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How far can Zak Crawley go in his Test career?

Firebat

Firebat

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Back-to-back 50s for Crawley vs Pakistan, a very proactive and busy player with supreme confidence, especially for someone so young and inexperienced in Test cricket. Looks the real deal, how far can he go in his career? Will he cement the #3 position for England for years to come?
 
ROB KEY says Crawley's success is very much self-made...

"I remember the first time I saw him, he was probably 17, and we put the bowling machine on quick, aiming around his head - he didn't play it well all the time, but he never backed down.

"The most impressive thing is the mental side of him; this is a kid who the first legspinner he is properly facing is Yasir Shah, and he's running down and hitting him over the top.

"Two or three years ago, he knew he wasn't playing spin that well - he wasn't in the England set up, the Lions or under-19s - so he took himself off to India, where he played spin very day.

"Then he said, 'I need to play quick bowling better', so he took himself off to Perth - he didn't have Kent pay for it or wait for someone to tell him. He saw it as 'this is my investment in my career'."
 
Rob Key who's known him for a long time spoke about how driven Crawley is to improve his game, travelling on his own expense to play in India and Australia to improve his technique against spin and pace.

He seems to have the right balance between attack and defence. Definitely earned a run at #3.
 
Crawley on a career best 78* at the moment.
 
He is very good and will go far. He reminds me of young Labuschgane who made his debut against Pakistan.
 
He is going to be a top class test player. Has an excellent temperament. Getting big scores will come as he gains more experience.
 
Congrats to little Zack on this well deserved maiden century against Pakistan team which is known as a legendary bowling nation. It is a good way to start your career.

His batting however is not exciting which means he may not or never become a trail blazer but he can always become someone like Kane Williamson who is regardless the most respected Cricketer in the world apart from being a respected member of the Fab 4.
 
150 up for Crawley, from 233 balls. This is a devastating innings.
 
At this rate anything is possible. New ball will be crucial.

Definitely looks the part for a number 3/4. He is determined, has various strokes at his disposal, not afraid to take on bowlers.

He is a tall batsmen who struggled against yorkers at the beginning. An inswinging / reverse swinging yorker would certainly cause him problems. Unfortunately that is something our bowlers just cannot do.
 
ssuhaide said:
Creepy Crawly is a known phrase- means spider.

John Crawley who played tests for England in the 90's was also nicknamed creepy
Click to expand...

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What a moment <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CreepyCrawley?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CreepyCrawley</a> &#55357;&#56495;&#55357;&#56399;&#55356;&#57339;</p>— Joe Denly (@joed1986) <a href="https://twitter.com/joed1986/status/1296826856906391554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 21, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
ssuhaide said:
Creepy Crawly is a known phrase- means spider.

John Crawley who played tests for England in the 90's was also nicknamed creepy
Click to expand...

Ah interesting! Thanks for the information.

Heard [MENTION=1842]James[/MENTION] or [MENTION=7774]Robert[/MENTION] call him that a few times and was like the guy doesn't look creepy or something.
 
Very impressed. Probably has batted Pakistan out of the game.

Great prospect for England.
 
He will definitely become one of the England's all time greats, probably bit early to say but any saw his batting will agree on that
 
Super technique. Really tall. Gayle KP VDD are the other tall batsmen in my mind
 
Aggressive intent right from the start. Brilliant play from him. Very unlike England but massively effective.
 
lYUjp2sMT5ZftHz1EC6y_crawley%20breakdown%20of%20runs.jpg
 
A lot of vulnerabilities at the moment. Top knock but on a relatively harmless surface and against an attack with two inexperienced teenage pacers. His game against spin also needs to improve. Surely has a great temperament and also good potential to work with.
 
Let’s get this right, Crawley no matter how long he plays will never score so many runs as easy as today, as soon as he came out he was standing outside the crease but nothing was done tactically to stop it until it was too late, let’s see him perform regularly around the world before people get too carried away!
 
This is how you send batsmen to Test cricket, they are almost fully devoloped. What a talent, only 22.
 
Firebat said:
Back-to-back 50s for Crawley vs Pakistan, a very proactive and busy player with supreme confidence, especially for someone so young and inexperienced in Test cricket. Looks the real deal, how far can he go in his career? Will he cement the #3 position for England for years to come?
Click to expand...

As far as he wants. I am really impressed. At last ENG have a replacement for Trott.
 
Very impressed. Reminded me so much of a young Joe Root from 2012-2013.
 
Looks good, this Crawley. Seems to have a great attitude and wants to do well. That is always nice to see. He needs to perform consistently for at least another year before he can be judged, but he looks very promising.
 
England centurion Zak Crawley has praised batting partner Jos Buttler for helping him to conquer his nerves en route to a maiden Test hundred against Pakistan.

Crawley registered three figures for the first time at the highest level as he and Buttler shared an unbroken fifth-wicket partnership of 205 to put England in control of the third Test at the Ageas Bowl.

England batsman Zak Crawley had the wind in his sails on a blustery day at The Ageas Bowl as he scored a sensational 171 not out against Pakistan.

The 22-year-old admitted: "When I was about 91, I was really nervous. Jos didn't think I was, so I must have been hiding it pretty well!

"It was handy batting with Jos - he's a very calm head and he's always telling you to keep switched on. I think that's why we managed to get a good partnership today.

"I had to keep the hundred out of my head. When I was on about 25, I was in decent touch and couldn't stop thinking about it.

"Luckily when I got to about 70 I calmed down a bit, but that period in the middle I played a couple of rash shots and managed to get through that.

"Jos batted great as well and made it easy for me. It was an unbelievable feeling, to see everyone else up there on the balcony, clapping - it almost flashed before my eyes, my whole career so far.

"It was the best feeling I've had on a cricket field - hopefully there's a few more to come."

The partnership between Crawley - who ended the day on 171 not out - and Buttler (87no) turned the opening day firmly in England's favour after leg-spinner Yasir Shah had taken two wickets to reduce the home side to 127-4.

Crawley acknowledged that his innings of 53 at the end of the second Test - at that time, his third half-century at international level - had helped to lay the foundations for his marathon knock this time around.

"It was challenging because he (Yasir) is quite small and gets low bounce," Crawley said. "He bowls this ball which feels like it's quite short.

"It does you and gets you when you go back to it, which I did on quite a few occasions but managed to get a bit of bat on it.

"But it was nice to get a look at him the other night and that made it a lot easier today. I had a much clearer game plan of how I wanted to go about it after the other game, so it was definitely beneficial."

Crawley's innings at the tail-end of the second Test was eventually brought to an end by seamer Mohammad Abbas, who trapped him lbw.

But the batsman responded by frequently advancing out of his crease against Abbas, who was again the most consistent performer among Pakistan's pace attack.

"I felt maybe I'd have covered it more (in the second Test) if I'd been further out of my crease," Crawley added.

"It's something I try and work on in the nets and I feel like I can take two dismissals - lbw and bowled - out of the game if I do that.

"He can obviously still nick me off - he's a very good bowler and he beat the bat plenty, even towards the end of the day."

https://www.skysports.com/cricket/n...lm-head-jos-buttler-after-maiden-test-hundred
 
We gifted Renshaw 180 odd at the SCG as well, and he's not scored a run since. We'll see how he fares against attacks that actually know how to bowl.
 
Ellipsism said:
We gifted Renshaw 180 odd at the SCG as well, and he's not scored a run since. We'll see how he fares against attacks that actually know how to bowl.
Click to expand...

That’s unnecessarily negative. Pakistan know how to bowl. Their attack is very good. But the skipper is too defensive - he seems to be trying to keep the runs down like in an ODI instead of setting fields to take wickets.
 
Slowest pitch of the season and a lollipop bowling attack bowling to him on home turf . He is very talented - fast hands etc. and I think he will do well everywhere but csnt rate him based on this knock alone.
 
He seems like a good player however Pakistan also has a record of making poor players seem like all time greats. So I would see how he performs against other nations before making a decision
 
Congrats to Creepy.

He lacks class of a batting star but he has the intelligence of a batting star.
 
Next star of test cricket. He is a combination of jonathan trott and kevin pietersen.

He top scored in engs tour match in sri lanka. He adapts really well. So all asian fans dont need to predict that he will fail in subcontinent

Absurd how he has a fc average of 30(though he batted at no 7 most of the times)
 
Brilliant inning. Treated Pakistan bowling like a club level attack.
 
He is a right handed Trescothick. He looks like a super star in the making, and if he goes OK in the winter on the Indian turners, he will challenge the best in the World.
 
is he gonna make 300? Damn, just aged 22 an look what he has done
 
I know he made a double-hundred but he played and missed quite a bit and this Pakistan attack is on its knees.

I know people will rave about him, but let's see how he goes against better quality attacks.
 
Crawley speaking to Sky

"I couldn't have dreamed of a better score than that when the game started; I'm absolutely delighted. We're in a very good position to win, which would make it even more special.

"It's very humbling, hopefully I can build on this.

"I wasn't as nervous in the 190s, I was more nervous in the 90s for sure. I knew what was going on [when I scored 222] - it's always nice to beat Keysey. I beat him at golf all the time and so to top his high score was very nice."
 
Apparently his always tried to convert his scores into bigger ones even just 30s in t20 matches
Hopefully this self centric attitude and determination can spur him onto greater heights and also inspire others the same way Rob key has evidently inspired him
 
Saj said:
I know he made a double-hundred but he played and missed quite a bit and this Pakistan attack is on its knees.

I know people will rave about him, but let's see how he goes against better quality attacks.
Click to expand...
.

Give some credit where it is due.

He played and missed because the Pakistan attack is good. But he forgot the last ball, got back into his zone and carried on like top batters do.

The Pakistan attack was on its knees having been kept in the field by a 300 partnership.
 
Robert said:
.

Give some credit where it is due.

He played and missed because the Pakistan attack is good. But he forgot the last ball, got back into his zone and carried on like top batters do.

The Pakistan attack was on its knees having been kept in the field by a 300 partnership.
Click to expand...

yes he is the next Alastair cook. At the very least he will be as good as Strauss.

creepy crawley absolutely decimated the world class Pakistani attack.
 
An embarrassing 8 ball duck for Kent vs Essex in his first 4-day game after that dpuble hundred vs Pakistan!
 
Zak Crawley made 108 off 54 balls against Hampshire in the Vitality Blast.
 
England haven't had much to feel good about on their India tour. There was Root and Stokes in the 1st Test, but after that, Crawley's attractive knock in the 3rd test was pretty much it.

A welcome relief to watch him bat especially when you have a Sibley at the other end :kp

Think he can have a good test career.
 
Zak Crawley vs left-arm finger spin in Asia
Seven inngs
79 balls
33 runs
Seven dismissals
Avg 4.71
 
Zak Crawley now averages 9 since making his 267 last year - still selected!
 
When you pick bowlers based on social media hype over years of consistency in domestic cricket, then you’re gonna get mediocre players scoring double hundreds against you.
 
Crawley didn't have a particularly impressive FC average before debuting and we can see why.

His technical issues were exposed - wafting outside offstump in 3 of his 4 dismissals vs NZ before getting out LBW with his bat coming down at an angle.

He's a very self-driven player so hopefully he comes back from this.
 
Last edited:
Zack Crawley had a amazing 267 against a weak Pakistan bowling but other than that, he's been poor and it must be said that he needs to be dropped.
 
Poor batsmen but when you give him a poor attack to fest on he becomes world class
 
Based on highlights I've seen, Crawley seems one of the better batsmen England have recently tried out. Something very watchable about his shots. Maybe it's his height, but he looks dominating when he whacks them, in a KP kind of way.
 
Crawley's closed bat face is a technical issue for dealing with balls moving away from off-stump:

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/qm7lwn" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
Finishes with an average of 27 from 3 Tests as opener. Much better than Burns (12) and Hameed (8). England should stick with Crawley at the top of the order and find him a competent partner.
 
Don't go by his stats. He looks like a player who can impose himself on opposition and England need these kinda batsman, technical issues will need to be sorted out but he's a big upgrade over the likes of Hameed and idk how Burns gets to keeps his spot.
 
Comparison of Crawleys technique with that of Joe Root

20220311_202726.jpg20220311_202722.jpg
 
50 up for ZAK in the WI.

He has looked very good.
 
All out for 121. Took a reverse swinging Yorker from Jason Holder to finally undo him. Excellent knock from Zak.
 
<b>England in West Indies: Zak Crawley 'didn't think' he would get England chance again</b>

England's Zak Crawley said "I didn't think I'd get this opportunity again" after scoring his second Test century in the first Test against West Indies.

He hit a measured 117 not out as England dominated day four to end 217-1 and set up a small chance of victory.

Crawley's ton came 22 innings after his first Test hundred and an 18-month period in which he was dropped during a wretched run of form.

"It's a very special feeling," the 24-year-old opener told BT Sport.

"It was a tough year last year, at times I didn't think I would get this opportunity again.

"So I am absolutely delighted and pleased to be in a good position to win tomorrow."

Crawley shared an unbeaten stand of 193 with captain Joe Root on a lifeless pitch in Antigua.

It leaves England with an outside chance of forcing a win on the final day, if they can add further runs, declare and dismiss their hosts in the time that remains.

Crawley overturned an lbw decision on nought but did not offer another chance all day.

After scoring a brilliant 267 against Pakistan in his eighth Test in August 2020, Crawley was dropped last summer after averaging 11.14 across the seven Tests that followed.

He was recalled for the third Ashes Test against Australia in December and made an impressive 77 a match later in Sydney.

"I have tried to rein in my game in a bit more since I have come back into the team, putting a few shots away that I was playing last year that were getting me in trouble," Crawley told BBC Sport.

"I felt under pressure at the start. I always feel nervous.

"It means a lot play Test cricket. I was looking to be careful early and push on as I got in."

Root ended the day 84 not out as he looks for a first Test hundred of 2022, having scored the most runs by an England batter in a calendar year in Test history in 2021.

"He has such a calm head and he's such a great player obviously," Crawley said.

"He made it a lot easier for me when I was nervous in the 90s - he said, 'Just keep batting one ball at a time' and that helped a lot.

"He was telling me to stay calm, helping me make good decisions the whole way through it."

Despite England's dominant day, the placid nature of the pitch means it will be difficult for them to force a win by taking 10 West Indies wickets on the final day.

"We certainly want to try and win it tomorrow," said Crawley.

"The pitch needs to break up little more but if we bat well in the morning and have 70-75 overs to bowl them out [we have a chance].

"Even if it doesn't break up we will try all day. You always have a sniff when pressure is on the scoreboard."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/60711821
 
He hasn't been very consistent since his 267 against Pakistan.

He did well in this Test.
 
Zak just took a beautiful low slip catch off Jack Leach.

“Lord” David Gower was practically on his feet applauding in the commentary box.
 
To go anywhere, he has to score much better than what he is doing now.

Crawley c Blundell b Boult 4(6) [4s-1]

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/sbeokh" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
Last edited:
MenInG said:
To go anywhere, he has to score much better than what he is doing now.

Crawley c Blundell b Boult 4(6) [4s-1]
Click to expand...

I agree, but in terms of today, he got a magic ball.
 
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