The end was near, the final curtain closing on Ian Botham's spell as England captain. As the second Ashes Test at Lord's approached it was becoming clear that the clock was ticking. Appointed skipper on a match-by-match basis, the situation for Botham and England was far from stable.
"By appointing Botham from Test to Test the England selectors are giving the inescapable impression that they would dearly love to get rid of Botham but cannot find a satisfactory method of completing the dreadful deed," Paul Fitzpatrick wrote in the Guardian. Even for English cricket, the whole environment seemed a joke.
It could have been different. Had England taken their chances in the first Test of the series, including a crucial miss by wicketkeeper Paul Downton that saw Allan Border reprieved, then Botham may have won his first match as Test captain at Trent Bridge. But catches win matches; England's charitable donations were gratefully received by the Australians.
Downton would pay the price for his crucial miss. Bob Taylor was recalled to the squad for Lord's, the 39-year-old returning a year after losing his place to Alan Knott. Since then both David Bairstow and Downton had also been selected behind the stumps, until England's selectors completed their circular route back at Taylor's door.
England were given a scare when Peter Willey was struck on the finger by Sylvester Clarke in a county championship match, and although Sussex's Paul Parker was called up as cover, Willey was passed fit as he searched for his first Test victory in his 18th appearance. John Emburey replaced Mike Hendrick, with the Lord's pitch expected to assist the spinners as opposed to the seamers' paradise in Nottingham.
Australia also brought in a spinner, with Ray Bright taking the place of Rodney Hogg, the latter suffering back spasms during a warm-up match against Kent. Unbeaten at Lord's since 1934, another win for Australia would surely spell the end for both Botham and the Ashes series as a whole.
Teams:
England
Gooch, Boycott, Woolmer, Gower, Gatting, Willey, Botham*, Emburey, Taylor†, Dilley, Willis
Australia
Wood, Dyson, Yallop, Hughes*, Chappell, Border, Marsh†, Bright, Lawson, Lillee, Alderman
Winning the toss, Kim Hughes inserted England, a move that some saw as a gamble. When Geoffrey Boycott - playing in his 100th Test - and Graham Gooch put on 66 for the first wicket, Hughes may have been questioning his decision.
Gooch was fluent, making 44 from just 53 balls, but frustratingly he failed to go and make a big score. Geoff Lawson dismissed both openers leaving England 65/2, and he later forced Bob Woolmer to retire hurt after striking England's No. 3 on the forearm. David Gower (27) and Mike Gatting (59) steadied the ship, but Bright dismissing Gatting lbw (possibly via an inside edge) just before the close took some gloss off England's day.
England closed on 191/4, but with Terry Alderman struggling due to a hamstring strain, there was hope that the second day would see England build on this platform. However, Alderman did return to the attack, crucially removing Willey (82) after a 97-run partnership with nightwatchman Emburey.
Some argued that the partnership had been too slow for an England team needing to push for victory, indeed Emburey's 31 from 124 balls may have been unspectacular even for that era. But England's subsequent collapse from 284/4 to 311 all out emphasised the value of the fifth-wicket stand.
Lawson was the star from an Australian perspective. In just his third Test match the 23-year-old took 7/81 including the scalp of Botham for a duck, leading the incomparable Richie Benaud to note that "things could hardly be going worse for Ian Botham at the moment". Taylor also failed to trouble the scorers, although he would later make up for this with a fine wicketkeeping display in Australia's reply.
The day would end in farcical scenes. Umpires Don Oslear and Ken Palmer took the players off the field with Australia 10/0 in bad light, and informed both sides that there would be no further play due to the fact that the decision had been made in the last hour. Yet when the umpires were informed that the match could resume, the pair faced an awkward stroll to the middle.
Understandably, spectators were confused when the umpires called play off in bright sunlight. "Cricket repeatedly holds itself up to ridicule, and why there was no more play must have been beyond the wit of every spectator who had remained in the ground," Fitzpatrick noted, as the crowd booed, threw cushions on to the Lord's outfield, and screamed "what a load of rubbish".
TCCB Secretary Donald Carr apologised the next day, expressing his regret at the misunderstanding. Cushions thrown at Lord's was hardly on the same scale as the rioting on the streets of Southall and Toxteth during the Test, but the incident did little good for the image of the sport.
At least those supporting England would have been encouraged on the Saturday morning. Reducing Australia to 81/4, hopes of a big first innings lead arose. But Hughes (42), Border (64) and an unbeaten 43 from Rodney Marsh dragged the tourists to 253/6 at stumps before the rest day on Sunday.
Botham had taken the wickets of John Dyson and Border, yet some were critical of his captaincy, complaining that he waited too long to introduce Emburey to the attack. When the spinner took just three balls to remove Hughes, the volume of those dissenting voices grew.
A frustrating Monday morning hardly helped Botham. Marsh (47), Bright (33) and Dennis Lille's 40 not out gave Australia a handy first innings lead of 34. England's staggering 32 no balls did little to help their cause, especially as one of them bowled by Bob Willis saw Graeme Wood given a lifeline. Willis' nine no balls in his first six overs highlighted the pace bowler's struggles.
England's lead was just 21 by the time Gooch and Woolmer had been dismissed, leaving Boycott and Gower to slowly repair the early damage. Closing on 129/2 and the lead nearing 100, the chances of setting up a victory on the last day seemed slight. But England's slow approach during the second hour of the final morning session was later criticised by Hughes, who felt the home team should have pushed harder.
Boycott (60) and Gower (89) established a strong position, and with England looking for quick runs in the afternoon, Botham walked to the middle. Just one ball later he was walking back in stony silence, bowled around his legs by Bright to bag a pair at Lord's. It was a moment Botham would never forget.
Writing in Don't Tell Kath, Botham recalls the reaction of the MCC members in the Lord's Pavilion. "They all just sat there dumbstruck. Some picked up their papers and hid behind them, others rummaged in bags and a few just turned their backs on me. Needless to say, I was fuming. (Ever since, I have treated MCC members with contempt. From that day on I never raised a bat to acknowledge them at Lord's.)
England did declare on 265/8 leaving Australia 170 minutes to chase 232, and when Graham Dilley and Willis reduced the tourists to 17/3 there was a brief flicker of light. Botham would later take his final wicket as captain by removing Trevor Chappell, but Wood (62*) and Border (12*) led Australia to safety.
However, the drawn Test was overshadowed when news broke of Botham's resignation. "I feel it is unfair to myself and the team to continue on a one-match basis," Botham explained, adding that he had made his mind up regardless of the outcome at Lord's. Chairman of Selectors Alec Bedser informed the press that Botham had "behaved like a man" before indicating that he would have been sacked anyhow.
Bedser's unhelpful comment aside, it was obvious that some action had to be taken. Averaging just 13.14 with the bat and 33.08 with the ball as skipper, Botham was hardly justifying his place in the team. "One can only hope for England's sake that Botham, now freed of the cares of captaincy, will recover his old form," Fitzpatrick stated.
Speculation about Botham's successor involved Mike Brearley - favoured by Botham - Keith Fletcher, and even Surrey's uncapped Roger Knight. Within a day the SOS had been sent to Brearley - Bedser phoning from a pub phone, meaning Brearley had to accept a reverse-charge call - and the 1981 Ashes plot was beginning to take shape.
"The respect that Brearley commands should benefit the team and his presence could be the stimulus that Botham's career needs," Fitzpatrick wrote. "If Botham can discover that old ability to take wickets and score runs again Brearley's return will have been justified." Wise before the event, albeit an event that even Beefy's scriptwriters would have struggled to make believable.
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