Keaton Jennings says he’s addressed batting issues ahead of England recall
Written by News on 31/05/2018
Keaton Jennings believes he is a technically better player after being recalled by England for the second Test against Pakistan at Headingley, which starts on Friday.
The Lancashire opener has not played for England since last August when he was part of the team that secured a Test series win over South Africa while still playing for Durham.
But the 25-year old has scored two centuries in the early weeks of the County Championship season and is keen to prove a point.
“I have moved away to address certain issues not only technically but in my life in the way I have gone about things,” he said.
“It has been an interesting eight months or so for myself from having played in the South African series to going away to Australia with the Lions, to the West Indies.
“I have come up with a huge variety of challenges, I have tried to address as much as I can.
“I suppose at the end of the week there will be more talk about anything technical. If changes have worked and there are runs on the board then great, if not then I suppose there will be more addressing to be done.”
Jennings has replaced Mark Stoneman and is set to partner Alastair Cook at the top of the order when England look to level the series after a nine-wicket defeat at Lord’s.
“It [opening the batting] is one of the toughest jobs in and around playing Test cricket, especially in England.
“When you look at the new ball it’s a pretty crucial phase of playing four-day and Test cricket. It is tough and that’s what makes a guy like Cookie invaluable to any environment.
Jennings insists the England squad have not been affected by claims that the side’s Test against India in Chennai in 2016 involved elements of spot-fixing and says the mood in the camp could not be better.
“I’ve walked in as a fresh face not having been part of the last game and I don’t think it has made any difference to the way the guys have prepared.
“Obviously we deny everything that’s been said but from my personal view I don’t think it has made any difference.
“I wasn’t aware of anything at the time, we think it is complete rubbish.
“The mood in the camp has been awesome, catching up with the guys last night was pretty cool. There was a nice sort of buzz around the guys at breakfast this morning, it was really nice.”
(c) Sky News 2018: Keaton Jennings says he’s addressed batting issues ahead of England recall
