Scott Borthwick, quite understandably, just wants to land it. He’s 23, a leg-spinner on Test debut, about to bowl his first ball against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground, and England are already 4-0 down in the series. It’ll be five shortly. Ben Stokes, 22, a friend and Durham teammate, playing just his fourth Test, wants a little bit more.
“Just before I bowled,” Borthwick says, “he came up to me and said: ‘Whatever happens this ball, I want you to try and spin it as far as you can, as hard as you can. If it bounces twice, make sure it spins. Try and bowl a Gatting ball.’ I just remember thinking: ‘That’s his mindset.’”
