Sam Hain endured a restless night’s sleep before making an England debut that has felt inevitable to many observers – even if he had “made peace” with the chance never arriving.
Despite boasting the second-highest List A average ever – only India’s Ruturaj Gaikwad is better – and regularly turning out for England Lions, Hain has had to bide his time for senior recognition.
With their World Cup stars resting, England finally thrust Hain to the fore for his first cap aged 28 and he maximised his opportunity by starring in a 48-run win over Ireland in the second Metro Bank one-day international.
Hain had accepted his moment might never arrive because of the wealth of batting talent England have at their disposal but that did not mean he was not on edge leading up to his classy 89 off 82 balls.
“There’s nerves there and that’s because I really care,” Hain said.
“I really want to do well for England. I’ve waited a long time for an opportunity and I am grateful for it.
“I actually made peace that I might never, ever get the chance but doesn’t mean I lacked ambition. I don’t care who you are, anyone who says they’re not nervous on a day like this would be lying.
“I had a little bit of a sleepless night, waking up around 12am, 2am and 4am. When you realise you’re awake, trying to get back to sleep, that’s when you’re really struggling. Probably the worst I’ve been.
“I wanted to do really well not only for my family, but for all the people that have supported me over the years. As debuts go, it was pretty special. It’s one that I’ll look back on for years to come.”
Hain was born in Hong Kong and raised on Australia’s Gold Coast before moving to Warwickshire in 2012, aged 16, but his British parents still live Down Under so do not often see their son play in the flesh.
However, Hain’s England bow had extra resonance as his father Bryan was able to attend Saturday’s match at Trent Bridge, having been on a working trip to France in recent weeks for the Rugby World Cup.
“He’s director of sport at the Southport (Queensland) school where I went,” Hain explained. “He’s here with about 40 or 50 of the pupils and they are over there playing a few games, watching a few games in the World Cup.
“It’s just by chance that he’s over here and then flew over (on Friday) from France to here. I know how much my mum and dad did for me when I was younger. I think it will be pretty special for him.”
Hain took just a single from his first 11 balls and was dropped off his 12th before steadily blossoming at number five, a role he is not usually accustomed to as he has tended to bat higher for Warwickshire.
He used his feet well and muscled a couple of fours down the ground but otherwise relied on timing and placement – plus one inventive scoop – before falling in the last over after taking England beyond 300.
Hain might find himself more in demand in this format as England look towards the 2027 World Cup – when batters such as Joe Root and Dawid Malan, who have a similar tempo, will be 36 and 40 respectively.
“I’m really not looking too far ahead,” Hain added. “It’s been a long season. Things are just starting to open up for me with franchise opportunities.
“I know how good that squad is that is going to India (for the World Cup), but I also know how good the players are that aren’t in it.
“We are all pushing our cases and we all obviously want to play for England, so it’s a case of whatever will be, will be.”
ECB chief insists no decision made on Mott future
England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Richard Gould has denied reports a decision has already been made on Matthew Mott's future as white-ball coach.
Mott's future has been called into question in the aftermath of England's failure to defend their T20 World Cup crown in the United States and West Indies, losing to India in the semi-finals.
Mott also oversaw England's calamitous 50-over World Cup campaign last year, as they lost six of their nine matches in India and crashed out in the group stage.
Reports earlier this week suggested the decision had already been made to dispense with Mott's services, with Eoin Morgan a contender to succeed him, though the former limited-overs captain has since said he has no interest in the role.
Asked by BBC Test Match Special if Mott's future had already been decided, Gould said: "That's not true. That's certainly not true.
"Matthew Mott is a really good guy and coach. He's got a great track record and it is the same with [captain] Jos [Buttler].
"We are always assessing options - that is what happens in high-performance sport, you are always assessing your options.
"You never want to be drawn into being given the dreaded vote of confidence or anything like that. Competitive sport always brings scrutiny and decisions.
"We'll constantly want to assess our options but we'll always want to do the right thing by the sport, the team and individuals."
West Indies grab three late wickets on day one as third Test against England in the balance
England lost three wickets in a dramatic end to day one of the third Test against West Indies, leaving them in a precarious position after restricting the tourists for 282.
Gus Atkinson finished with figures of 4-67, while Chris Woakes took 3-69 for England, as only a fine sixth-wicket stand from Jason Holder and Joshua Da Silva saved West Indies from being bowled out for a much lower total.
But England, chasing a 3-0 series whitewash, let their dominant position slip when taking up the bat for the final 35 minutes, Zak Crawley (18), Ben Duckett (3) and Mark Wood (0) being dispatched as bowler Jayden Seales dropped them to 38-3.
Windies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and chose to bat, leading his side to a solid start before a spell of three wickets in five overs before lunch put England on top.
Atkinson accounted for Mikyle Louis (26) and Alick Athanaze (2) on either side of Wood sending stumps flying with a full delivery to dismiss Kirk McKenize for 12.
Brathwaite's knock of 61 was brought to a halt shortly after the action resumed, the captain gloving Wood's leg-side ball to Jamie Smith as the tourists slid from 76-0 to 115-5 in 45 balls.
Holder (59) and Da Silva (49) then shared 108 to drag the Windies towards a respectable total, but things looked bleak for them when the latter feathered Woakes' ball through to Smith.
Having gone 30 overs without a wicket, England needed just 14 more to polish off the tail, the highlight being a terrific diving catch from Joe Root to send Gudakesh Motie (8) packing.
England were given just over half an hour with the bat to cap Friday's action, but any hopes of a serene finish were soon dashed.
Holder made two terrific catches off Seales' bowling, the first from Crawley's thick outside edge and the second to dismiss Wood for a duck, either side of Alzarri Joseph's cracking delivery accounting for Duckett.
That spell ensured what had been a good day for the hosts ended on a sour note, with the Windies sure to target quick wickets when the action resumes on Saturday.
Data Debrief: Atkinson and Seales dominate
This series began with all the focus on James Anderson as England's greatest-ever bowler bowed out at Lord's, but Atkinson has taken centre-stage since making his Test debut in the opening match and now has 20 wickets through five innings.
That is eight more than West Indies' Jayden Seales, the next-most prolific bowler in this series, has managed.
Seales was determined to have an impact on day one, though, and his two wickets at the death have set the stage for a far more competitive match than those England won at Lord's and Trent Bridge.
McAllister cannot see Klopp or Guardiola succeeding Southgate
Gary McAllister finds it hard to believe that either Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola will succeed Gareth Southgate as England manager.
Southgate, who led England to back-to-back European Championship finals, ended his eight-year tenure following their defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 showpiece.
The 53-year-old was often accused of a cautious approach despite only Walter Winterbottom (383) and Alf Ramsey (224) overseeing more England goals than his 213, with supporters wanting to see a more attack-minded manager take over.
And two of the names linked with the vacant position have been pioneers of Premier League football in recent years.
Klopp ended his nine-year stay at Liverpool in May to take a break from management, while some expect Guardiola to leave Manchester City at the end of his current deal, which expires next year.
The pair have won 653 games between them and shared 25 major honours during their time in England and could be seen as the ideal candidates to end the Three Lions' 58-year wait for silverware.
However, former Liverpool and Scotland midfielder McAllister believes Klopp and Guardiola are unlikely to become England's next manager.
McAllister, who played 57 times for his nation, believes supporters would prefer an English manager at the helm.
"I think people are linking Jurgen with the England job purely because he has experience working in the English Premier League," McAllister told Stats Perform.
"He's worked with elite players for many years now at Dortmund and at Liverpool. So people are putting two and two together.
"Personally, I don't see it happening and I think I also see that there were links to Pep Guardiola and I don't see Pep managing England either.
"It's hard for me to comment on this because I'm obviously not English, I'm Scottish.
"The people I speak to within the game, there is a feeling that the manager of England should come from St George's Park, which is the headquarters of English football, the FA and all the coaching programmes that they have there.
"Why would you have all this and then put a manager not from England in? I think most of the people in England are looking for an English manager."
The Three Lions' next game is a Nations League clash with the Republic of Ireland in September, with Finland their next opponents three days later.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
