Since Australia’s controversial dismissal of England batsman Jonny Bairstow in the second Ashes Test, the Ashes series has become a bit heated. Attacks from both sides followed. Although England lost the first two Tests, they won the third game trailing 1–2 in the five-game fixture. The fourth Ashes Test begins on July 19 and England will level the scores. During that match at Lord’s, England, fast bowler Stuart Broad was able to see Australian players sledding, most notably Aleax Carey, following the Bairstow incident. Broad said it was a strategy.
“It was such an important moment of that game at Lord’s. I had to make sure I was mentally switched on and could do a job for Ben Stokes on the other side. Part of my strategy was to pick a fight with some of the Australians! So that I wouldn’t focus on too much technique and I would focus on the ball and make sure I stay there. Part of Ashes cricket, the rivalry, the history is a big battle out there. Both teams is really stuck in this series. A lot of the players know each other really well. We have lunch in the same room. It’s not like there’s a huge battle going on off the field,” Broad said on Sky Sports.
England have kept their confidence in Jonny Bairstow as the wicket-keeper retained his place in a 14-man squad for next week’s Fourth Test against Australia. Bairstow endured a tough run behind the stumps, missing eight chances in the first three Tests.
There have been calls for Surrey’s Ben Foakes to replace Bairstow as wicket-keeper, but captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum continue to support the Yorkshire player.
After winning the third Test in Leeds on Sunday by three wickets to keep their Ashes hopes alive, England have designated the same group for next Wednesday’s clash in Manchester.
The hosts are 2-1 down with two Tests to play as they look to win the Ashes for the first time since 2015. Foakes has been hailed as the best wicket-keeper in the world by Stokes, but the 30-year-old missed out on the start of the season when Bairstow returned after suffering a broken leg in a freak golfing accident.
Bairstow’s movement hasn’t looked sharp since his recovery from three separate fractures in his left leg, ligament damage and a dislocated ankle. He was England’s 2022 Test Player of the Year and set the tone for the ‘Bazball’ era with four thrilling hundreds.
But Bairstow has only impressed once with the bat in this Ashes series, making 78 on the first day of the series. Ollie Robinson also takes his place in the squad despite back spasms that left him a peripheral figure in the previous match.
Robinson is checked by the medical team but is favored to make way for the return of England’s record test wicket taker James Anderson to his home ground in Lancashire. Anderson was rested for the third test after struggling to impress in the first two amid suggestions the 40-year-old is becoming a waning force.
Meanwhile, Australia’s head coach Andrew McDonald admits Mitch Marsh has given him selection headaches ahead of the Fourth Test. Marsh hit a great century after replacing the injured Cameron Green at Headingley.
Now that Green is fit again, McDonald may have to find a way to accommodate both all-rounders. Opener David Warner could be dropped after a poor performance in the third Test, while leaving out Scott Boland would also allow Marsh and Green to start.
“We have a lot to consider and a lot to weigh. We have everything to consider in terms of the arrival of Mitch Marsh, what the balance sheet looks like, our all-rounders,” McDonald said.
“He’s made a pretty good case. I thought he was excellent this game. There’s a lot to like about the way he plays against England.
“I thought he was impressive with the ball too, and he’s done that before in England.”
With AFP inputs
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