Opinion
This second Ashes Test at Lords was reminiscent of the bodyline series in 1932-1933 when the England side attempted to combat the great Don Bradman’s batting.
With the Australian team on top and the lack of movement from the pitch, England was inspired to attack their opponents with the short ball strategy.
It worked. Australia lost 3-10 with Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith and Travis Head all falling victim to the short ball within six overs.
Australia lost 8-92 in 40 overs from their second innings, sparking the question of whether this is a sneak peek of what we will see for the rest of the series if the pitches don’t change.
This series slows down for no one with the third Test beginning on Thursday, with Australia leading 2-0. Several talking points hang over the Leeds Test.
Australia was dealt a hammer blow losing Lyon mid-way through the first innings, with a calf injury. Lyon bowled just 13 overs, leaving Travis Head required to bowl, who picked up two wickets.
If flat pitches are rolled out again for the remainder of the season, the Australian team will have to decide whether they back Travis Head to be the main spinner, with four seamers, plus Cameron Green as the fifth bowler, or go with Todd Murphy.
Todd Murphy seems like the ideal replacement for Lyon, taking 14 wickets in his four matches in India. The off-spinner seems to be the man Australian selectors have put faith in for the replacement of Lyon when he decides to retire, with Queenslander Mitchell Swepson’s window closing.
The Victorian could be an integral part of winning the Ashes in England for the first time since 2001. The flat pitches could allow the off-spinner to be influential on days four and five of each match.
We will soon find out if Murphy is the man to take Australia forward.
Even before the series began, England bowler Stuart Broad came out and said, the last Ashes Series in Australia was a “void”.
The arrogant behaviour recently displayed by the players seems to be a reflection of coach Brendan McCullum.
Brendan McCullum said, post-match on BBC Test Match that he “can’t imagine we’ll be having a beer anytime soon”, with the Aussies. This was after Jonny Bairstow was controversially stumped by Australian ‘keeper Alex Carey.
But, McCullum was involved in similar incidents when keeping for the Black Caps, when he ran out Muttiah Muralitharan when he was celebrating teammate Kumar Sangakarra’s century. The Irony is amusing for many, but is the glitz and glamour of Bazball fading?
Brendon McCullum coach of England (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)
The new Bazball approach seems to have given England batsmen the license to go hard with no responsibility and the word defence is nonexistent on flat pitches.
Zac Crawley, Harry Brook and Ollie Pope are repeat offenders for giving their wickets away after promising starts.
Zac Crawley said, confidently before the second test that his team would win by about “150 runs”. The old saying if you talk the talk you go to walk the walk is being seemingly ignored by players, forming strange statements like these.
Will Bazball crash and burn or will they lift their game?
The fastest bowler in the world Mark Wood would have been a handful at Lords, with England utilising the short ball strategy for most of their second innings in the field.
Mark Wood took 17 wickets the last time he played Australia in the 2021 Ashes tour.
We saw what Josh Tongue brought to the table with some extra pace and bounce troubling the Australian batsmen. David Warner and Steve Smith were both dismissed by Josh Tounge in both innings and were certainly the pick of the England bowlers.
Is express pace the way to go?
After the defeat at Edgbaston, England’s fast bowler openly said, the pitch was like “kryptonite”, to him.
For the whole Test match at Lords, the England fast bowlers had the better of the conditions, winning the toss bowling first bowling under overcast conditions.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
James Anderson’s average seam movement has decreased from 0.7 degrees in the past three years to just 0.5 degrees in 2023. The England bowler has taken just 3 wickets from the 77 overs that he has bowled in the first two Tests.
He even admitted if the pitches do not change then “I’m done”.
If the short ball tactics continue because of the types of pitches being prepared then it’s hard to say Jimmy Anderson is the right bowler for the game style.
Headingley sets the scene to be a huge match that doesn’t need any fuel to the fire. Can England keep the series alive or will Australia win an Ashes in England for the first time since 2001?
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