England’s selection gamble backfired as surprise debutants Simon Kerrigan and Chris Woakes suffered a chastening introduction on the first day of the fifth Test against Australia on Wednesday.
With the Ashes already retained, England were willing to experiment and Kerrigan and Woakes were unexpectedly named in Alastair Cook’s team at The Oval in a bid to see if either was worthy of consideration for the trip to Australia later this year.
But on the evidence of a miserable, wicketless day for the pair, their first Test caps could easily prove their last.
“I’ve seen Chris Woakes bowl before and, I'm sorry, he wouldn’t trouble my mum,” Boycott told Test Match Special. “He hasn't really done anything with the ball, and the other spinner (Kerrigan) can't really bowl and is leaking so many runs you daren't bowl him.”
And Phil Tufnell, himself a former England left-arm spinner, admitted the experiment had been a failure. “They've not allowed Kerrigan to settle and it's easy to drop short when under pressure,” he said.