“I had a former England spinner say that to me after my first year. He said: ‘I can’t believe how well you have done but, Christ, it gets hard from here, mate.’ I remember walking away thinking, why? The ball is the same size, the pitch is the same length, the same ball that got a wicket this year should get a wicket next year. Shane Warne bowled the same ball thousands of times: that did not stop people getting out to it 708 times in Test cricket. Moeen’s bowling dipped after his first year but it is slowly creeping up and the more people who tell him that the more belief he will have.”
England arrive in Bangladesh on Friday for three one-dayers and two Tests before heading straight to India for a five-Test series with no practice matches scheduled. The games in Bangladesh are warm-ups for the India series. Bangladesh have only won four Tests (all against Zimbabwe) of the 51 they have played at home.