Ashes 2021-22: Runs, It's As Simple As That - Nasser Hussain On How England Can Come Back Into The Series
Former England captain Nasser Hussain believes that the only way for the Englishmen to come back into the Ashes is by scoring runs. Apart from Joe Root and Dawid Malan, there have been no significant contributions from the batting lineup.
If they are to turn the 0-2 deficit around, the others need to step up. The English openers are extremely vulnerable, leaving Root exposed with the new ball still doing a lot. They need to play out the new ball in order to let the other batsmen breathe.
“Runs. It’s as simple as that. You cannot win in Brisbane with 147 in your first innings or in Adelaide with 236. This was a pretty flat pitch and you saw yesterday how much Australian toil was needed to get the last six wickets. Jos Buttler’s character was phenomenal, but the discrepancy in Test average between Joe Root and the rest tells you everything you need to know about England’s batting,” Hussain said in a conversation with Daily Mail.
Mark Wood has to come in for Chris Woakes – Nasser Hussain on possible changes
The Boxing Day Test in Melbourne is five days away giving the England think tank plenty of time to weigh their options. Hussain recommended a couple of changes to the lineup – bringing back Mark Wood for the ineffective Chris Woakes and leaving out either Stuart Broad or James Anderson for Jack Leach.
“It was very flat there last time but they say it’s a little quicker now. Wood has to come in, probably for Chris Woakes, and one out of Broad and Anderson misses out for Leach. The same batting line-up, with Pope getting one more go, partly because the others haven’t had a hit. Burns, Hameed, Malan, Root, Stokes, Pope, Buttler, Robinson, Wood, Leach, Anderson (or Broad),” Hussain mentioned.
Hussain also stated that the decision-making has been poor in the first couple of matches. They need to fix it and do it quickly before the series is out of their hands.
