Stuart Broad has accused Australia’s former players of hypocrisy over the Ollie Robinson furore, hitting back at what he labelled as “disparaging” comments from Matthew Hayden.
Broad has joked he has lost his title of public enemy No.1 in Australia this week, as the fall-out from Robinson’s expletive-laden send-off of Usman Khawaja at Edgbaston continues.
Robinson claimed at the time his abuse of Khawaja when he bowled him on 141 was all part of the Ashes theatre, and asked what Australia could handle if not that.
The English quick also drew the ire of multiple former Australian players, after Ricky Ponting was referenced by him as an example of a poorly-behaved Australian.
That prompted Ponting to say Robinson would need to back up his talk with performances, while Hayden labelled him as a “forgettable cricketer” while refusing to use the 29-year-old’s name in a radio interview last week.
David Warner reacts after being dismissed by Stuart Broad. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
“Ultimately, the ICC had no problem with Ollie’s reaction to dismissing Khawaja in the first innings and I didn’t like Matthew Hayden’s disparaging comments about him,” Broad wrote in his Sunday Mail column in England.
“Ollie averages 21 with the ball in Test cricket over a decent amount of time and bowls in a very similar way to Glenn McGrath.”
Broad also claimed hypocrisy in the criticism of Robinson emanating from Australia, given the response in the country to Broad’s refusal to walk after edging a catch to slip at Trent Bridge in 2013.
“Weren’t T-shirts being sold in Australia 10 years ago about me, with swear words on?” Broad wrote. “Now a couple of expletives the other way and everyone is piling in. Where are we going with this?
“Ricky Ponting had a bit of a nibble because Robbo brought his name into things during a press conference, but not because Ricky was a huge sledger. Ollie had a bit of a mind blank, Ricky Ponting was the most famous ex-Aussie cricketer he could think of, and that Australia team he played in was hardly full of shrinking violets, so the hoo-ha that was created surprised us.”
Broad’s column came after a week of bullish talk from England, with multiple players and coach Brendon McCullum having claimed they felt like they won the first Test despite a two-wicket defeat.
But Australia have so far refused to engage in a war of words with the hosts.
“They seem to have a lot to say at the moment,” Australia batting coach Michael Di Venuto said. “We can’t control what they say or do. We will look after ourselves and play the way we play.”
Travis Head is bemused by England’s off-field talk as Australia prepare for Wednesday’s second Test holding a 1-0 series lead.
The English players have been talking up a big game, led by medium-pacer Ollie Robinson on and off the field, while opener Zak Crawley predicted the hosts would bounce back at the home of cricket to win by 150 runs.
“We’re only going for the lunch (at Lord’s), apparently,” Head said with a laugh to Nine News. “They (England) have got this mantra they’re going at.
“Not just on the field but off the field they are throwing some nice chat out, but this team is truly just worried about what we need to do to win the second Test to go 2-0 up and put some pressure on them.”
Travis Head celebrates a century. (Photo by Alex Davidson-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)
Former players Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting have not been so diplomatic in their responses. Hayden labelled Robinson “a forgettable cricketer. A fast bowler that is bowling 124km/h nude nuts, and he’s got a mouth from the south”.
Ponting said Robinson would “learn pretty quickly that if you’re going to talk to Australian cricketers in an Ashes series, then you want to be able to back it up with your skills”.
Justin Langer warned Robinson “you’re taking on an entire country here” in a column for the UK Telegraph after he claimed Ponting was a notorious sledger.
“Ollie will get ripped apart if he dishes it out without delivering. He might say it doesn’t bother him, but these things tend to have a cumulative effect over time.”
Ashleigh Gardner has spun Australia back into the box seat of the Ashes Test after a chaotic fourth day ended with England 5-116 chasing 268 for victory.
On a dramatic Sunday at Trent Bridge, Australia fell from 1-149 to all out for 257 in their second innings, after star spinner Sophie Ecclestone fuelled two separate collapses of 6-49 and 3-0.
England then got away to a flyer in the chase, and looked as if they could pull it off in a canter when they scored 0-55 from their first 10 overs.
Then Gardner arrived.
After the finger-spinning allrounder took 4-99 in the first innings, she removed the in-form Tammy Beaumont with her first ball in the second innings.
Fresh off scores of 201 in a warm-up game and 208 in the first innings at Trent Bridge, Beaumont squeezed Gardner to first slip on 22 where Beth Mooney took the catch.
Gardner then got rid of veteran Nat Sciver-Brunt in her next over for a duck on a top-edged sweep, before a sharp-turning delivery trapped Heather Knight lbw for 1.
Ecclestone is widely regarded as the world’s best spinner but Gardner must be in the conversation.
“I think Ash isn’t too far behind her,” Australia opener Beth Mooney said.
“She has been outstanding for us in the past couple of years.
“There was a time two or three years ago where Meg tended to not throw the ball to Ash in T20 cricket.
“To her credit she changed what she did and changed her variations and things like that.”
England opener Emma Lamb also fell in the collapse, lbw to Tahlia McGrath when ball-tracking showed it would have clipped leg stump.
Kim Garth then struck in the shadows of stumps to have Sophia Dunkley caught behind for 16, leaving Danni Wyatt (20no) and nightwatcher Kate Cross to fight to the close with 152 more needed.
England will need to not only pull off the biggest successful chase in a women’s Test to win, but also eclipse the record for the highest fourth-innings score in any result.
“They had the ball on a string in the last 60 minutes,” Mooney said.
“It’s pretty tough conditions once the ball gets a bit soft.
“The game is teetering … but we feel like we are probably the happier team walking off.”
Australia, for their part, would still feel life could be more comfortable.
They were cruising late in the morning session, before England debutante Lauren Filer claimed Ellyse Perry’s wicket for the second time in the match on 25 and also bowled McGrath for one with her pace.
Ecclestone then took command, claiming her second five-wicket haul of the Test and making for match figures of 10-192.
She bowled Jess Jonassen sweeping on 14, had Mooney chop on to a ball that spun back to her sharply on 73 and got first-innings Annabel Sutherland caught pulling on 15.
Alyssa Healy survived a dropped chance first ball that would have marked her fourth straight Test duck, before she posted a counter-attacking 50 to give Australia something to bowl at.
But just when she and Alana King looked set to take Australia to a lead of 300 with a 59-run eighth-wicket stand, Australia lost 3-0 with Ecclestone taking the last two wickets to finish with 5-63 for the innings.
“We will always believe. We will go into tomorrow ready to win this Test match,” Ecclestone said.
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