No Headingley Ashes Test next year makes no sense – imagine Australia leaving the Gabbatoir off their roster, writes RICHARD GIBSON

As England celebrated their historic Headingley success, the absence of Test cricket here next summer made less and less sense. The home of Graves. It certainly has been for opposition. Imagine Australia leaving the Gabbatoir off their Ashes roster.

Pat Cummins and Co will no doubt be delighted by the ECB’s scheduling, omitting a venue that has now delivered seven straight wins, England’s best ever sequence anywhere, and venturing only halfway up the M1 during the 2027 series.

This is a ground of iconic images: the 500-1 odds of an England win displayed on its primeval electronic scoreboard in Ian Botham’s year of 1981; Botham hoisted onto supporters’ shoulders once those odds had been overcome; the raising of the western terrace in unison as Ben Stokes struck the winning runs in 2019; play suspended by the mob joyfully descending on Geoff Boycott for registering his 100th first-class hundred.

The sawn-in-half ball that Ollie Robinson pulled from his pocket during the innings victory over Pakistan this week will not occupy the same echelon within the nation’s sporting memory banks, but it was nevertheless an indication that in Leeds things are rarely run of the mill.

England’s super septet includes two wins over Australia and two over India, justifying its reputation as our own version of Brisbane’s Gabba, traditionally chosen to host the first match of a series down under in a bid to get the hosts off to the perfect start.

Some of the credit for the winning formula must go to Headingley’s groundsman Richie Robinson, who has produced the best pitches in the country. Of pace and bounce, providing value for shots to batsmen – the large square and unique slope from the Kirkstall Lane end help in this regard – and ensuring catches behind the wicket carry when bowlers find the edge.

England’s crushing victory over Pakistan in the first match of their three-part series is a reminder of the ground’s winning formula 

Against Pakistan, it allowed England to both score quickly (their run rate was 4.55) and make early inroads with the ball. The Pakistanis lost two wickets inside the opening five overs of each innings.

It was less evident this year, but there is also a hostility for touring players to deal with.

‘Long may it continue because it’s always great here. The crowd are brilliant. You get the West Stand in there which is super exciting and supporting when we’re playing well and they’re enjoying those moments,’ said England interim coach Marcus Trescothick.

‘It is a ground the team always enjoy coming to because of the support and the noise it creates.

‘We’ve seen some amazing moments in games, none better than Ben Stokes, to hear the support that generates. Once the crowd get going and they get a bit aggro in there, that really helps the team.’

After beginning his second spell as Test captain with an England-high 28th win, Joe Root concurred, saying: ‘I would love to play as many games as possible here. It’s a great Test match venue, a surface that provides brilliant Test cricket, and one we’ve had quite a lot of success on recently.

‘It’s a shame we don’t get to play here next year, but I’m sure we will see many, many more brilliant Test matches here.’

Not for a few years. Yorkshire are certainly sore about missing out on the ECB’s Test allocation for 2027 and 2028, and they have good reason, given the county’s prominence within the English game. It is not only the most successful in terms of Championship titles, it has also produced the most England cricketers and is home to more recreational cricket than any other.

England interim coach Marcus Trescothick said the crowd at Headingley is ‘brilliant’

It feels like cricket in this country is no longer a results-driven business – why leave out a place where the team hasn’t lost in seven years? We are losing northern soul, writes Richard Gibson

It should not be forgotten that Colin Graves, Yorkshire’s chairman, did not put up a fight for 2013 and 2015 Ashes Tests during his previous tenure, fearful that the financial risk in the previous bidding system for hosting rights was not worth the potential reward.

But this latest absence is part of a wider disconnect at a time when traditional cricket supporters are already feeling disenfranchised by the ubiquitous Hundred.

England teams of recent vintage have retained a northern soul. The last five players to win 100 Test caps have been James Anderson, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow and Stuart Broad, a midlander by birth with Lancastrian roots courtesy of his mum Carole.

By contrast, the last of nine Hampshire-born players to represent England in Tests was Chris Tremlett, 13 years ago. Not a return commensurate with the award of an Ashes fixture to Southampton’s Utilita Bowl, although few within the English game dispute a debt is owed to Hampshire for keeping the lights on during the Covid lockdown of 2020.

This is effectively payback, although Lancashire might argue they themselves should have received more given an equally prominent role that summer.

England’s reign as kings of the north pre-dates this. It is seven years since England lost in either Leeds or Manchester. But cricket in this country, it seems, is no longer a results driven business.