Cricket world reacts to ‘utter nonsense’ in ‘farcical’ Ashes scenes

The Aussies will start day 4 with a 221-run lead and eight wickets within the financial institution after a dominant day in London that included some critically spectacular efforts by the Aussie bowlers and batters – but in addition some weird moments from the Poms.

Almost midway to Australia’s first innings rating with only one wicket down, England imploded to be all out for 325 and path by 91 runs.

England’s high 4 have been accused of throwing away their wickets on day two and there have been extra questionable pictures from Harry Brook, Jonny Bairstow and Ollie Robinson that price the Poms dearly.

Brook continued his haphazard method to short-pitched bowling by popping up a cross-bat shot to cowl, Bairstow miscued an tried lofted shot straight to mid-on and Robinson was caught brilliantly by Alex Carey whereas making an attempt to cost Travis Head.

All three fell making an attempt to assault in a interval the place the standard method would have been to attempt to survive till circumstances have been simpler.

“Love how England have played in the last 12 months. But seriously, this is farcical batting,” tweeted BBC reporter Henry Moeran.

Brook got here in for the harshest criticism after turning into considered one of Mitchell Starc’s three victims.

“On the one hand, Harry Brook made 50, but on the other hand, that is a f**king stupid way to get out when you’re still 120 behind in the first innings of a Test match,” Brydon Coverdale tweeted.

“England clearly like losing,” former England captain Michael Vaughan stated on the BBC. “Seeing a player play a shot like that, it’s just not good enough at this level.”

Vaughan doubled down when Bairstow spooned a catch to Pat Cummins off the bowling of Josh Hazlewood.

“This is stupid cricket from England. I fear they have forgotten the art of soaking up periods of the game that aren’t easy,” he wrote.

“Test cricket is a test and in that test sometimes you have to soak up pressure. They have gifted wickets to Australia, who are without their off spinner.”

Australia responded brilliantly to a disappointing day two when it misplaced Nathan Lyon for the match and solely took wickets that have been gifted by the opposition.

But a side-effect of England’s Bazball method – a minimum of in opposition to Australia – is repeatedly inviting the opposition again into the match.

“Ben Duckett said something last night that alarmed me,” Vaughan stated. “He said ‘if we hadn’t taken it on, Australia will feel they’ve won the battle’. What utter nonsense! It’s Test match cricket.”

Other damaging impacts embrace how a lot time England – due to its fast-scoring charges – offers the opposition to win the match. And the lowered time its bowling unit will get to relaxation.

And it was one other irritating begin for the England tempo assault in Australia’s second innings as David Warner and Usman Khawaja soaked up stress and guarded their center order from a testing interval.

The duo mixed for one more 50-run plus opening stand as Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad once more went wicketless of their opening spells.

To be truthful, all of England’s bowlers – together with Josh Tongue and Ollie Robinson – requested fixed questions of the Aussie high order.

And the best way this match – and this collection – has twisted and turned to this point there’s nonetheless an opportunity England runs via Australia on day 4 and pulls off a surprising chase.

But the willingness of Warner to bat at speeds a lot slower than the norm, Khawaja to lock himself in a bubble and ignore his environment and Steven Smith to guard his wicket means the Aussies are the extra doubtless winner.

Khawaja is 58 not out and has already scored extra runs on this collection (281) than Australia’s openers mixed for throughout the 2019 collection (197).

Reaching stumps for the lack of simply Warner and Marnus Labuschagne’s wickets – Smith is six not out – means there’s a greater probability of defending the tail from what’s been a harmful session for batting every morning.

And then it is going to be right down to the Aussie bowlers to take 10 wickets with out Lyon.

Mitchell Starc’s uncanny capability to maintain breaking via and the guile of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood must be sufficient.

And don’t neglect Travis Head, whose final 251 balls in Test cricket have delivered 9 wickets at a mean of 15.

Originally printed as Cricket world reacts to ‘utter nonsense’ in ‘farcical’ Ashes scenes