Matches at Headingley has, most often than not, sprung a lot of surprises. But none like this. Out of no where, we have a debutant for England, Darren Pattinson. I was wondering how England Board had managed to retain the squad for such a long time ( 6 Tests to be precise ) and here we have the unexpected.

Here are a few questions which tell us that the selectors of the ECB have contradicted themselves.

• He was called as a back-up for James Anderson. But then Anderson himself is playing and they’ve gone on to rest Ryan Sidebottom instead.
• How do you fly in a player the night before the game and expect him to integrate with the team for the very first time at the big stage?
• Have they given him enough time to get into the groove of fitting into the league of big guys? ( He’ll be 30 in a couple of weeks )
• Why didn’t they go in for the tried and tested players like Steve Harminson, Simon Jones, Chris Tremlett, Kabir Ali or James Kirtley? These players give a wide range of options from ” Hit the deck ” bowlers to swing bowlers.
• Will he be considered for the future tests also?
• If swing was the choice, then why not Matthew Hoggard? He did well in the County this year and moreover it was his home ground and also the conditions were tailor made for him.

Clearly, a lot has been left unanswered. To top it all, Michael Vaughan had  himself admitted that he knew nothing much about the new comer. How’s that for a vote of confidence?