The word ”choke” is a bit far-stretched term for a side that became the world champions less than a month ago but seeing how soft this Australian team has become after the sandpaper scandal in 2018, it has had a impact on their game.
They are not being dominant and they’re throwing away key moments in a match, and the question does arise that does this Australian side struggle to capitalise on crucial opportunities?
The Australians in the 1990s to mid-2000s were a force to reckoned with.
They always took the fight and pretty much always won whether they were up against England, a strong Indian team with world-class batters, Pakistan’s amazing fast bowlers, a fighting New Zealand team or the South Africans with Jacques Kallis and co.
Those teams dominated both home and away and the main reason was the fear and intimidation they put on opponents.
They had the ability to dominate from first ball of the Test and they had an arrogant style.
Australians in any sport have a fighting spirit – an intention to win absolutely everything. That Australian team showed it all and were for reason called the ”Invincibles” for a brief amount of time.
Coming back to this Australian team led by Pat Cummins, it’s a really really good side with batters having averages that have surpassed 50 and 60 in some cases.
But do opponents fear this side? Maybe not.
The big reason is they don’t show the intimidation levels or impose the fear that they are going to take the game away from an opponent.
Teams needing 100 with the last four wickets can still be a bit optimistic of winning the match and that is where we can notice there isn’t that fear anymore.
In the third Headingley Test, in the first innings with England 7-142 coming to tea with Ben Stokes on one leg with tailender Mark Wood, the Australians should have gained a lead of more than 100 if they had wrapped up the innings immediately.
Instead they leaked 95 runs in 10 overs with Wood smacking three sixes as Mitchell Starc and Cummins dug the ball in short.
The momentum thereafter was with England throughout the match.
A similar thing happened in the second innings with the match pretty much in the balance with 80 required and England six down with Chris Woakes and not much batting left.
(Photo by Ashley Allen/Getty Images)
Australia started spreading the field instead of attacking to get Harry Brook or Woakes out. They let them build a partnership without threatening them and ultimately lost the match.
Not long ago Australia lost a huge opportunity in winning a historical Test in Delhi. India were trailing by 124 runs after being 7-139 but Axar Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin stitched a partnership worth 114 for the eighth wicket and there was the Test, gentlemen.
Australia never recovered after that and in an horrific second innings, were rolled for a mere 113.
At Headingley in 2019, Stokes swatted a century when Australia started being complacent in the field with one wicket to go. He was at it again at Lord’s recently with 155, intimidating the Aussies and nearly stealing the result again.
The only solution for the Aussies is to play harder cricket. Australia trying to be nice has not really helped them and their intimidation is no more.
For now, with all the history in their side and the fact that a team has never won an Ashes series after being down 2-0 except Don Bradman’s team in 1936-37, Australia can breathe a bit easier.
But they also know this England team under Stokes and Brendon McCullum is a different beast and are not going to back down on their Bazball style.
They can only hope their missed opportunity at Headingley doesn’t come back to haunt them.
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