‘Smartness was missing’: Bazball test awaits, Starc shoulders load as decisive Day 2 looms — LIVE
England’s commitment to ‘Bazball’ is set to be tested as they carry an advantage over Australia heading into Day 2 of the first Ashes Test in Perth on Saturday.
Play will resume at 1.20pm AEDT after a whopping 19 wickets fell on an opening day of carnage on Friday.
A rampaging Mitchell Starc took 7-58 to put England on the back foot after England captain Ben Stokes won the toss on a fine day at a packed Perth Stadium and chose to bat.
Harry Brook (52) and Ollie Pope (46) offered the only resistance as they crumbled after lunch.
But England’s elite fast bowlers, led by Stokes himself with 5-23, fought back to reduce the hosts to 9-123 at stumps, trailing by 49.
Nathan Lyon is on three with Brendan Doggett yet to score as the tailender will look to add any valuable runs when play resumes.
It will then be fascinating to see how England approach their second innings, after drawing criticism for their reckless approach in the first innings that featured some poor shots and cheap wickets.
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Starc on 19 wkts & Khawaja injury update | 09:48
‘THEY’VE GOT TO LEARN THE LESSON’
There was great discussion following the thrilling series against India in the northern summer that England had learnt to throttle down when required, to adjust to the circumstances.
On the evidence on Friday, England still has some work to do on that front.
While they scored at a rapid 5.23 per over, they were also bowled out in just 32.5 overs, which is the smallest number of overs they have faced under Brendon McCullum.
“Bazball with brains. Well, Bazball has arrived. They forgot the other bit,” former captain Michael Vaughan said on the Kayo Sports coverage.
A topic of discussion leading into the series was whether England’s aggressive approach to batting would fall short, literally, given the longer boundaries on Australian soil.
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KHAWAJA: Starc reacts to unthinkable Khawaja situation as ‘unfortunate’ reason revealed
EVERY WICKET! Starc’s career-best haul | 05:35
Vaughan said England was taught a lesson as to how hard it is to clear the boundary in Australia.
“If I’m England and I’m trying to take on the boundary riders over 82 metres, and they’re only got three quarters of the way back, it tells you everything,” Vaughan said.
“At home that goes into the stands at Trent Bridge, Edgebaston, Headingley. It’s quite small. But here in Australia, England will have to find a way. If they’re going to play in that fashion, they’re probably going to give Australia some cheap wickets, like they did today, and they’ve just got to learn the lesson.
“They’ll carry on playing their way but I’ve seen them play over the last year where they’ve played Bazball, but with a smartness. There was times today where Bazball was great, but then the smartness was missing towards the back end.
“I’m intrigued to see if that lack of smartness, if they carry on with it, costs them in the second innings. If they play in a similar fashion, they might bring Australia back into the game.”
STARC READY TO GO, AGAIN
Meanwhile, Starc again looms as the key for Aussie attack and has dimissed concerns about having to quickly back up from his first-inning heroics.
The 35-year-old has a history of injury but is seeing the benefits of prioritising Test cricket over other formats, including the lucrative Indian Premier League.
“It is what it is. Sometimes you’re faced with that (a short turnarond). I’ve played long enough to have trained the body to be able to do that if I have to do,” Starc said.
“Obviously you like to sit back and watch your team back but sometimes you have short turnarounds.
“There’ll be other days where we’re in the field for a long time and it’s just the nature of Test cricket and tough days’ work for both batting groups.”
DEBATE OVER KHAWAJA PREPARATION AMID GOLF TWIST
Usman Khawaja was caught up in a bizarre injury ruling on the first day of the First Ashes Test in Perth and deemed unable to open for the Aussies.
The Queenslander spent limited time on the field as teammate Mitchell Starc tore through England on Friday with a career-best seven-wicket haul.
Cricket Australia said Khawaja’s absence was due to “back stiffness”, with a back spasm later delaying his return.
But given the time he spent off the field during the England innings, the opener was deemed ineligible to come out to bat when Starc rolled through the final wicket. This was despite the pleas of captain Steve Smith to get Khawaja back out onto the field late in England’s innings, but he didn’t make the cut-off.
While Cricket Australia made clear it was a new injury multiple reports including ESPN and the West Australian reported Khawaja played 18 holes of golf on Thursday, opting to miss Australia’s last optional training session.
It is not uncommon or new for Khawaja to play golf the day before a Test match, and Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc also reportedly played on Thursday, along with several members of the coaching staff.
But the revelation has certainly sparked some discussion and debate online in the wake of Khawaja’s injury saga with the UK Telegraph also picking up on the story.
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