Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes the current management has been too lenient with players, suggesting that they have been given too much of a cushion. Michael Vaughan highlighted that Alex Lees was the only player dropped by England during Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s regime.
Alex Lees played the last of his 10 Tests against India at Edgbaston in Birmingham during the summer of 2022. With the 30-year-old averaging a shade above 23, the management decided to bring in Ben Duckett to pair him with Zak Crawley at the top.
That was the tamest dropping you will ever see- Michael Vaughan on England dropping Alex Lees
In his column for The Telegraph, Michael Vaughan expressed his opinion,
“I do wonder, though, if this England setup takes backing a bit too far. Since Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum took over, only one batsman has been dropped, and even that was the tamest dropping you will ever see,”
“England inherited Alex Lees from the previous regime and gave him a crack, but always had their eye on Ben Duckett to open with Zak Crawley so simply moved Lees on at the end of their first summer”, Michael Vaughan added.
It creates a bit of comfortable complacency- Michael Vaughan
The 2005 Ashes-winning skipper believes that players must be kept on their toes consistently to avoid complacency. He stated,
“Ultimately, on any sporting team’s road to greatness, you need a moment, a rod, where every player realizes ‘Wow, maybe I’m not part of the furniture’. As soon as people think they are part of the furniture it creates a bit of comfortable complacency, which can be damaging,”
Zak Crawley has been a prime example of England’s unwavering support, and the Kent opener has now found consistency in his performances. Despite struggling for most of the summer of 2022, the right-hander emerged as England’s highest run-scorer in the 2023 Ashes series.
England needs a reminder that Test cricket is a two-innings game- Michael Vaughan
Michael Vaughan also noted the lack of consistency in England’s performance across a single Test series. He added:
“Overall, as a batting unit England have seemed in need of a reminder that Test cricket is a two-innings game. They have consistently been batting well in one, then screwing up the other. Ultimately, the game is about winning and England are struggling to do that against the very best sides. This week, with some extra pressure on selection, they would do well to remember that,”
England currently finds themselves trailing the five-Test series against India 3-1, with just one game remaining to be played.
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