‘It could be a day where we get 500-600 runs’: Ollie Pope on England’s aggressive batting

Nottingham (UK), : England batsman Ollie Pope said the team wants to be as aggressive as possible while batting and believes it is possible for them to score 600 runs in a single day.

Pope believes his side is constantly evolving and believes they are capable of scoring 600 runs in a single day of Test cricket.

England’s designated number three scored his sixth Test century when he was named Man of the Match in England’s dominant 241-run triumph over the West Indies in Nottingham last week, a contest that saw England score over 400 runs in both innings for the first time in their history.

With a series whitewash over the West Indies now the goal when the third and final Test begins in Birmingham on Friday, Pope has urged his team-mates to remain relentless and continue their climb up the ICC World Test Championship .

“There’s a real hunger – there’s always a hunger – but now there’s a bit more in that batting line-up,” Pope was quoted as saying by the ICC.

“We want to be as ruthless as possible as a batting unit, but still play the way we do because that’s our natural game. Obviously, being ruthless also means being a part of Test cricket,” he added.

Pope’s innings of 121 at Trent Bridge came from 167 deliveries, a somewhat patient knock from the 26-year-old compared to many of his previous centuries at Test level, as England posted a grand total of 416 in the game from the first day.

England ushered in a new era under coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes when they smashed 506 runs on the opening day of the first Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi in 2022, and Pope believes similar high-scoring days like these are not on his side.

England hold the record for most runs in one day of Test cricket when they scored 588/6 on the second day of the second Test against India in Manchester in 1936, and Pope believes the current side can eclipse this total.

“I was asked the first day, ‘are you told to play like this?’. No, no. It’s just our natural games and the way we go about it,” Pope said.

“Sometimes we might score 280-300 in a day, but that’s okay and probably because we’re reading situations.”

“There could also be a day where we go and get 500 to 600 at some point in the future as well. And that’s a great thing to have.”

The hosts wrapped up the series triumph at the end of the fourth day with spinner Shoaib Bashir claiming the third five-wicket haul of his career to help England dismiss West Indies for 143 in pursuit of 385 for victory.

It means that England now hold a 2-0 lead in the three-match series against the West Indies.

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