Giles impressed with Rankin's debut

Cricket365
September 5, 2013

England limited-overs coach Ashley Giles was pleased with fast bowler Boyd Rankin's ODI debut, considering he was playing against Ireland, his former team, and overcame his nerves to take four wickets.

England won by six wickets, chasing the 270 required with seven overs to spare, thanks to centuries from Ravi Bopara and Eoin Morgan. Rankin took four Irish wickets, including the top three, and centurion William Porterfield.

Giles told <i>Cricinfo</i>: "All credit to him. He was probably more nervous than if he'd been playing against Australia, with him going home and all the talk around the Irish players playing for England.

"His first couple of overs were a bit nervous but he settled very quickly. To finish with four: what a great debut. He'll take that confidence into the next match."

Another new face, though not on debut, was all-rounder Ben Stokes, who sent down his 10 overs for 51 runs. He didn't take a wicket, but Giles said he felt Stokes added value with both bat and ball.

He added: "Ben was our third seamer and his bowling has really developed over the last 12 months, and I thought he bowled pretty well. We have an inexperienced attack for these one-dayers and it's going to be a steep learning curve.

"In terms of the balance it was great to look down and see Stokes at No. 8, and at one point it looked as though we might need it. I think we are lucky in his case as he's a genuine allrounder and can fill two spots."

The composition of the England squad for the ODI series against Australia caused much consternation in the media, with five senior players (Cook, Broad, Swann, Anderson, Bell) not included.

But Giles defended the call, saying new players needed time to mesh into the side, and the senior guys needed breaks in order to ensure their fitness for major series and tournaments.

The coach said of resting players: "Myself and Andy Flower, in our conversations, have always accepted that this would have to happen to manage the player workloads. We want to keep their services for the long-term.

"In the Champions Trophy we had our No 1 side out, barring Kevin Pietersen (who was injured) and that's our aim: to have our best sides available for the key tournaments. Between times we are going to have to rest and rotate.

"It does give us a chance to look at some of the young talent coming through, particularly with an eye on 2015 World Cup. We could say our best team – the one that played the Champions Trophy plus Kevin Pietersen – could get us to the World Cup.

"It might be, but it might not be and some of youngsters might be needed."