Former England skipper Michael Vaughan feels the exciting batsman Tom Banton should give up the Indian Premier League deal. Banton who has made his name for his explosive batting was roped in by Kolkata Knight Riders for his base price of INR 1 Crore in the IPL auctions. However, Vaughan believes the IPL can wait and Banton should focus his energy on the upcoming County Championship.
The former England captain added there is a vacant sixth-place spot in the team’s Test side and if Banton can have a good season for his County, Somerset, he can be in the reckoning. Banton has impressed with his skills and he was the second-highest run-getter in the Vitality T20 Blast 2019 as he had scored 549 runs in 13 matches for Somerset.
Banton has impressed with his power-hitting.
The right-hander is currently playing for Brisbane Heat in the Big Bash League and had smashed five sixes in an over.
This is just extraordinary.
Tom Banton launches five consecutive sixes! #BBL09 pic.twitter.com/STYOFVvchy
— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 6, 2020
‘If I were in charge I would be on the phone this week to Tom Banton telling him to give up his IPL deal and play the first few weeks of the county season for Somerset because there is a slot available at No 6 in the Test side,’ Vaughan wrote in a column for Telegraph Sport.
‘I have seen enough of Banton to know he is a superstar in the making. I’m not sure a stint in the IPL right now, when he might not get a lot of game time, is what he needs at this stage of his career.
Vaughan feels the IPL can wait and Banton needs to play more of four-day cricket to improve his red ball game. Banton has an average of 27.14 in first-class cricket and he will need to improve it if he is to get a chance for the national team in Test fold.
‘The IPL can wait. He has plenty of time to go to India. He needs to play four-day cricket and score some early hundreds,’ Vaughan further wrote.
‘Then England would have a top order of Rory Burns, Sibley or Crawley, Pope, Root, Stokes, Banton and a keeper at seven, probably Ben Foakes. All of a sudden that looks a pretty decent line up,’ he went on to write.
England leads South Africa by 2-1 in the four-match Test series after winning the third Test by an innings and 53 runs. The final and fourth Test will take place at Johannesburg from 24th January.