England coach Chris Silverwood looks set to pay the price for the Ashes disaster with reports emerging that he will be sacked at the end of the series.
The touring squad’s trip from hell descended further into farce on Sunday with the support staff having to bowl at the team’s batting during their SCG session after a net bowler tested positive to COVID-19.
That meant all the local net bowlers that had been assigned to help England could not be used as they were deemed close contacts.
Silverwood will not be in Sydney for the fourth Test after he and his family were forced to stay in Melbourne due to COVID-19 safety protocols as the virus further disrupted the besieged squad’s faltering campaign.
He has been in charge since 2019 and after being granted sole responsibility for team selections, the former English seamer has been heavily criticised for recent results, culminating in the 3-0 Ashes humiliation which is likely to become a 5-0 whitewash.
Former South African opener Gary Kirsten, who has coached India and narrowly missed out on the gig when Silverwood was appointed, is seen as a likely candidate to take over.
Assistant coaches Jon Lewis and Jeetan Patel are also isolating due to COVID-19 regulations.
Adam Hollioake was supposed to be drafted into the English camp in Sydney to boost the coaching staff but he has been ruled out after being a close contact.
It all adds up to another potential disaster in Sydney but opener Zak Crawley believe they can respond to the enormous challenge, particularly the much-maligned batting unit.
“We’ve all got talent to score big runs in Test cricket, we’ve just got to get in the right headspace to perform like that,” he said on Sunday.
“I thought maybe that’s where we’ve gone slightly wrong.
“I don’t think it will be a tougher Test. I think the wicket is going to be better here and it will be a bit easier. There seems to be a lot more runs scored here, I feel.”
Crawley said there were several members of the touring party who have been a bit too wary of the Australian team and they need to “not fear them”.
“I feel like there’s a lot to play for, for a lot of us,” he said.
“A lot of players are playing for their place in the side, there’s pride on the line whenever you’re playing for your country and I feel like there’s an awful lot to play for in the next two games so that’s why we are positive in trying to win them both.”
Stuart delivers Broadside as he ponders retirement call
Stuart Broad has vented his frustration at missing out on the two Tests where he thought he could make a difference in the Ashes but says he won’t make an emotional decision right now about whether he will retire.
The veteran paceman was omitted for the first Test in Brisbane and last week’s debacle in Melbourne and, writing in his Sunday Mail column, he said he would have loved to have had a chance on those seamer’s paradise wickets.
While he is disappointed about his treatment, he is not going to make a snap decision about whether he continues to make himself available for England’s Test team until the last two games in Sydney and Hobart.
(Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Broad is a chance to come back into the side for Wednesday’s fourth clash at the SCG with Ollie Robinson under pressure to retain his spot.
“As a wobble-seam bowler, I feel as though I missed out on two of the best wobble-seam pitches in Australia. Only playing once has made this a very disappointing trip, one that has not met my personal expectations,” he wrote in his column for The Sunday Mail.
“There is a long time between now and the tour of the Caribbean in March and I have never been one to make emotional decisions.
“So I’m not going to make any spur of the moment calls on my future. I feel fit, I’ve come back from the calf injury feeling strong and I’m taking wickets in the nets. That’s all I can do given the lack of tour games and the tight schedule.”
Broad defended England’s capitulation in the first three Tests, claiming the lack of first-class cricket in the lead-up to the tour meant they were on a hiding to nothing.
“Should we have done better? Absolutely. So we are frustrated with ourselves. It’s not like we’ve played amazing cricket for 18 months, then come into the Ashes and failed. We’ve been making the same mistakes for a long time. Both at home and abroad.
“Over three matches, they have been better in every department. They’ve scored more runs, taken their catches, and bowled us out cheaply.
“On the back of the current score line, questions have been raised about the squad chosen for the Ashes. But I can categorically say that these are the best players in the country. There is high quality within this group. I see it daily.”
KP proposes radical revamp
Never short of an opinion, former English star Kevin Pietersen believes the only way to solve the Test team’s woes is to create a first-class franchise league similar to the ECB’s successful white-ball venture, The Hundred.
Writing in his betway insider blog, KP’s proposal would relegate the traditional county system to a second-division feeder league.
“They now need to introduce a similar franchise competition for red-ball cricket, whereby the best play against the best every single week.
“They would make money available to attract some of the best overseas players in the world and the top English players would benefit from playing alongside them.
“It would be a marketable, exciting competition, which would drive improvement in the standard and get people back through the gates for long-form cricket.
“I see it as an eight-team round-robin league in the middle of the summer.”
It could be a handy warm on the side for red-ball specialists like Will Pucovski, Trent Copeland and Nathan Lyon who don’t attract offers from the IPL like limited-overs stars such as Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis.
Micko
Roar Rookie
I don't rate de Grandhomme highly either DaveJ, and have said so multiple times. The problem was the kiwis rated him highly enough, and some defended him, quoting his stats & averages: pushed up by success against minnows, but mediocrity against the bigger sides: Aus, SA, Ind. (hence why people like myself, Bernie, Renato etc get frustrated by people who just quote basic averages & stats without any further context).
Chanon
Roar Rookie
True & many that take over correct an alternative or like we call a ‘Roundabout solution’ we could write a thesis on this on many facets of life not just cricket, how long is a piece of string :silly:
sheek
Roar Guru
Chanon, I've often been pilloried on The Roar for trying to construct structures & pathways that were sustainable, not just profit maximising. Sadly, my observation is that profit maximising & sustainable sporting structures are often mutually exclusive of each other. Those hell-bent on making money will flog everything to the last dollar. Tomorrow, or next year or decade is someone else's problem. I could talk for hours on Australian rugby. The self-proclaimed greatest CEO of all time, John O'Neill, preceded over a world cup win in 1999 & another world cup appearance in 2003. But the great players who made up those teams were created by a system long before O'Neill came to power. They weren't his babies, they belonged to other people in the decades before. O'Neill balanced the books & pat himself on the back, but today Australian rugby is a mess. O'Neill takes big about a successful sport requiring a winning national team. Where are the great players that the great CEO O'Neill left for the future? This happens with pretty much most sports. The people running them are mostly interested in themselves & their image. Once they're gone, the next person can worry about fixing the problems. Or the next, or the next. We should be careful what we wish for. Developing professional sports & turning them into day to day businesses eventually kills the concept upon which many sports were created.
sheek
Roar Guru
DaveJ, All true, which is why I suggest building another floor above them, a smaller 9 team comp. Unfortunately, there’s no ideal solution but whatever is agreed upon requires compromise & each giving up something once held dear. The alternative is the whole edifice will eventually collapse. When that happens everyone loses.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
But they have as many white ball teams in their competition and they won the last World Cup and had the best team on paper for the T20 shindig, which is a bit of a lottery? The reason for the number of counties in English cricket is not about making money for sponsors, TV, etc but history- nearly all of them go back to the 19th century and they are all stakeholders so hard to get rid of.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
I miss the days when SA was a state that was a contributor. We were at the forefront of state responsibilities and governmental amenities by possibly the premier with the greatest vision of any premier. ------- We had players in both cricket and AF that were setting standards. We actually have provided some of the best captains to the national cricket team. ------- Now we're a truly mendicant state. I think Marshall is a actually trying to do things. But let's face it SA has little going for it. We have one Federal Electorate as big as NSW which means we have the most desert on a percentage basis. Our erstwhile major industry was a drain on the national purse and is now gone. ------- I've had a lot of morphine and endones over the past week. I can't guarantee everything I've said makes sense.
Micko
Roar Rookie
DaveJ it’s just dumb luck. They’re having some multi-generational talents together around the same time: *Taylor *Williamson *Boult *Jamieson *Watling *Southee Watling is a kiwi despite being South African born (ten when he moved) and Indian born (but also NZ raised) Patel, looks to be a genuine world class spinner, but NZ aren’t playing him in NZ currently. Yeah, watching the test match currently, just as you described: about 1000 people gathered on a regional ground…just bizarre. Especially considering this is an all-time great NZ test side!
sheek
Roar Guru
Ozinsa, That's a key point. England doesn't gave much more FC talent than Oz. It provides many mediocre cricketers with an income, but doesn't enhance the national team. A similar argument can be made with white ball. Brings in the money, but doesn't produce quality test players.
sheek
Roar Guru
DaveJ. I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I do believe over time smaller comps are optimal. Doesn’t suit broadcasters, sponsors or CEOs looking to maximise their financial packet, but better for the sport. India’s Ranji provincial comp is unwiedly, but they have other methods. The 5 team Duleep zonal comp has been replaced by a handpicked 3 team comp. It’s these smaller comps that funnel the Indian talent into a test combat readiness.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
Good point Micko, though I’m not sure what it tells us. NZ was doing pretty well on a per capita basis even before Conway joined the team, and de Grandhomme is hardly a big contributor. I’d still lie to know why they are producing good cricketers and I’m pretty sure it’s got little to do with their first class system. If you see their Test matches at home, most of them seem to be played in park like grounds with about 1000 spectators.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
Australia and New Zealand have always had strange regional differences. Just about every state in Australia has peculiar regional names that don’t make sense. And our states don’t make sense anyway. How many people know our National Birthday was 2 daze ago? ——- I propose only 3 states with only specific climactic considerations, in relation to land type and use, handled by the states. Like Health, Education, Law, Economics, Social Security, etc being the preserve of the Feds. Agriculture, Aquaculture, Forestry, Water, Mining being the preserve of the States. ——– Perth: The capital of the amalgamted 3 western States / territories. Perth will be Australia’s 3rd biggest city in 3 or 4 decades. Smogney: the capital of a Riverina-less NSW & QLD Smelbourne: the capital of the Riverina, Victoria and Tasmania —— Sport could remain as it is now. —— I think the idea of the 4 smaller states and NT playing the 3 bad guys has merit especially at cricket. I also think Rugby League and Australian Football would benefit. Like fans from WA, SA, NT & Tas would get in behind Qld’s SOO team and spread the word of that good game to AF fans. Likewise Qld would feel disposed to AF by supporting the smaller states. It’d capture the imagination of the sporting culture of this country. —— And we as a country would show foresight by actually determining things. We are a bit blasé when it comes designing things. We’re a bit too much pragmatic
Micko
Roar Rookie
DaveJ just looked, and can confirm that NZ's playing XI that contested and won the inaugural ICC Test Championship Final @ Southampton in 2020 contained Conway, de Grandhomme & Wagner, meaning 3 out of the playing 11 (27+%) weren't NZ products.
MxDay
Roar Rookie
Why? Would you speak up after a project is finished or during in order to hopefully rectify problems that you can see? Cricket isn't sacred. It's just a sport played by people and run by people. Placing all these notions about the right and wrong time to speak up is what lets bad things go unchecked for too long. How one goes about speaking up is definitely something to consider and is another topic to whether one should.
Micko
Roar Rookie
DaveJ, you're forgetting some key point/s: one being that NZ has been utilising African cricket mercenaries for the past decade: *South African all rounder Grant Elliot helped achieve ODI success *Zimbabwean all rounder Colin de Grandhomme was a permanent test player for NZ for more than half a dozen years. *South African Neil Wagner has been a superstar test bowler for NZ for more than half a dozen years now. *South African Devon Conway has been a revelation for NZ since making his test debut in England last year: scoring a double century on debut (just scored a test century against Bangladesh the other day) *Both Wagner & Conway are in the NZ test XI currently playing Bangladesh. The key point with India is with 1.3 billion population, their first class system probably is necessary. England is double Australia's population, so 12 first class sides would probably suffice for them.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
And the pink ball tests seems / seams to get results and for the first time in a longtime gives the ball a correction over bat's inexorable and chronic dominance on the game. A long overdue correction. So a loss of 2 hours is acceptable on your proposal which I think has merit. --------- White ball cricket has very little interest to me because of it's rather pedestrian tactics.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
Sheek, doesn’t really explain why NZ should do well. Or Windies have done well in different eras. And 36 teams in the Ranji Trophy is not seen as a barrier to them being on top. I’d agree 18 might be more than optimal for UK. But not convinced that number of provincial teams in Aus and SA is more than coincidental to their periods of success.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
True about medium pacers and spinners Ozinsa. It might work better if they had fewer teams, although they already have a two-tier system in the county championship. But I’m not convinced it has a lot to do with the failures of the batting this time, given that it should prepare them for dealing with seaming pitches which has been the downfall this time.
Derek Murray
Roar Rookie
Fair point on Yorkshire numbers. I take it back
sheek
Roar Guru
Rowdy, For me the saviour of test & FC cricket is day/night matches, ie, pink ball. I think it fits modern lifestyles better. I would reduce tests to 4 x 7 hour day/night matches (a net loss of only 2 hours) & FC to 3 x 7 hour day/night matches (a net loss of only 3 hours). I'm basing this on the fact SS still plays only 4 days, & 5 days for the final. It may not be well known that 7 hour day matches was common in England & South Africa many years ago. So, the future lies in the past!
Paul2
Guest
Thanks Ozinsa. I'm happy to not use the word 'large' but those numbers look pretty good to me. They're significantly higher than (non-Test) FC attendances anywhere else in the world. In fact, those Yorkshire numbers would be better than Test attendances in most parts of the world. Considering how many counties there are, and how many matches they play per season, that's pretty impressive. Anyway, the point is that you don't just rip everything up and start again. Declaring that century old county clubs will no longer playing FC cricket (as per Sheek's proposal) is absurd. It will simply alienate a massive stakeholder group (which English cricket can't afford to do), and anyway the clubs wouldn't put up with it: they not going to put their red balls away on the say so of the ECB. The aim should be to work with what they have to produce a better concentration of talent and to produce better pitches i.e. to ensure that FC cricket genuine prepares players for Test cricket, as the Sheffield Shield generally does.