Ashes 2021-22: It Can Be A Little Too Nice Sometimes - Glenn McGrath Believes Eng & Aus Players Are Nervous About Playing Hard

Former Australian pace bowler Glenn McGrath has stated that the lack of aggression and the familiarity among the England and Australian players has led to a “friendlier” Ashes series. He cited an example from the olden days when Nasser Hussain disallowed his players from even greeting their opponents.

McGrath reckons that the IPL and Big Bash are primary reasons for the level of friendship amongst the cricketers. He also opined that passion is lacking while representing the country.

“It can be a little bit too nice sometimes. That’s the way everything’s going, isn’t it? There’s a lot of political correctness. People are a bit nervous about being aggressive and playing hard. I remember, when Nasser Hussain came out here with England, they weren’t even allowed to talk to us or say ‘G’day’.”

Although the lack of aggression doesn’t necessarily mean the lack of competitiveness, McGrath would still be happy to see some “emotion” from the Englishmen.

“It’s all about body language. How much does it mean, representing your country? England have to go back to the drawing board and have a real good think about this. With the IPL and the Big Bash, these players know one another well. You see batsmen and bowlers joking around. I’d like to see some emotion out in the middle,” McGrath added.

“This could get pretty ugly very quickly” – Glenn McGrath

Glenn McGrath believes the wins in the first two Tests put Australia in a great place moving forward. The fact that the second Test was won without their two best bowlers, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, says a lot about the disparity level between the two teams.

“I’d love there to be more of a battle. Australia aren’t going to take their foot off the throttle, now that they have Pat Cummins coming back. James Anderson looks like he’s down on pace, and the ball’s not swinging. This could get pretty ugly very quickly.”

“Ollie Robinson will take wickets, but he’s not going to blast teams out, especially in Australian conditions… To turn things around they have to be much more aggressive. For all of us, the Ashes is the ultimate. All we want is to see a battle that’s close,” McGrath added.

Going into the third Test at the MCG, England is likely to bring back Mark Wood in the place of either James Anderson or Stuart Broad.

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