Ben admits he felt "a bit lost" following Ashes series squad omission

LONDON: England wicketkeeper-batter Ben Foakes admitted that being omitted from the Ashes series squad in favour of a returning Jonny Bairstow had him feel a "bit lost" but there was no "sour grapes" since the player selected over him had done well too. Foakes was dropped in favour of a returning Jonny Bairstow for the Ashes series that England levelled 2-2 against Australia.

Foakes watched the Ashes from the sidelines as he had to make way for Bairstow, who was returning from a long-term injury. Though Bairstow justified his selection with the bat, he was guilty of dropping several chances which brought his wicket-keeping under the scanner multiple times during the Ashes. Regarded among the finest wicketkeepers globally, Foakes acknowledged his exclusion from the Ashes squad without any bitterness towards those selected.

"You feel a bit lost. You get to exactly where you want to be, your career path is going a certain way and then it takes a halt and goes a completely different direction," Foakes told Telegraph Sport as quoted by ICC "The guys who got picked have done well too. There is no sour grapes, it is just a weird head space. I have had quite a topsy-turvy career, then you are where you want to be, performing, dropped," he added. Before being dropped, Foakes had just started showing signs of consistency after being in and out of the England Test setup since making his debut in 2018. Of his 20 Tests, he played 10 since the start of 2022, during which he scored 400 runs at an average of 33.33 and also affected 37 catches and a stumping.

The 30-year-old scored a fifty and a century in the three Tests prior to his axing, with those runs often coming in difficult situations while batting with the tail. Foakes said he felt lost and uncertain after being dropped despite putting up great performances with the bat and behind the stumps. "This time I had done well and been happy with the way I had been playing. You feel a bit lost," he said. "It is a bit of a sinking feeling, because you do not really know what to do, because you cannot tell yourself you did not do well," he added. Foakes' focus now is on helping his team and defending champions Surrey retain their title in the County Championship. They are currently at the top of the standings after 11 games with three games to go.

However, he has admitted that not being considered for England consistently in Tests might force him to improve his white-ball play going forward. "If I fully invest in red ball and you do not get in the team, you are left in the lurch a bit," Foakes concluded. "So I will probably use that period later this year to try to whack it," he concluded. He has represented England in one ODI, in which he scored a 61* and also played one T20I. In 74 List-A matches, he has scored 2,047 runs at an average of 38.62 at a strike rate of 87.06. He has scored a century and 18 half-centuries in 64 innings, with the best score of 106.

Also, he has played 78 T20Is, scoring 859 runs in 53 innings at an average of 20.95 and a strike rate of over 123, with four half-centuries and best score of 75*.