test tour of Pakistan next month, followed by another three-game rubber in New Zealand. Sitting sixth they are effectively out of contention for next year’s showpiece final at Lord’s, with only a perfect run-in and a convoluted sequence of results elsewhere needed to keep them interested. Instead the focus lies squarely on developing their revamped squad. Finding a way to win on the road remains the biggest challenge and they are travelling with a youthful group with plenty of promise but lots to learn. For head coach Brendon McCullum the calendar is about to get even more packed as he assumes the white-ball reins in the new year. Can he raise the bar there or will his magic be spread too thin?
