Table of Contents
Australia endured a disastrous opening day against Bangladesh in the first Test in Darwin, with the hosts bowled out for just 198 after winning the toss and electing to bat first. The batting collapse left Nathan Lyon frustrated as Australia struggled to build the kind of first-innings total expected from a side playing at home.
Nathan Lyon did not directly criticise Australia's batters after the day's play, but his comments reflected the frustration within the Australian camp. Ricky Ponting and Matthew Hayden also weighed in on the veteran spinner's remarks, with both former Australia stars sensing that Lyon was unhappy with the batting performance.
Bangladesh bundle out Australia for 198 in 1st innings of 1st Test
Australia's decision to bat first backfired as Bangladesh's bowlers produced an outstanding performance at the Marrara Cricket Ground in Darwin.
Hasan Mahmud led the attack with a sensational 6/55 from 17 overs, while Ebadot Hossain claimed two wickets and Taskin Ahmed also picked up two. Australia were eventually bowled out for 198 in 53 overs.
Steven Smith top-scored for the hosts with 71 off 109 balls, but there was little support around him. Travis Head made 22, Jake Weatherald 23 and Alex Carey 19, while Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon all fell cheaply.
Bangladesh then made Australia pay for the collapse. Tanzid Hasan struck a historic century, while Mominul Haque made 49 and Najmul Hossain Shanto was unbeaten on 57* while writing this report as Bangladesh moved to 247/3, taking a 49-run lead by the second day's play.
"I'm not going to sit here and judge our batters or comment on batting or sh*t shots" - Nathan Lyon
Speaking on ABC Radio, Nathan Lyon was asked after the first day's play whether 198 was below par after Australia had won the toss and chosen to bat first.
The veteran spinner admitted that Australia would have wanted a considerably bigger total but refused to publicly criticise his teammates. At the same time, he pointed towards the extensive preparation the batting group had undergone before the Test.
"I think if you win the toss and bat first I think you you want more than that. But it's up to us bowlers now to put a really good performance in and challenge the Bangladesh guys as much as we can.
"I'm not going to sit here and judge our batters or comment on batting or sh*t shots or anything like that. All I can say is our preparation's been unbelievable for the last five weeks we've been up in Brisbane on centre wickets on challenging wickets and I thought our batters looked really good."
Also Read: Tanzid Hasan joins Virat Kohli, Babar Azam with historic Test ton in Australia
"I think there's some real frustration coming through" - Ricky Ponting reacts to Nathan Lyon's comments
Lyon's comments immediately sparked discussion around the Australian camp, with Ricky Ponting asked on 7 Cricket whether the spinner's words were simply a turn of phrase or indicative of a divide between the batting and bowling groups.
Ricky Ponting felt there was more behind Nathan Lyon's response, particularly given the spinner's experience and his omission from Australia's side last summer. He said:
"I think there's some real frustration coming through there isn't there from Nathan Lyon remembering that he was left out of the side last summer. I think there's a bit of that frustration still hanging over and it just sounds to me there that he's frustrated with the output of the top order batters and that's I think what he's trying to say," Ricky Ponting said on 7 Cricket.
"I reckon he's livid" - Matthew Hayden reacts to Nathan Lyon's comments
Matthew Hayden was even more emphatic when discussing Nathan Lyon's reaction. The former Australia opener suggested that Lyon had every reason to be frustrated, particularly because the poor first-innings batting performance placed greater pressure on the bowlers. He said:
"I reckon he's livid and I think he's got a really good point to be livid as well because when you think about it in the context of where we are this is the start of our summer. It's winter but it's summer cricket season well and truly on the radar so the sum of all parts need to be there.
"It's an important discussion bowlers need to feel like their batters are accountable. It's a game of attrition test match cricket and if you're getting no time to recover and you're not actually in a position from a batting unit who have been asked to do so Pat Cummins to then put someone like Nathan Lyon into the game in the back half in the second innings for Bangladesh then I think we're really kidding ourselves as a playing nation."
