Thorpe: Vince has made progress

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England batting coach Graham Thorpe hopes that James Vince continues to make progress after the batsman endured a tough Ashes campaign.

Thorpe has been working closely with Vince, who started the series against Australia well but had his poor shot selection exposed as the Ashes drew on.

Vince scored 45 runs on day two of the warm-up match against a New Zealand XI in Hamilton with Thorpe confident he is showing signs of improvement.

Thorpe said of the day: “One of the challenges that has been thrown towards James has been shot selection, can he go on to make a big score?

“When players start out their Test careers, it’s not uncommon for some good performances to be interspersed with getting out in similar ways. James is 27 years old now, and that’s around the age where you really start to mature as a cricketer.

“He has been able to reflect, make some small changes, and has looked a lot more balanced at the crease, striking the ball nicely. That’s good to see.

“We hope that he continues to progress, learn from some of the mistakes he has made and just be that little bit more ruthless when he does get in.”

The prime candidate to replace Vince should England feel he is no longer their best option would be Liam Livingstone who stroked 88 to top score for England on the day and impress Thorpe.

The coach added: “He has fitted in very easily into the dressing room.

“People might say he’s not in the potential starting XI for the first Test, but he has proven himself in this game – he has come out, been very busy at the crease, started with real intent and shown the head coach what he is capable of. That’s what you want.

“He has been on a couple of Lions tours before and has impressed – that’s why he has been given the opportunity here.

“For a few of the other guys, it’s probably a bit of a reminder, a kick up the backside to say you’ve got to get up to speed pretty quickly.”

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