Tag: England

BRISBANE: Australia’s Steve Smith has confirmed he will be wearing ‘eye blacks’ during the upcoming day-night Ashes Test against England at The Gabba, starting December 4, after noticing a clear improvement during training under lights.

Smith, who is expected to lead Australia again as stand-in captain, revealed that the decision was influenced by advice from former West Indies great Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

For the unversed, the ‘eye blacks’ are small, black, adhesive strips worn on the cheekbone that are designed to reduce the glare from floodlights by absorbing the light that would otherwise reflect off the skin.

These anti-glare strips are commonplace in several American sports; however, in cricket, Chanderpaul is the most prominent cricketer to have used them.

“I actually messaged Shivnarine Chanderpaul and asked him what his thoughts were, whether he wore the chalk or the strips,” Smith said.

“He said the strips, and he thinks it blocks out 65% of the glare. He also told me I was wearing them the wrong way. So yesterday I put them on the right way… and yeah, I’ll be wearing them.”

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Smith admitted he felt a noticeable positive difference after correcting how he wore them.

Despite his stature as one of modern cricket’s greatest batters, Smith has not been at ease in day-night Tests. His average drops to 37.04 under lights, compared to a dominant 58.31 in traditional red-ball matches.

“It’s hard to bat all the time,” he said while discussing the challenges of twilight and full darkness.

“The ball reacts differently to a red one. At times, it can start moving randomly. You’ve got to be ready to shift your plans, whether that means attacking or just trying to survive that period.”

Steve Smith also reflected on the nature of the Gabba surface and how it impacts the pink ball, referencing Australia’s previous night Test at the venue, where West Indies stunned the hosts earlier in 2024.

“Adelaide’s wicket has more grass, so the ball stays harder for longer,” Smith explained.

“Here it’s a hard, fast wicket, and at times the ball can get soft quickly. You do see batters comfortable in patches, so it’s something we’ll have to assess as the game goes on.”

READ: Jacob Duffy puts New Zealand on top against West Indies

Former England batter Robin Smith has died at the age of 62, English county side Hampshire announced on Tuesday.

The South African-born Smith, who played 62 Tests between 1988 and 1996, died unexpectedly on Monday in Australia, where he lived, his family said.

“It is with the deepest and most profound sense of sadness and loss that we must announce the passing of Robin Arnold Smith, beloved father of Harrison and Margaux and cherished brother of Christopher,” Smith’s family said in a statement released by Hampshire Cricket.

“Robin died unexpectedly at his South Perth apartment on Monday, 1st December. The cause of his death is at present unknown.”

Smith, nicknamed the “Judge”, had recently met with the England Lions squad, England’s second-tier side, in Perth ahead of the first Ashes Test at the invitation of coach Andrew Flintoff.

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“Robin rose to fame as one of England’s most charismatic and popular players,” Smith’s family said.

“A brave and dashing batsman, he excelled both for Hampshire and his adopted country, collecting legions of admirers and friends along the way.

“Since his retirement from the game in 2004, his battles with alcohol and mental health have been well documented, but these should not form the basis of speculation about the cause of death, which will be determined at postmortem investigation.”

Robin Smith scored 4,236 Test runs for England, including nine centuries, at an average of 43.67. He scored 2,419 runs at 39.01 in 71 one-day internationals.

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BRISBANE: England made one change to their Playing XI for the second Ashes Test after key fast bowler Mark Wood was ruled out of the pink-ball clash against Australia at The Gabba.

Wood’s absence had been widely anticipated after he skipped England’s first training session in Brisbane due to persistent trouble with his left knee.

The pacer managed only 11 overs in the opening Test at Perth and had already suggested earlier in the tour that playing all five matches was never a realistic option.

He has also been seen wearing a heavy brace on his left leg in recent days, reinforcing concerns over his fitness.

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England have opted to strengthen their lower order by bringing in all-rounder Will Jacks in place of Wood, preferring him over frontline spinner Shoaib Bashir.

Jacks, a versatile option who offers off-spin and explosive batting, will bat at No. 8 despite not having featured in a Test match for the past three years.

His limited red-ball experience includes only two Tests, both on England’s 2022 tour of Pakistan, where he impressed with a five-wicket haul on debut.

The shift away from an all-pace attack remains the only change to England’s combination following their crushing eight-wicket defeat in the series opener in Perth, which was wrapped up inside two days.

England Playing XI for the second Ashes Test

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer.

READ: Usman Khawaja ruled out of the second Ashes Test in Brisbane

BRISBANE: England captain Ben Stokes was among three cricketers who could face police action after riding e-scooters without helmets, The Telegraph reported on Monday.

England arrived in Brisbane ahead of the pink-ball Ashes Test on Wednesday after losing the opening match of the series inside two days.

According to the report, England’s fast bowler Mark Wood, wicket-keeper Jamie Smith, and Stokes rode through the streets of Brisbane and were pictured riding the bike without helmets.

“Some players, such as captain Ben Stokes, have been getting out and about in Brisbane and using Lime e-scooters to see the city,” the report wrote.

“However, it is a legal requirement in Queensland that all riders of e-scooters must wear a helmet, and Stokes, Mark Wood, and Jamie Smith were pictured appearing to flout that law. Smith’s scooter even had a helmet attached to it,” it added.

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The pacer Wood, who is already ruled out of the second Test due to an injury, was seen with heavy protective strapping on his knee.

As per Queenlands’s road rule, riders without a helmet could face a fine of up to 166 Australian dollars (£82).

For the unversed, this isn’t the first time English cricketers have risked drawing the ire of Australian authorities. During the 2010-11 tour— Kevin Pietersen was fined A$239 for speeding in a Lamborghini on the outskirts of Melbourne.

Nonetheless, England are 1-0 down after losing the Ashes opener by eight wickets at Perth, courtesy of Travis Head’s blistering century.

Head hit a whirlwind 69-ball century and went on to make 123 off just 83 balls, which made a mockery of England’s 205-run target.

The second day-night Ashes Test will commence on Thursday, with three lions eyeing their first victory against Australia down under since 2010.

READ: England urged to ‘use their brains’ ahead of second Ashes Test

BRISBANE: England captain Ben Stokes said on Saturday that lessons had been learned from their crushing first Ashes Test defeat to Australia in Perth, but that the team had moved on.

Australia took a 1-0 lead in the five-match Ashes series with a stunning eight-wicket win in a frenetic two-day clash in Perth characterised by batting collapses and Travis Head’s match-winning 123.

In the aftermath, England was slammed as “brainless” and even “arrogant” by former greats for their meek performance after putting themselves in a strong position to win.

“We’ve talked about it, and we’ve moved on,” Stokes said in Brisbane ahead of the second day-night Test starting on Thursday. “We had some good conversations around the group.”

“Look, Travis played an amazing knock, there’s no hiding away from that,” he said. “But that’s not the overriding contribution as to why we didn’t end up getting the result.”

Ben Stokes noted there were “amazing things throughout that Test match.”

“The way that we bowled in the first innings … and we ended up putting a score on the board that we believed was definitely defendable,” he said.

“But we all know there were moments in that game where we could have been a lot better to help us gain even more of an advantage that we did have.

“We know that, and we understand that. And the important thing that you need to do from that as a team and as individuals is learning from that.”

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England face a daunting task at the Gabba in Brisbane to level the series with Australia, masters of pink-ball Tests, winning 13 out of 14 matches under lights.

Despite England having a much more mixed record, management opted against any of their main players being part of a two-day day-night clash against a Prime Minister’s XI this weekend in Canberra.

The decision was slammed as “amateurish” by former Ashes-winning captain Michael Vaughan, who added that he was “staggered” that they would turn down the opportunity.

Stokes said he understood the blowback, but defended the move with England instead scheduling extra training sessions in Brisbane.

“That’s where it is, it’s in Canberra, which is a different state,” he said.

“The (weather) conditions are obviously going to be completely different to what we’ve got coming up.

“So what you try and do is you try and take all the factors into consideration, the pros, the cons, whatever it may be, and then you always discuss that and decide what it is that we think is going to be our best preparation.

“We know that we are doing everything that we can to make sure that we are best prepared for this game,” he added.

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Australia’s dynamic batter Travis Head has admitted that his 69-ball century in the first Ashes Test provoked England’s fiery fast bowlers.

Head, the makeshift opener, made a mockery of England’s attack in the first Test with a whirlwind century that not only helped his side chase down a 205-run target but also flattened the Three Lions’ attack on a pitch that had very little for batters.

The southpaw made 123 from just 83 balls at Optus Stadium, Perth, striking four sixes and 16 fours.

Speaking during a radio program, Head revealed insights into his knock and said how his assault on the quicks, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, unraveled.

“I’m also very realistic as well that they had two blokes bowling 150 clicks,” Head told Triple M in Adelaide.

“I accidentally hit Jofra [Archer] back over his head for six at one point and calmly walked back and marked centre and was like, ‘Oh my god, why did I just do that?’ he revealed.

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He further talked about his chat with batting partner Marnus Labuschagne, who also hit a half-century in pursuit of the target.

“And Marnus came down and was like, ‘I know you’re trying to act cool, but that’s unbelievable’ and he’s yelling and screaming, and he’s hoo hah-ing, and I’m like, ‘Mate, get back to the other end, at any moment they can put a hole through me, they bowl 150 clicks’,” Head explained.

The 31-year-old acknowledged the fact that his early charge on fast bowlers could entice them for the rest of the series.

“I don’t want to get on the bad side of them, especially [in] the first Test. I don’t want to get on the wrong side of these blokes, I just want to go about my business,” Head said.

The second Ashes Test will be played under lights at the Gabba from 4 December.

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Captain Ben Stokes admitted Saturday he was “shell-shocked” at a crushing loss to Australia in the first Ashes Test but told his England team they must move on fast for the next clash in Brisbane.

The tourists had a golden opportunity to win a Test in Australia for the first time in 15 years, but they blew it inside two days at Perth Stadium.

After crumbling under a bowling onslaught from Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland, their hyped pace attack had no answer to a rampant Travis Head, who thrashed an incredible 123 to seal victory by eight wickets.

“Little bit shell-shocked, it was pretty phenomenal from Head,” Stokes said. “It’s pretty raw, pretty emotional, but that was some knock.

“We tried three or four different plans to get him, but when he’s going like a train he’s very hard to stop.”

Despite the demoralising loss Stokes saw some positives, particularly their first-innings bowling effort which saw Australia dismissed for 132.

“The way in which we bowled yesterday was phenomenal. A lot happened on day one, a good day for the bowlers,” he said.

“It’s a tough one as we felt we were in control. We’ll let this sink in, but we’ve got four more games.

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“It’s a long time before Brisbane, we’ll go away and put in the graft.”

The day-night Brisbane Test starts on December 4.

With so many players in the squad experiencing their first Ashes, Stokes admitted he had his hands full trying to lift them.

“Yeah, I think we’ve got to let that whole two hours sort of sink in first and reflect on it properly, without the emotion that’s attached to what’s just gone on there,” he said, referring to Head’s knock.

“Obviously there’s disappointment when you come off the field being on the losing side.

“So that’s up to myself. It’s up to some of the other senior guys who have a lot of experience in big series like these, because you’ve got to let emotions like this sink in, and it has got to hurt.

“But also, you’ve then got to get rid of them as quickly as you possibly can, while also learning from it.

“Because when we get to Brisban,e we need to be back up to that mindset of how we came into this game, still very confident of our abilities and achieving the goal.

“It’s crucial about not taking any baggage from this result into Brisbane.”

READ: Travis Head smashes second-fastest century in Ashes history

PERTH: Nineteen wickets fell on an opening day of carnage in the first Ashes Test here on Friday, with England’s attack led by skipper Ben Stokes bowling them into a position of strength after Australia dismissed the tourists for 172.

A rampaging Mitchell Starc took 7-58 to put England on the back foot after Stokes won the toss on a fine day at a packed Perth Stadium and chose to bat.

Harry Brook (52) and Ollie Pope (46) offered the only resistance as they crumbled after lunch.

But England’s elite fast bowlers, led by an exceptional Stokes with 5-23, fought back to reduce the hosts to 123-9 at stumps, trailing by 49.

Nathan Lyon was on three with Brendan Doggett yet to score.

There was early drama in Australia’s reply when Usman Khawaja failed to open with Marnus Labuschagne, instead walking out with debutant Jake Weatherald.

In a brutal introduction to Test cricket, Weatherald went for a second-ball duck, left on the floor by a Jofra Archer bullet and given out lbw.

Labuschagne fended off 41 balls for nine before he too succumbed to the sheer speed of Archer, bowled by a fuller delivery.

And when Steve Smith fell for 17 to Brydon Carse in the next over, caught by Brook at slip, it was game on.

Khawaja, who was feeling stiff, came in at four but lasted just six balls, blown away by a Carse bouncer that took a nick to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith, leaving Australia reeling at 31-4.

Cameron Green (24), Travis Head (21), Alex Carey (26) and Starc (12) all got starts, but in a reflection of the depth of England’s pace stocks, Stokes removed them when he brought himself on.

Starc bagged three wickets in an intimidating opening spell, including Joe Root for a duck, before returning to send Stokes packing in his first over after the lunch break, then mopping up.

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All five previous Tests at the Perth venue have been won by the side batting first, but England did their best to challenge that, getting off to a horror start.

Veteran strike weapon Starc delivered as he has so many times before, enticing a thick edge from Zak Crawley on his sixth ball that Khawaja did well to collect low at slip, the opener gone for nought.

Starc has now taken a wicket in the first over of an innings 24 times.

At the other end, Ben Duckett settled his nerves with a textbook drive off Scott Boland to bank the first four of the series.

But just as he was getting going, Starc pounced again, trapping him lbw for 21 to leave England tottering on 33-2.

That brought Root to the crease in his latest campaign for an elusive first century in Australia.

He only lasted seven balls, edging a seaming delivery into the safe hands of Labuschagne at third slip.

Pope survived the furnace and was composed before Green came on, and he was out lbw, leaving the visitors on 105-4 at lunch.

Brook hit Scott Boland for a six in the first over after the break before Starc again worked his magic, taking out Stokes’s stumps with an inswinger when the captain was on six.

A fearless Brook raced to his 14th Test half-century before feathering a short ball to Carey, earning Doggett his maiden Test wicket on debut.

Starc then removed Gus Atkinson cheaply to give him the 17th five-wicket haul of his career, and with Doggett, they ruthlessly cleaned up the tail.

READ: Kagiso Rabada ruled out of second India Test

Australia will field two debutants in an Ashes Test for the first time in nearly six years, with top-order batter Jake Weatherald and right-arm pacer Brendan Doggett set to receive their Baggy Green caps in the opening Test against England at Perth Stadium on November 21.

Stand-in captain Steve Smith, leading the side with Pat Cummins sidelined through injury, confirmed the selections and described the moment as “really exciting”, backing both players to make an immediate impact in one of cricket’s fiercest contests.

The last time Australia handed out two Test debuts in the same match was back in early 2019, when Kurtis Patterson and Jhye Richardson were blooded at the Gabba.

Weatherald’s call-up brings a significant shift at the top of the order. With David Warner retired and Australia still searching for long-term stability, the 31-year-old becomes Usman Khawaja’s sixth opening partner in less than two years.

His inclusion also allows Marnus Labuschagne to return to his preferred No. 3 slot, an important reshuffle considering Labuschagne’s resurgence this domestic season, where he struck five centuries in eight innings for Queensland after being dropped mid-year.

Cameron Green retains the all-rounder’s role, edging out Beau Webster, and will slot in at No. 6 behind a core middle order of Smith and Travis Head.

Smith praised Weatherald’s temperament, revealing he had deliberately watched him train in challenging conditions.

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“The nets were quick, bouncy, a lot of seam,” Smith said. “He just kept wanting more. He’s got courage, he’s worked hard, and I think he’ll complement Uzzie really well.”

Doggett, meanwhile, steps in after Josh Hazlewood was ruled out with a hamstring injury.

With Cummins also unavailable as he builds back to full fitness, Australia will lean on Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, and Doggett to drive the pace attack.

Smith believes Doggett, long considered on the fringes after several tours without a debut, has earned his moment.

“Injuries happen, particularly with quicks,” Smith said. “But it opens doors. Brendan has improved massively over the last few years; he’s skilful, and I’m excited to see him go about his business.”

England, who drew the 2023 Ashes 2-2 at home but haven’t won a Test series in Australia since 2010–11, have named a 12-man squad and will finalise their playing XI at the toss.

Australia’s XI for the first Test: Jake Weatherald, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (capt), Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland, Brendan Doggett.

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PERTH: The England team management on Wednesday named a 12-member squad for the first Test of the Ashes against Australia, scheduled to be played here from 21 November.

Off-spinner Shoaib Bashir was named in the squad alongside four frontline pace bowlers, keeping their options open for the first Ashes Test.

There was no room for speedster Josh Tongue, with Brydon Carse preferred, while Ollie Pope kept his place at number three ahead of Jacob Bethell.

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Veteran pace ace Mark Wood unleashed a fiery spell in the nets on Tuesday after an injury scare last week to prove his fitness. But selectors are likely waiting until the last minute to make a call on whether he plays.

If England opt for an all-out pace attack on what is expected to be a lively wicket, he will line up alongside Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson and Carse, all of whom are capable of reaching 90mph.

Not since a bowling line-up led by John Snow and Bob Willis helped England to a 1970-71 series win have they had such an array of genuine quicks in Australia.

England squad  for first Ashes Test: Ben Stokes (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Mark Wood

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