Former England Captain Nasser Hussain slams England for their ‘lethargic’ effort on the first day of the second Ashes 2023. Nasser Hussain believes that the passion displayed by Ben Stokes and Co. was unsatisfactory, especially since the bowling unit showcased no intensity. After winning the toss, England was unable to yield results even under the overcast conditions.
Australia smacked 339 runs at the inception of the second Test of the Marquee Ashes 2023, with only five wickets down. England will be in a strong predicament if they do not take quick wickets on the second day. Some Notable bowlers like James Anderson and Stuart Broad were unsuccessful in obtaining wickets despite the swing they were offered under the cloudy conditions. England will be in a bind if they do not take any action on the second day.
“In those drizzly conditions, if umpires call you back on, you want to be rushing on straight away… – Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain claims that drizzly conditions provides fielding team with an advantageous situation, however England failed to produce results. He Wrote in his Daily Mail Column:
“They were subdued despite winning the toss and there was a real lack of intensity to their bowling attack – the speeds of each of the five seam bowlers was down and they didn’t bowl bouncers to change things up – while the fielding was sloppy and they missed catches.” said Nasser Hussain.
“Where was the spark? Where was the urgency? When the Just Stop Oil protest happened, there was a lot of chat and then, when it rained they strolled off and were still upstairs when the Australian batters were waiting on the steps at the bottom of the pavilion” he stated.
“In those drizzly conditions, if the umpires call you back on, you want to be rushing on straight away as a fielding team, bowling as much as possible,” he added.
“There was plenty of movement through the air but once again we saw a lack of zip in the surface, epitomized when Stuart Broad’s first ball dribbled through to Jonny Bairstow after bouncing twice. Yet Stokes was slow to react to that in his field settings… He kept conventional fields as conditions dictated but it needed to be two slips and a gully rather than three slips.” he concuded.
“To Play Josh Tongue Was A Brave Selection..” – Nasser Hussain
Josh Tongue played the second Test of his career on 28th June 2023, against Australia, and scalped two crucial wickets of the openers David Warner and Usman Khawaja, he has proved to be the most impactful player for England in the Second Ashes. Nasser Hussain wrote in his Daily Column Mail:
“Josh Tongue was the pick of the bowlers and it was a brave selection to play him on a green top when they might as easily have picked Chris Woakes, a good all-round cricketer with a fine record on this ground. Tongue’s dismissal of David Warner from around the wicket was a fine piece of bowling. But it was a rare positive in what was generally a lack of intensity from England.” said Nasser Hussain.
“This was not a day for a team getting to 300 only three wickets down, as the Australians did before Joe Root’s golden arm pulled things back a bit to leave them five down at the close.” he added.
Also Read: Ashes 2023: “I Dreamt About Playing As A Kid In The Ashes..” Says Josh Tongue