England’s cricket team has suffered a humiliating defeat against Australia in the ongoing Ashes series, raising concerns about the players’ psychological resilience and preparation strategies. The fate of the series hangs in the balance. A few things signal that England’s approach is doomed to fail.
The England team, for instance, has already lost a match when in possession of a first-innings lead of 177 runs. By the end of day three, they had imploded to 134-6. As they stand to lose the opening two matches of the series, former captain Michael Vaughan expressed serious concerns regarding the team’s preparation and its impact on the players’ performance.
As Vaughan pointed out, England’s preparation was shocking, having played just the one warm up fixture in the lead up to the series. He blasted their decision to avoid a two-day second XI match with the pink ball in Canberra last weekend. He contested that this fixture should have conditioned them more to adapt to the rigors of Test cricket.
They were embarrassed by that second day in Perth, and today and yesterday, Vaughan stated. “Let’s just mention this Australian team have got over a thousand wickets not playing.”
The absence of competitive pressure in the ranks has faced criticism as well. And as the BBC Radio commentator Jonathan Agnew observed at the time, there is no accountability – none – of players themselves. He remarked, “The fact is that none of these players are being put under any pressure by anybody else in the squad – there is no culpability, there are no ramifications, there’s no question of anybody being dropped.”
Agnew further elaborated on the situation, stating, “Apart from Pope who has Bethell in the wings, but he’s not scoring any runs either. There’s nobody to put pressure on any of these players, so you just go out and bat as you want to play.”
England’s batting order has struggled significantly. Ben Duckett has looked “scratchy and edgy” at the top of the order. At the same time, Ollie Pope’s run of continued struggles leaves doubts about the depth of talent available if he slips up.
Vaughan agreed with these sentiments and went further still, claiming that players such as Duckett and Pope had failed the big test. “You can’t just keep dipping into Joe Root’s well – ‘go on Joe, go get us another 100’. It is not just possible,” he stated.
“I worry about this psychological damage of this last two days,” he noted. “Not just for the batters, but particularly the bowlers, who had so much time out there and they just didn’t look like they were going to get wickets.”
“The former captain noted that on high-quality, top-tier opponents, perhaps England’s aggressive and forward play is becoming a little too predictable. ‘England continue to play this aggressive, flamboyant style which is entertaining – it’s enjoyable at times – but against quality it’s all becoming a bit too predictable,’ Vaughan said.”
Beyond performance problems, logistical concerns have turned heads. Perhaps even more surprising than the pillow—which Archer carried with him on arrival at the Gabba—is that fact that it was ever a point of focus. Vaughan’s unwillingness to sit down for a pint with a gaggle of Stormtroopers is just one of many indicators of the troubles enveloping the team.
Marcus Trescothick weighed in on the situation, stating, “No not at all, not for me. I think the way that it’s done, preparation these days is not done necessarily by playing Sheffield Shield games, as it was before.” That points to a bigger discussion regarding the overall approach to state level modern day preparations and how to make them more impactful.
At the time of writing, ridicule and condemnation are heaped upon England for their lack of mental fortitude and readiness. It will be a treat to see how they fare in the Ashes Tests to come. The stakes are incredibly high, and with nearly each day of further humiliation, the pressure grows even more.
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