Michael Vaughan warns Test cricket a ‘joke’ if England rotate in Ashes | Cricket News – Times of India

[ad_1]

Read More/Less


LONDON: Former captain Michael Vaughan fears Test cricket will become a “joke” if England rotate players in and out of their side during the 2021/22 Ashes in Australia.
England coach Chris Silverwood has suggested the team could continue with the controversial rest-and-rotation policy they used in Sri Lanka and India.
Joe Root’s team beat Sri Lanka 2-0 before losing their four-match series in India 3-1.
A number of players including Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali all missed matches at some stage of the tour programme.
Many observers felt the rotation policy made the already tough task of winning a series in India even more difficult.
But England are set to play a gruelling schedule of up to 17 Tests in 2021, as well as limited-overs matches including a Twenty20 World Cup.
Team management argue rotation is necessary to prevent player burnout, especially when so many fixtures will be played in bio-secure bubbles during the coronavirus pandemic.
“If they need rest, you get it before the Ashes,” Vaughan said on his BBC radio programme.
“Test match cricket is becoming a joke if that (players being rotated) happens. You make sure you get your best players available for every single Ashes Test match.”
Vaughan is also concerned by the possibility that players, including Buttler and Stokes, could miss the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s on June 2, depending on how long their franchises are involved in the T20 Indian Premier League.
“This is where it gets frustrating for England supporters, and many in the game, that these players will go and play in the full IPL,” he said.

[ad_2]

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE

59 wickets by two Indian spinners was reflection of how difficult it was: Silverwood | Cricket News – Times of India

[ad_1]

Read More/Less


AHMEDABAD: England coach Chris Silverwood admitted that Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel with a combined 59 wickets made the lives of England batsmen miserable as this 1-3 defeat will certainly “hurt” them for some time to come.
Having started off with a big win on a flat deck in Chennai, the visitors stumbled on the turners as Ashwin (32 wickets) and Axar (27 wickets) clinically decimated the English batsmen who were more troubled by the straighter deliveries.
“It’s (59 wickets from four matches) probably a true reflection as well. It was difficult. They made life very hard for us, hard to get first innings runs which is something that we obviously try and pride ourselves on and something we’re working hard towards that. But they made life very tough,” Silverwood told the British media during a virtual press meet.

Unlike a lot of former cricketer turned English pundits, who have panned the tracks, Silverwood said that it’s only fair to accept that they were completely outplayed in the last three Test matches.
“They outplayed us in their conditions. I’m going to give a lot of credit to the Indians. They came back hard after that first test. We expected them to but they came back very hard.”
This defeat will make the team stronger as they pause and reflect on their performance during the past one month.
“It’s going to hurt for a while. And obviously, probably reflecting some talking going on between the players and the various coaches, but hopefully we’ll pull the positives out of it and learn from it and that will make them stronger moving forward,” Silverwood said.
Looking ahead to the coveted Ashes in Australia later this year, Silverwood said the experience they would learn would help in the long run.
“When you start heading somewhere, there’s always gonna be a few bumps in the road. The experience they will gain from this will be really valuable down the line,” he said.
Asked how much damage would be realistically ahead of the Ashes, he said: “It will alter our outlook and what we’re trying to achieve now. It’ll just go down as an experience and help galvanise the side really. We’ve got some very fine young players in that side.
“None of us like losing a series like that, but I think we will reap rewards down the line of the experience. It’s a very difficult place to come and win. As we’ve seen time and time again history tells us up, not just for England but for other countries as well.”

[ad_2]

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE