‘It’s a distraction I don’t need’ – Ben Foakes shuts down noise around England Test wicketkeeper debate

BY MARCUS HOOK

Surrey’s Ben Foakes says he pays little attention to those who say he is merely filling in for Jonny Bairstow as England’s Test wicketkeeper.

Foakes laid down an early marker last weekend in the head-to-head with his Yorkshire counterpart, to decide who will be handed the gloves for this summer’s Ashes.

While Bairstow, who is said to be close to full fitness after breaking his left leg and ankle last September, sat out the first round of County Championship matches, Foakes hit 76 and 103 not out against Lancashire at Old Trafford.

The match ended in a draw but Surrey dominated after overcoming a shaky start. Foakes took guard on the opening day with his side on 44-3. But like the 30-year-old, who claimed 10 dismissals and averaged 37.60 in three Tests over the winter, the South Londoners grew into the contest.

Lancashire might have succumbed on the final day but for Josh Bohannon’s 108, which thwarted the visitors’ efforts to kick off the defence of their County Championship crown with a victory.

“I stay off social media and just ignore it all,” said Foakes when asked about Bairstow’s imminent return.

“There’s just no benefit me concerning myself. The easiest way I’ve found to deal with it is not dealing with it – just not worrying about what it means for me.

“It’s just a distraction I don’t need. It can muddle your thinking if you think ‘this might happen, so I’ve got to do this’ or ‘I’ve got to do extra’. It takes you away from what you do well and just makes your job more difficult. When you play county cricket you don’t get much outside noise and then, all of a sudden, with England it ramps up significantly and that can be a difficult thing.

“One thing I’ve taken from England is it’s about how many times I can impact a game. How many games can I contribute in a positive way? Over the winter, I was pretty happy with how I did that.

“I’ve jumped on the wave of what’s been happening with Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum and it’s just been good to be part of.”

Since Stokes’ appointment as captain last summer, England have won 10 out of 12 Tests. It could have been 11 out of 12 had New Zealand not snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to win by a solitary run in Wellington.

“It was a hell of a Test match,” said Foakes, who nearly got England over the line with 35. “Obviously I was gutted to fall short and to get out with just seven more needed.”

But Foakes says that embracing England’s brand of cricket has changed his mindset – citing Surrey’s last-gasp victory over Yorkshire last season at Scarborough, where he made a crucial 42 not out in the dying overs, as an example.

“That was one of the highlights of my summer, especially at that point in the championship race,” said Foakes.

“That was a game we needed to win. I pushed for Jamie Overton and Will Jacks to go up the order, so that I could come in later on.

“Maybe a couple of years ago my mindset would have been let’s draw the game. I just had it in my head ‘we’re winning it’. That’s definitely a shift the England Test side has given me. It’s changed my mindset, which is a really positive thing.”