Blimey I don't think dragging Test defeats out to 5 days is anything to praise for a team with the resources of England. You've got to look at the context of those 5 day defeats. They're not nip and tuck, could go either way, by and large they're hammerings.
How do we overhaul the system? Our domestic cricket produces bowlers who bowl on green tops under cloudy skies for the first six or seven weeks of the season. Therefore we produce (very good) fast medium who, with the right conditions, do a bit with the ball. Counties are not going to change that. Perhaps we could adopt the Kookaburra ball for our county marches. That would be a start. We need to encourage our young bowlers out to play grade cricket and experience “alien” conditions. Whilst not setting the world alight in this test Crane might be a visitor n of the future. However, if he performs half decently this coming year the IPL, Big Bash and other 20/20 money competitions will beckon. This will generate another Rashid, who’s not really a test player and never will be. As to immediate changes. Root needs to be a batsman first and foremost. He shouldn’t be a tour captain (perhaps the skipper at home where he can get away from it all occasionally) Stokes needs rehabilitation into the foldWe need to encourage young pace bowlers who can bowl 20 overs a day at 88 mph plus for more than two matches a year. We need some consistency. Keeting Jennings, for example, raised on bouncy pitches and no where this test team. Hammed, last year unlucky he broke his finger, no mention again. We need to pick teams for places we are touring not for English conditions perhaps. Six or seven core regulars but looking to develop our teams for Australia or India or South Africa two or three years in advance. Finally test cricket admin needs to be totallydivroced from the white ball game. I’m sure there’s lots we can do. But to avoid humiliation in four years time we need to start thinking about it now.
We've taken 58 wickets in the whole series. That is utterly pathetic. Anderson has bowled tirelessly and has been given absolutely zero support from the rest of the "attack"