No place like home for Pope to seal his spot at No3

Batsman's Oval record can help build on a summer of learning

- Will Macpherson

OLLIE POPE and the Kia Oval has, in recent years, been one of English cricket's great love affairs.

This Thursday, Surrey star Pope returns home for a Test that will decide England's series against South Africa, but also whether their new No3's first summer in the job was merely promising or genuinely prosperous.

Pope's first-class record at the Oval - he averages 88.5 there from 30 innings, including nine hundreds has been both a blessing and a curse.

It has underpinned his excellent firstclass record, both overall (average 49.6), and for Surrey (71.3), but it has also been a stick to beat him with at the lower moments of his Test career, because the Oval has been among the best batting tracks in the country in recent years.

Until his century at Trent Bridge in June, none of his 13 tons in first-class cricket had come north of the Thames.

Pope's detractors would say that when the going has been tough, he has struggled. So far, an excellent firstclass record and an Oval education have only translated into a Test average of exactly 30.