Jacks tipped to be as great as Ali

WILL Jacks has been described as a “winner” by his head coach at Surrey, Gareth Batty, who is unsurprised at how England’s off-spinning all-rounder has starred at the T20 World Cup.

- By DAVID CHARLESWORTH

Will Jacks, right, celebrates with captain Harry Brook the wicket of New Zealand's Glenn Phillips during the T20 World Cup match last month

Batty made the surprising decision four years ago to name Jacks as Surrey’s frontline spinner ahead of more specialist options, in the process adding ballast with the batting down the order.

Likened back then to Moeen Ali by Batty, Jacks was cast into a similarly unfamiliar role with England’s white-ball sides last summer, moved down to number seven from his usual spot in the top three.

He has risen to the challenge at the World Cup with both bat and ball, collecting four player-of-the-match awards - equalling Australia all-rounder Shane Watson's record from the 2012 tournament.

“I've seen it for years, it’s not a surprise in any way,” Batty told the Press Association. “He’s a winner, he’s very competitive and I think he’s an all-format player.