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Ashes lost

Has anything positive emerged from the debacle of 3 lost Tests, lost Ashes and the distinct possibility of another 5-0 whitewash?

There has been the input of Dawid Malan, Rocky Stoneman and James Vince.

I am no admirer of the selectors but they did well to identify Malan’s Test potential.

Here was a 29 year old in a struggling side (Middlesex) that was relegated who made his name as a fierce striker of the ball in t20. There was little to suggest that he could occupy the crease and score runs in the face of the Aussie pace barrage but that he did.

The absence of a proper contribution from Alistair Cook, Joe Root and Stuart Broad has been well documented so I would prefer to centre on two others that let us down.

The first is Ben Stokes. What was he doing drinking after hours outside the hotel? – and look at the consequences.

My second target is Mooen Ali, whose form with bat and ball has been well below par.

Without Stokes, he seems unable to amass a decent score. His bowling contribution has been nil.

In seeking answers and solutions, we also need to address two other issues.

Batsmen like Steve Smith and Steve Waugh respond to captaincy, Joe Root – and before him Ian Botham and Freddie Flintoff – are broken by it.

Secondly, in key moments in the game England lose their resolve.

Had more than 36 more runs been added to the scoreboard after the immense partnership of David Bairstow and Dawid Malan, say another 150 and another session at the crease, then the match would surely have ended in a draw.

The Aussies are better than us but are not a great side. They have three advantages: Steve Smith, Nathan Lyon and 3 genuine speedsters. Yet much of their middle order is ordinary.

In praising the Aussie victory, I must also comment on a wicket which, if prepared for a county game, would have have been reported.

It reminded me of those dry tracks in Sabina Park Jamaica in the 1980s where you could put a hand down the cracks.

Secondly it was sickening to see Pat Cummins fell James Anderson with a bouncer. Time was when an umpire would warn a bowler over this. One remembers Jon Snow hitting Terry Jenner on the head, though with  a much lower ball, and the subsequent furore when Snow was sent to field in front of the most popular section of the ground.

We are now in Wellington, a much cooler city than Auckland. Our  hotel, with its bold erotic modern art, dark lighting and fashionable though expensive restaurant reflects this. Like the vast majority of supporters we will be arriving Melbourne and Sydney for now meaningless Tests.

I wonder if this pampered underachieving group of Test cricketers care.

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About Douglas Heath

Douglas Heath began his lifelong love affair with cricket as an 8 year-old schoolboy playing OWZAT? Whilst listening to a 160s Ashes series on the radio. He later became half-decent at doing John Arlott impressions and is a member of Middlesex County Cricket Club. He holds no truck at all with the T20 version on the game. More Posts