WHY THE SUCCESS OF ATHERTON, STRAUSS, COOK AND CO SHOULD NEVER BE TAKEN FOR GRANTED

THE PLIGHT OF AN OPENER

After re-reading Michael Atherton’s excellent and insightful autobiography Opening Up recently, a particular passage remains ingrained in my mind.

Atherton – amongst his compelling dissemination of stories concerning Johannesburg, the dirt in pocket saga and Ray Illingworth – spoke at length about the perpetual toil of being an opening batsman. It was not a passage penned with the purpose of rehabilitating a sometimes-underwhelming reputation. It was a passage of sincerity, informing those who have never had the unenviable task of facing first ball what such an experience entails. It was a passage – as an opener myself – I could relate to.

"For the opener, it’s always a new ball, fresh limbs, fast bowlers and a pitch of unknown quantity", Atherton explained. His concise diagnosis of such a challenge could not be more accurate. It’s the hardest position to bat.

Finishing a career characterised by tenacity, defiance and psychological resilience with an average of 37, many onlookers would associate Atherton with mediocrity and underachievement. A failure to fulfil a potential that had looked so abundant in his days captaining Cambridge University. They’d be wrong.

This is not an ode to Atherton. But, it is worth providing context to his record: he produced sixteen Test hundreds and nearly 8,000 runs in an epoch associated with some of the most menacing fast-bowling in history. He repelled Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock at The Wanderers in 1995/96, famously emulating such stubborn resistance in that mesmerising duel at Trent Bridge in ’98. Yes, Glenn McGrath penetrated his Gray Nicolls-defined defences on a few too many occasions, but his record – he also produced 46 fifties – warrants admiration.

And he opened. Atherton, alongside other notable English successors, proved capable of thwarting the threat presented by a new ball being delivered by fresh, hot-headed and fired-up opening bowlers. He also did so on pitches he was oblivious to the nature of, with the additional accompaniment of the inevitable abuse coming from the slip cordon behind him.

Compare this to – say – Graham Thorpe. In an equally distinguished career, Thorpe averaged seven runs higher than Atherton and scored at a superior rate. But let’s consider how his experience deviated: Thorpe would arrive at the crease and face an old ball and tiring bowlers, all on a pitch he had had dozens of overs to analyse.

This isn’t always fair. Early wickets do fall – particularly in the ‘90s where England’s serial uselessness could have slotted nicely into Shakespeare’s collection of comedies – but the point remains. Opening is tough.

Of course, Atherton is not alone. Since his final ball in Test cricket – incidentally, delivered by his notorious nemesis McGrath – Marcus Trescothick has averaged 44 against the new ball, Andrew Strauss 41, and Alastair Cook still going at a healthy 46. Captain Cook has racked up thirty hundreds, too. Not bad for an opener.

England’s struggle to source a permanent partner for Cook since Strauss’s retirement has been no coincidence. The Comptons, Robsons, Carberrys and Lyths have all come and gone, and the unedifying task appears to have finally fallen to the precocious Haseeb Hameed. From the early signs, the future looks bright.

Cook’s remarkable record also deserves noting. Although playing in an era of staggering fixture congestion does without doubt facilitate prolific run scoring, only a fool would scoff at 11,000 runs. It may be contentious, but an average of 46 at the top of the order may well be the equivalent – if not better – than one of 50 at No.4.

On balance, then, openers deserve some sympathy. While they may lack the appeal of a free-flowing middle-order batsman, their game celebrates defiance and gritty resilience over fluidity and aesthetic pleasure. It can be a grim existence at times. It is tough. Let’s all spare a thought for Atherton.

Words by Will Jennings