England have snubbed a pink-ball warm-up for the second Ashes Test despite their humiliating first-Test defeat in a decision described as “nonsense”.
England went 1-0 down in the series after a two-day Test defeat that was thrilling and infuriating in equal measure.
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They were bowled out for 172 in 32.5 overs and 164 in 34.4 overs with Zak Crawley recording a pair, and senior batsmen Joe Root and Ben Stokes mustering 16 runs between them.
This came on the back of a three-day warm-up match at Lilac Hill, where the slow, low conditions were markedly different from the bouncy Perth Stadium pitch, and those expected at the Gabba next week.
There is a two-day, pink-ball fixture against the Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra on November 29, a longstanding annual tradition in Australian cricket. The squad, meanwhile, are heading to Brisbane before the second Test, which does not begin until December 4.
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After two days of consideration, England have opted not to send any of the XI who played in Perth to Canberra. From the main squad, Jacob Bethell, Matthew Potts and Josh Tongue will join the Lions for the fixture. Tongue, particularly, will receive an opportunity to stake a claim to play in Brisbane.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan said: “It’s nonsense. If this comes back to bite them then it will be a big failure of the management.
“This wouldn’t happen in football – imagine if England went to the World Cup with no warm-up games. They need to be more open to changing things rather than sticking with what they believe is best.”
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Vaughan wrote on Sunday that it would be “amateurish” not to send the likes of Crawley and Root for extra match practice, not least because Australia are so much more experienced in day-night matches than England, who only play them occasionally.
The rest of the squad will fly to Brisbane on Wednesday, giving them eight days before the second Test. They will likely return to the nets over the weekend, after a week off. Brendon McCullum and Stokes value a strong team bond and have shown little regard for warm-up matches.
Discussing the decision to make after the first Test, McCullum said: “We’ve got to work out whether that extra cricket is the key, or making sure that camaraderie is tight and morale doesn’t drop, because that’s a big mantra of the time both Stokesy and I have had throughout this tenure, because we believe in keeping this group really tight.
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“For us that connectivity and camaraderie is something we pride ourselves on. We will need it over the next few days.”
The methods of Brendon McCullum, pictured with Ollie Pope, have come under scrutiny in the wake of the humiliating defeat in Perth – Shutterstock/Dave Hunt
Jonathan Agnew, the former England fast bowler and BBC chief cricket commentator, said: “When we heard England were considering sending some players to Canberra for the Lions game, we assumed it would be those in need of practice.
“It is a bizarre situation. There is a huge question about whether England would be better prepared playing a game under lights than spending time in the nets in Brisbane.”
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Bethell and Potts were part of a Lions team who were well beaten by a Cricket Australia XI at Lilac Hill on Monday.
Jacob Bethell, pictured in action for the Lions against a Cricket Australia XI on Sunday, is hoping to make his case for selection in the second Test – Getty Images/Gareth Copley
Josh Inglis, Australia’s Yorkshire-born wicketkeeper-batsman who is under consideration to come into the Test team in Brisbane, scored a superb unbeaten 125 from 107 balls opening the batting.
Inglis is one of the options to replace Usman Khawaja, who suffered back spasms in Perth, leading to the devastatingly effective promotion of Travis Head to open the batting in the second innings.
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Khawaja remains in contention for the second Test, which is on his home ground, but has been given no assurances he will be retained in the XI by coach Andrew McDonald.
Following heavy criticism for playing three rounds of golf in three days before the Perth Test – which Cricket Australia says was not linked to his back spasms – 38-year-old Khawaja has pulled out of a celebrity pro-am golf tournament which he was due to appear in on the eve of the match in Brisbane. He had been billed as one of the celebrities to appear in the Australian Open Pro-Am at Royal Melbourne.
Wood: If I could drive to Brisbane I would
Reflecting on England’s response to the Test loss, Mark Wood said on Stuart Broad’s For The Love Of Cricket podcast: “We were laying low yesterday, a lot of the lads just spent the day in their room. Some lads want time to themselves to let out a bit of air. I went to Fremantle, try to get away from cricket. I’m trying to switch off as best I can, watch movies, play cards in the team room.”
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Wood said he even considered driving the 2,500-mile journey to Brisbane to keep himself busy.
“If I could drive across the country, I would,” the England fast bowler said. “It’s a four-day drive. I did speak to a local Aussie who said if you go across the country, that’s a big danger. So you’d have to drive around the coast. But I did look at it.”
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