England drop Harmison and Hoggard for 2nd Test
End of an era?
By Jon Steer
March 12 2008
England have dropped Steve Harmison and Matthew Hoggard ahead of the second test against New Zealand. Both were under par in the first test and while change was likely many will be surprised to see both senior bowlers left out in favour of Stuart Broad and James Anderson.
Michael Vaughn described the decision to drop Steve Harmison and Matthew Hoggard as "the end of an era." This mindset from Vaughn must point to a lengthy if not permanent absence from the England side for Harmison if not the older Hoggard as well.
Many pundits have questioned Harmison's determination to regain his best international form especially following the birth of his fourth child and his comments after the first test in which he understandably said that his family always comes first. It wouldn't be a surprise to many if this vote of no confidence by Michael Vaughn and the other selectors causes Harmison to announce his retirement from International cricket.
Steve withdrew from the one day international setup 18 months ago to try and concentrate on his form in tests and there were some encouraging signs towards the end of England's recent tour to Sri Lanka but it looks like it would take a lot now for him to get back into the test team. It looks certain that Harmison will be available from the start of the season for Durham as that remains his only chance to show what he is capable of.
Harmison took 30 wickets in just six games for Durham last season with injury and international duty severely limiting his appearances. A fit Harmsion available for the whole season alongside Liam Plunkett and Graham Onions would be a great boost for Durham's hopes of improving on their county championship second place from last season.
Leaving Hoggard out is a very strange decision considering he has been England's most consistent bowler over the past couple of years-to drop him after one poor game is unfair.What will happen is the replacements perform poorly in this match?
I agree with you-it looks as if our seam attack for the upcoming season is going to be exceptionally strong and we should definitely be challenging for the Championship.
England are in a pretty good position-Ambrose's form is a mixed blessing for Durham fans and Colly has again produced a gritty innings when it was most needed.
I expect England to bowl well but I wonder if Vaughan will regret leaving Harmy out at some stage of this match?
Also the pitch is alot more helpful to bowl on. On a side note it shows just how much batsmen are protected compared to bowlers. Get reduced to 80-9 chasing 300 whats the solution, drop two bowlers.