Illusion of team’s ‘greatness’ answered after thrashing in Australia
England have been humiliated in Australia, meekly surrendering the Ashes and all dignity as well. Battered and bruised, thrashed and bashed, Alastair Cook’s team has been exposed and found out, again. Is this England, under the guidance of Andy Flower, really as good as they have been made out to be? Some would say yes. The brutal truth is no; they are not and never have been. When facing up against a stern opposition, England disintegrate.
England’s rise to number one in the ICC Test Rankings in 2011, looks all the more baffling when revisited in hindsight. How did this come about? Well, bullying weaker, uninterested teams (India, West Indies, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and New Zealand) on home soil certainly helped. Beating a very poor Australia at home in the 2009 and 2013 Ashes only increased the notion of superiority and hype; a team that couldn’t quite muster the same bravado against a top cricket team when confronted with the challenge.
Before the post mortem begins, it must be said, the England of the past four years has played some wonderful cricket, none more so than at the high summer of their ‘goodness’. The stunning comeback series win in India in 2012 and the away demolition of the worst Australia since the 1980s in 2010/11. Both series wins were impressive. England played stunning cricket, the core players producing outstanding individual performances backed up by a collective togetherness and aggression.
Under the leadership of Andrew Strauss and now Cook, England were good but never truly great, despite what the pundits, media (and results against weak opposition) said or indicated. When asked to prove their worthiness against South Africa at home in 2008 and 2012, they were outclassed. The series in South Africa in 2009/10 was celebrated because on two occasions, Strauss’ team saved a Test with nine wickets down. This resilient was measured as success; celebrating a draw, showing the value put on it by the team not losing the match they couldn’t win despite being severely outplayed. Moral victories count for nothing in sport.
As has happened in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth with Mitchell Johnson, the Proteas, led by Dale Steyn, beat England convincingly in the final Test at the Wanderers. Fast bowling on pitches with pace and bounce exposed the English batsmen. Teams that don’t take a backwards step in the aggression and verbal department left England’s veneer of toughness in tatters; like a school yard bully, when confronted, retreat is imminent.
The myth of the Three Lions’ quality can be gleaned with a trip down memory lane; loses against a strong South Africa and rejuvenated Aussie team, the 3-0 whitewash by Pakistan in 2012 in the United Arab Emirates and the fortunate 0-0 series result in New Zealand. The theme of all these series is one of defiance; anytime a side stands toe-to-toe England wilt. The size of the defeats in the loss to Pakistan, Graeme Smith and Michael Clarke’s sides, is damning evidence of the true measure of England’s success.
Heavy defeats: South Africa, Australia and Pakistan
3rd Test: Australia v England at Perth – Dec 13-17, 2013 Australia 385 and 369/6d; England 251 and 353 (103.2 ov, target: 504) Australia won by 150 runs
2nd Test: Australia v England at Adelaide – Dec 5-9, 2013 Australia 570/9d and 132/3d; England 172 and 312 (101.4 ov, target: 531) Australia won by 218 runs
1st Test: Australia v England at Brisbane – Nov 21-24, 2013 Australia 295 and 401/7d; England 136 and 179 (81.1 ov, target: 561) Australia won by 381 runs
1st Test: England v South Africa at The Oval – Jul 19-23, 2012 England 385 and 240 (97 ov); South Africa 637/2d South Africa won by an innings and 12 runs
1st Test: England v Pakistan at Dubai (DSC) – Jan 17-19, 2012 England 192 and 160; Pakistan 338 and 15/0 (3.4 ov, target: 15) Pakistan won by 10 wickets
3rd Test: Australia v England at Perth – Dec 16-19, 2010 Australia 268 and 309; England 187 and 123 (37 ov, target: 391) Australia won by 267 runs
4th Test: South Africa v England at Johannesburg – Jan 14-17, 2010 England 180 and 169 (42.5 ov); South Africa 423/7d South Africa won by an innings and 74 runs
2nd Test: England v South Africa at Leeds – Jul 18-21, 2008 England 203 and 327; South Africa 522 and 9/0 (1.1 ov, target: 9) South Africa won by 10 wickets
Flower and Cook will need to lift their deflated team, stave off another whitewash and bring a semblance of respect back to English cricket. New faces will need to integrated before the return Ashes in England in 2015 and the next away tour to South Africa and many questions need answering: Why is Jimmy Anderson still ineffective if overhead conditions and the pitch don’t assist? Is Graeme Swann past it? Why is Tim Bresnan still getting Test match caps? Flower’s future needs addressing, is he going to stand down? What to do about Kevin Pietersen? Has Matt Prior’s time come?
All very tough questions, but it’s time to start refreshing the team. No matter what the outcome of the next two Test matches, serious thought must be put into finding a way to bounce back. England must stop celebrating being ‘flat track bullies’. The unhealthy arrogance must be replaced by humility and the hype tempered. Right now however, the hubris of the vanquished, has come home to roost and there are many cricketers and supporters, basking in the sweet schadenfreude of England’s travails, served cold by Australia.
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