England vice-captain Ollie Pope may have done his short-term prospects no harm with a test century against Zimbabwe, but the Surrey batsman now wants to show he can score runs against the very best bowlers in world cricket.
Pope's dominant 171 was the highest of three individual centuries in an England total of 565 for six declared that paved the way for an innings win over an outgunned Zimbabwe inside three days at Trent Bridge.
England skipper Ben Stokes gave a wholehearted endorsement of his deputy, insisting questions were not being asked about Pope's place in the team amid speculation his position at No 3 was under threat from Jacob Bethell.
But sterner tests await Pope and England, with two of their toughest series on the horizon – an upcoming five-match test campaign at home to India followed by an Ashes tour of Australia.
The 27-year-old Pope averages a modest 35.49 over his 56-test career, but that drops to 24.60 against India and an even more concerning 15.70 in five Ashes appearances.
"I completely own that my numbers aren't good enough against those guys (India and Australia) and I accept that," said Pope following his run-spree in Nottingham.
"But I think I am a better player to deal with the competition ahead this summer. Hopefully, over the next year, I can prove that. I did that a little bit in India last year (with a match-winning 196 in Hyderabad) and look forward to doing it this summer and winter.
"I've been trying to work on my all-round game and everything that will make me successful in test cricket. It's about putting my best foot forward and play a big innings, whether we are playing Zimbabwe, India or Australia. That's always the plan."
'TIGHT-KNIT UNIT'
Pope is renowned as a good team man, stepping up to lead England when Stokes was injured last year before deputising as a stand-in wicketkeeper in New Zealand.
By keeping, he allowed Bethell to impress in Pope's usual No 3 slot.
But Pope does not mind the competition.
"It'll be good to have him back in the squad and the selectors can make their decision," said Pope.
"I try not to read what's in the media and focus on scoring my runs. It's all noise to us, we have a tight-knit unit and we will keep chatting among ourselves.
"I just try to ignore it. Every time I go into a series I'm trying to make sure I'm a better player than I was before and hopefully cash in when it counts."
