Friday, March 29

England Heads To SCG “Special” Test For Ashes Inspiration | Ashes 2021-22


TThe Sydney football stadium in Moore Park is a decent reminder that Australia is a country that rarely stops. Originally built in 1988, what appeared to be a useful venue has been demolished since Ashes’ last tour four years ago and in its place, a striking new AU $ 828 million replacement is nearing completion.

Just a stone’s throw from the last sporting UFO to land on Australian soil is the wonderful Sydney Cricket Ground, which despite having been enhanced and bloated for its ability over the years, still retains a sense of history. Its 19th century green-roofed member and women’s pavilions are intact throughout its heritage list. Also, the old clock tower and a series of statues that denote the greats of the past of the game. It remains a truly evocative place to watch tryout cricket.

Inspiration has been in short supply for England’s cricketers since they arrived for this pandemic-era Ashes tour in November and their woes have been innumerable en route to 68 all and 3-0 down with two Trials to play. But when they go out into the arched mat gardens, Joe Root hopes his men will see the surroundings, think about the charity angle in the proceedings, recall past success stories in English, and realize how lucky they all are. to represent your country during certainly difficult times. .

“Obviously it is a special test match,” said Root, before training on Monday. “You have the McGrath Foundation [raising funds for breast cancer support] and you look at some of the previous touring performances, like the team’s 2010-11 win here, how special it was and how it will endure in the memory of fans and players.

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“Was here [Darren] Gough also got his hat-trick in 1999. It is a place where a number of special things have happened for England players and it is an opportunity to do just that. For me personally, I would love more than anything to walk away with a win. Personal accomplishments make you proud and it means that you are doing your best. But nothing compares to winning a test match and I’m desperate to do it. “

If a positive can be found beyond the red lines in various lateral flow tests during an interrupted accumulation, it is that the tourists appear to have held together off the field as they disintegrated on it. There have been complaints about the Covid lifestyle and Stuart Broad has made public his annoyance at missing the green surfaces in Brisbane and Melbourne. But any serious anguish is yet to bleed out of the locker room as Australia has been tearing them apart with hardly a sled to be heard.

Perhaps this should be a concern; a sign that a team that has been forced to go through 21 test matches since the onset of the pandemic, compared to its hosts’ seven, has now gone on a run stunned by mere match performance. Australia are on a heady streak, their series wins one of the contributions of the entire team and it will be hard to stop it now. Either way, performances at this fourth test, followed by a fifth still scheduled for Hobart, may provide an answer on the state of various minds among Root’s company.

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They can also serve to inform how much substance there is across public and private support for Root’s continuation as captain as he surpasses Alastair Cook’s record of 59 tests in charge. The 31-year-old insisted once again that it was a topic to be discussed at the end of the tour, but stressed that his pride in having the opportunity to lead “has not wavered from day one,” adding: “I will continue to do everything. We do our best to try to give England the best chance of winning and give the best account of ourselves. “

In the past week, this involved Root literally throwing all he could at his teammates online due to Covid-imposed absences from head coach Chris Silverwood and three members of his staff. England’s opponents, though forced to bring in Usman Khawaja at No. 5 after Travis Head tested positive for the virus, they’ve had far fewer issues to deal with, even if they’ve been hassled for not drinking Cricket Australia’s official sponsor beer during celebrations in Melbourne.

Stuart Broad (right) can replace Ollie Robinson (left) in England's starting eleven after having played just one Test so far in this Ashes series.
Stuart Broad (right) can replace Ollie Robinson (left) in England’s starting eleven after having played just one Test so far in this Ashes series. Photograph: Mark Metcalfe / Getty Images

With two days left before the draw, neither team was revealing much about the selection aside from the peripheral roles of Rory Burns and Ollie Pope in practice that pointed to more 12-man assignments and an unchanged England top seven. Unlike Haseeb Hameed, the starter sporting a new haircut in the nets as he prepared for the last meeting with Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, the field had yet to receive a proper adjustment, so the final places between the two bowling attacks. they were yet to be named.

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Gone are the days when Sydney was the ground where spinners lick their lips, yet with Nathan Lyon one of the numbers in the NSW books averaging 40 with the ball here at cricket test. As such, and with some rain forecast for the next few days, recent talks about the arrival of Queensland leg spinner Mitch Swepson to join him as a couple in preparation for the upcoming Pakistan tour seem optimistic.

Instead, beyond the return of the experienced Khawaja, and with little reason to put pressure on Josh Hazlewood on serve too soon after lateral tension increased during the first test, Australia’s final decision appeared between retaining Scott Boland after his notable six out of seven in Melbourne or return to the established pecking order remembering Jhye Richardson. With the latter’s latest outing in Adelaide delivering an inaugural tour of five wickets, it’s quite a dilemma to have.

England, meanwhile, were considering a return from Broad in place of Ollie Robinson, who for all his obvious skill has at times seemed awkward. But ultimately, the question will be whether his batting lineup can finally cope with an attack that has been relentless since the first ball of this uncompetitive series or whether it will once again be ripped apart without sentimentality like the old football stadium next door. .


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