Gareth Batty: County Cricket (Domestic Cricket) aur England Team ke beech ka connection hua kamzor

Kya England ke domestic system aur Test team ke beech ki dooriyan badh gayi hain?

Surrey ke head coach Gareth Batty ne 2026 season se pehle ek bada bayan diya hai. Batty ka manna hai ki domestic cricket (County Cricket) se England Test team tak pahunchne ka raasta ab ‘misted over’ yani thoda dhundhla ho gaya hai.

County Championship: Duniya ka best ‘Breeding Ground’

Batty ne County Championship ko duniya ka sabse behtareen ‘breeding ground’ bataya hai. Unka kehna hai ki chahe haalat badal rahe hon, lekin domestic cricket hi woh jagah hai jahan khiladiyon ko zyada ‘volume’ (match practice) milti hai, jo unhe har format ke liye taiyaar karti hai.

Selection process par uthe sawal

England ke maujooda management, jisme Rob Key aur Brendon McCullum shamil hain, domestic performance se zyada khiladiyon ke ‘attributes’ (kshamta) ko mahatva de rahe hain. Batty ne is par kaha: “Mera manna hai ki selection ke tareekon ki wajah se raasta thoda dhundhla ho gaya hai. Main kisi aur ke kaam par tippani nahi karna chahta, lekin yeh domestic cricket hi hai jo asli players banati hai.”

Rory Burns ki rai

Surrey ke captain Rory Burns ne bhi apne anubhav sajha kiye. Unhone yaad kiya ki kaise pehle 1,000 runs banane ka metric (manak) hota tha, jisse khiladiyon ko team mein jagah milti thi. Burns ne kaha: “Agar aap lagatar runs banate rahenge, toh aapki selection unavoidable ho jayegi. Aaj kal social media par do shot dikha kar bhi koi conversation mein aa sakta hai, jo positive aur negative dono ho sakta hai.”

Surrey: Khiladiyon ke liye ‘Comfort Blanket’

Ashes mein kharab pradarshan ke baad, Batty ne kaha ki Surrey apne khiladiyon (jaise Gus Atkinson, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, aur Jamie Smith) ke liye ek ‘comfort blanket’ ka kaam karega. Unka maqsad hai ki players ko wapas unke best form mein laya jaye aur unhe England team ke liye fir se taiyaar kiya jaye.

England ki agli chunauti June mein New Zealand ke khilaaf hone wali three-Test series hai. Ab dekhna yeh hoga ki kya domestic performers ko wapas mauka milta hai ya management apni purani policy par hi kayam rehta hai.