‘Times have changed, one clip can earn an England call-up’

the beginning of the summer. A test squad will be announced. I go back to the days when I competed for a spot in the England team to bowl.

Between 2010 and 2017, I played cricket internationally. There was a mix of optimism, hope, and determination at the start of each of those summers that I would bowl well enough in Championship cricket to receive the call.

The currency was wickets. Tim Bresnan, Graham Onions, Chris Tremlett, Chris Woakes, Jim Anderson, and a number of others were vying for the other spot because James Anderson and Stuart Broad were both inked in the side.

Because I was aware that the other guys were attempting to accomplish the same thing, this caused conflict and hunger. Another way to demonstrate that you were prepared for the intensity of international cricket was by backing up performances and demonstrating the stamina to do it over a number of weeks in the domestic game.

England’s selection process has changed over the years under the leadership of Rob Key, Brendon McCullum, and Ben Stokes. I wonder if the players’ expectations for selection, as well as those I can recall, have changed.

For the past few years, Sam Cook has been the outstanding seam bowler in county cricket. With 318 first-class wickets and an average of 19.77, he seems to have passed the point of his playing days.

It would surprise if he wasn’t in the squad for the Test against Zimbabwe next month after being restrained from Essex’s Championship game against Somerset a few weeks ago.

Even with the overwhelming body of evidence and a ton of wickets in his hands, I still think England Cook is finally worth supporting.

Bowlers worked hard at the beginning of the summer, when the pitches were flat and the Kookaburra ball was being used in the Championship. Essex defeated Nottinghamshire by ten wickets to win the match. The selectors, who will rightly look for more than just statistics when making their decisions, will find this type of display appealing.

And that may be the difference between what I was experiencing more than ten years ago and what is currently a matter of merit. It is much more exciting now.

In the domestic game, I see bowlers who possess the necessary skills to play internationally. Both Sonny Baker and John Turner are from Hampshire (even though Turner has been on loan at Lancashire), and England has recognized them despite having hardly any first-class cricket behind them.

Baker, Turner, and others with the skills to trouble the best batters are aware that a single performance, even one spell, could get them a call-up. It has precedent already, too. Shoaib Bashir, an off-spinner, was first seen in a clip on social media, and Stokes later shared it with Key and McCullum in a WhatsApp group. Bashir joined the England squad not long afterward.

England’s attitude toward franchise cricket, particularly the Indian Premier League (IPL), has changed significantly since my time as an international cricketer.

Players now understand that they have a lot of power and cannot be denied lucrative franchise opportunities. Who is to blame for this, players? After all, it might be a short career.

This is different from the 2013 IPL auction when I originally wanted to put my name forward. I believed I had a good chance of being picked up. I had good luck getting good players out of a white-ball series in India, bowled quickly, and just had a good T20 World Cup.

We won 2-1 on the famous Test tour of India at the end of 2012. I requested permission from the England and Wales Cricket Board before entering the auction, and within five minutes of submitting my forms, an email from the head coach, Andy Flower, had replied to my request.

I was having room service that evening in Kevin Pietersen’s bedroom, along with Eoin Morgan, who had just become the first England player to recognize the strength of the IPL. When I was summoned to see Flower, KP informed me that I was entering the auction, regardless of whether he liked it or not as I was walking out of the door.

We had a quick chat with Flower. He advised me that I must start playing county cricket in the summer of the following year in order to prepare for Test matches in the offseason. I followed what was instructed. I would have done anything to join that England team, and Test cricket was my pinnacle.

The times have changed. How exciting must it be to play cricket for the first time in international competition.