The dead rubbers were harder to enjoy but while English TV audiences were limited, the paying public in Australia lapped it up and the hosts will do likewiseAn enthralling Test finished on Monday, 7,000 miles from Sydney and six or so hours after the end of the 2017 Ashes. India and South Africa, the top two teams in the ICC’s world rankings, played out the endgame of a low-scoring, topsy-turvy tussle in Cape Town. Related: Trevor Bayliss assumes rather a lot in choosing when to depart England | Andy Bull Continue reading...
Just after being walloped 4-0 by Australia is not a strong position for the head coach to make pronouncements about how long he plans to stayThe career of an England cricket coach is like that of a politician: it always ends in failure. David Lloyd went when England were dumped out in the group stages of the 1999 World Cup, Duncan Fletcher after they were knocked out in the second round in 2007, Peter Moores was sacked when England were thumped in the 2015 tournament and Andy Flower quit after the Test side were whitewashed by Australia in 2013-14. So of course, after England’s battering in the Ashes, Trevor Bayliss’s days are numbered. The surprise is that he has been...
Darren Lehmann’s bowl fast, score faster gameplan failed spectacularly in 2015 but Australia dominated this series through spectacular endurance at the crease“Our plans worked perfectly.” One could imagine Darren Lehmann as a supervillain. That saurian monolith of a scone, complete with Blofeldian vasculature. Spinning around in a high-backed chair with that knowing squint. More likely to be stroking a bottle of white wine than a white cat – a crisp Riesling, perhaps, to cut through the third-session torpor? Come, come, Mr Cook, you derive just as much pleasure from crushing touring teams as I do.In its inception, back in the dim mists of 2013, the Lehmann masterplan could be generously described as uncomplicated. Bowl fast, score faster. Aggression was the...
The pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, supported by spinner Nathan Lyon, are a rare gift for captain Steve SmithKeep the bowling attack fit and healthy over the next 18 months and there is no reason why Australia cannot break a drought that stretches back to 2001 and win the next Ashes series in England. In fact it looks there for the taking if they do.Right now Steve Smith is a blessed Test captain who possesses an envious blend of bowlers in Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon. Never before have a side had only four wicket-takers over the course of a five-match series but is easy to see how it occurred. Related:...
England and Australia jostle for the awards for best moment, match, and breakthrough player. Best player? Well, maybe the award should be renamedSteve Smith is a freak. To think he started the series with a supposed drought of international centuries having not raised the bat since March. This really is a special player we are watching. Adam Collins Related: Trevor Bayliss to stand down as England head coach at end of 2019 Ashes Related: Australia’s Steve Smith puts winning the Ashes in England on his bucket list | Adam Collins "The ball of the #Ashes.""Ball of the 21st century..."Mitchell Starc's delivery to dismiss James Vince impressed pretty much everyone in the cricket world... #ItsTheAshes pic.twitter.com/Gmbb1v6YOn Related: The Ashes 2017-18: England...