ENG vs NZ: Ollie Pope on his tough ride in Test cricket for England - Don't want to look too far ahead or behind
India Today
ENG vs NZ, 2nd Test, Ollie Pope made his debut back in 2018, but he has strained to keep his place in England's playing XI.
England batter Ollie Pope admitted that he hasn’t had the best of times at the international level since making his debut way back in August 2018. The right-handed batter is deemed as one of the best on the domestic circuit, but has had to fight for his spot in the national Test team.
After the Three Lions lost 0-4 to Australia in the Ashes 2021-22, Pope was dropped from the squad for the three-match series against the West Indies. However, he made a comeback against the Black Caps and turned up with a stupendous 145-run knock in the first innings of the second Test in Nottingham.
The 24-year-old Pope said that he doesn’t want to clutter his mind with thoughts of what could’ve happened or what’s about to pan out.
"It hasn't been the easiest ride over the last year or so. A few tough tours away didn't play a massive amount last summer. Once I got over the line, it was a relief, but I was just so happy. You have to take in those moments, which is something I've come to realise over the last year or so,” Pope was quoted as saying on Sunday.
"I've tried to get into this mindset of whatever good cricket I'm playing, I don't want to look too far ahead or behind. 'Play where your feet are' is the saying we've got at the minute. You don't want to look at the bigger picture too much because that stuff isn't going to help you in the middle,” he stated.
“But at the same time, 25 Tests, it's a great honour to have played that many Tests, but I want to be performing more consistently than I have over the last year or so. But I also feel I've learned a lot about my game and Test cricket and hopefully, I can take forward and use this as a starting point with the bank of knowledge I've gained already," Pope added.
In 25 Tests thus far, Pope has scored 1194 runs at an average of 30.61 with two centuries and six half-centuries. Overall, in first-class cricket, Pope has notched over 4600 runs at an average in excess of 50.
