Former cricketers expressed their bewilderment at Australia’s defensive tactics during the first session of the Ashes opener against England at Edgbaston in Birmingham. Ex-England captains Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan, along with former Australia skipper Mark Taylor, heavily criticized Australia captain Pat Cummins for adopting a cautious approach with the field placements, despite getting an early wicket in the form of Ben Duckett in the fourth over.
It was clear from the outset that England intended to continue their aggressive batting approach. Zak Crawley’s boundary off the first ball of the Test, a stylish cover drive, provided the strongest evidence. However, experts were taken aback by Cummins’ decision to immediately adopt a defensive strategy, employing boundary riders as early as the second and third over of the match.
“Australia have got it wrong. They have set a field as if both players are batting on a hundred. They set a field for all the nonsense that was being said before the start of the series,” commented Kevin Pietersen during the match.
ALSO READ: Nitin Menon Reflects on Umpiring India’s Big Players: Growing Amidst Pressure
Pietersen also expressed his dissatisfaction with the pitch, describing it as flat and docile. “The wicket has been very docile. It has been brilliant to bat. The field is set for a short format game. I just think, the first morning of an Ashes series, you’d have thought Cummins would have said, ‘give it a go, hit us for seven fours, a couple of sixes. Then we go to plan B.’ But they straightaway moved to plan B,” he added.
Former Australian cricketer Mark Taylor, who was in the commentary box with Pietersen, concurred with the former England batter’s assessment.
“I tend to agree. If England were playing bazball, you’d think they’d be hitting more boundaries, but they are not. They have taken 26 singles in the first hour. That’s just not done,” Mark Taylor remarked. Eoin Morgan, England’s 2019 World Cup-winning captain, expressed his shock at Australia’s defensive tactics. “Shocked to see how defensive they have been. Australia have been the first to blink,” Eoin Morgan said.
Pietersen also expressed his dissatisfaction with England captain Ben Stokes’ decision to declare their innings at 393 for 8 towards the end of Day 1.
“We saw Australia bat there now and it didn’t miss the middle of the bat. I didn’t like the declaration,” he added.
ALSO READ: Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma Enjoy Spiritual Break In London
England captain Ben Stokes surprised everyone with an early declaration of the first innings on Day 1 when Joe Root was batting well at 121*. Stokes instructed the visitors to play four overs before the day’s play was called off.
“We were talking about the declaration, we were thinking about the declaration, but two or three years ago there would not have even been a hint of a declaration. But with this team, are we surprised? I don’t think we are, but I am a little bit surprised only because of how flat this wicket actually is,” Kevin Pietersen concluded.
