Jamie Porter's Test selection dominates a drab day's play

As Essex and India coasted through an uninspiring second day of the three-day warm-up match at Chelmsford, the main talking point doing the rounds amongst the faithful at the County Ground was Jamie Porter, the county's fast-bowling spearhead, receiving his maiden call-up to England's squad for the first Test at Edgbaston next week.

Porter has taken 158 Championship wickets for Essex in 34 matches since the start of the 2016 season and has been the standout fast-bowler in county cricket during that time. He has been rewarded for consistent excellence, honed by over after over of honest toil in the domestic game, just as things used to be. While Adil Rashid was selected for the Test squad on the basis of excellent international form in white-ball cricket, having given up on playing the red-ball game for Yorkshire, Porter has done the hard yards in the Championship.

There will be those who agree and those who disagree with the selectors' decision to pick Rashid but Porter, for one, believes that performances in county cricket still hold influence. "I think county cricket, from a personal point of view, has always been recognised by the selectors," he said during the Tea interval at Chelmsford. "Obviously there are separate occasions when somebody stands out in a different setting and you can't ignore that. But I've always felt if I can do it in county cricket then I'll get my go."

Although Porter, 25, admitted his selection had not yet sunk in, his call-up by chief selector Ed Smith has been on the cards. he fast-bowler, one of Wisden's five cricketers of the year in 2018, trained with England during the Headingley Test against Pakistan and played for the Lions against India 'A' last week, impressing and picking up three wickets. With so many wickets, on a variety of surfaces and in many different conditions, his case was becoming unarguable.

"I knew I was on the radar. Chatting to Ed Smith, I knew if I kept performing and doing the things I need to do my chance may come," Porter added. "He said he thought there was room in that side for my sort of bowler and he just said to me all he wanted from me was to make sure I went away from there doing everything I can to be ready when the chances come.

"It was nice to get a feel for how that environment works [in Leeds]. I stayed in the team hotel the night before, did the full training session with the lads so I got a little bit of a feel for how they go about their business. I guess that means it's a bit less a step into the unknown when I get there. It was definitely a good experience and something I'll take into next week."

Porter will join up with former Essex head coach Chris Silverwood, now in charge of the national team's bowlers. When asked what Silverwood has done for his career, Porter shot back: "What hasn't he done?" -- After all, Silverwood was the man who gave Porter the new ball regularly for Essex in 2016 at a time when the right-armer was uncertain of his future in the professional game.

"He played a big part in bringing me to Essex which has made all this possible," Porter said of Silverwood's influence. "He turned me from a raw bowler with a few skills and not a great idea of what I was doing into a guy that has learnt what my strengths are, what I am capable of and how to try to do that week in and week out. A lot of that comes down to Silvers.

"There was a point where I had accepted the fact after three years of second team cricket that it hasn't happened. That was the time to see what the real world was offering. I went to recruitment - and actually enjoyed it - but I was missing cricket and luckily Essex had some injuries so I only ended up doing recruitment for a winter."

It remains to be seen whether Porter will be selected to make his debut in Birmingham. Sam Curran, who made his Test bow in England's last match against Pakistan, is probably favourite to be selected as the third seamer but that is by no means certain. If Porter does find a spot in England's eleven, he will bring consistency, accuracy and an uncanny ability to hit the seam. Simon Harmer, his teammate at Essex and a former South African Test spinner, reckons him similar to Vernon Philander.

"I always try to hit a good area, make the batter play and hit the seam," Porter said. "I'm only looking for the ball to do a tiny amount. That's enough and then everyone now and then it does a lot." The drier pitches at Chelmsford over the past two seasons, in part to bring Harmer into the game, have helped Porter develop. "I've had to learn to play the patience game a lot more."

While Porter is the latest Essex player to be selected for England, Tom Westley, picked in the Test side last summer before being discarded ahead of the Ashes, and Michael Pepper, the promising 20-year-old wicket-keeper, scored half-centuries during a drab day's play in Chelmsford, lacking in intensity and competitive spirit. At least India's seam bowlers had a useful workout in 30 degree heat and picked up five wickets as Essex finished the day on 237/5, replying to India's 395 all out.

Interestingly, neither Ravichandran Ashwin nor Kuldeep Yadav bowled at all in the matchplay overs, although both spinners bowled in a net session during the lunch break. Ashwin was hit on his right hand when batting before the day's play and he seemed discomfited when bowling at lunch, asking the physio for some treatment. He didn't field at all but India say the injury is minor and although Kuldeep is fully fit, Virat Kohli chose to give his seamers a thorough workout instead.

The pick of India's quick men was Umesh Yadav who bowled quickly and skillfully, including in a seven-over opening spell which cost just nine runs. Ishant Sharma looked the rustiest on show but all of India's bowlers should be better for the run here. A feature of the day, however, was India's lethargy. While the heat was a factor, bowling just 58 overs in five hours play is a farce. The last day of the game is tomorrow.