'It's Bazball with no sense...': David Warner blasts Joe Root for flop show vs Australia in Ashes opener

Former Australia cricketer David Warner slammed Joe Root for not batting sensibly and losing his wicket for cheap during England's second innings of the Perth Test. Root had a forgettable outing on both occasions at the Optus stadium as he was sent back to the pavilion for a 7-ball duck in the first innings and failed to even move into double figures on the second occasion. It was Mitchell Starc who got his wicket in both the innings.

Warner remarked that Root's performance isn't something that a team expects from a player with over 10,000 runs in the format. He further pointed out that England were leading by a good amount of runs at that time and could have put even more pressure on Australia if Root didn't give away his wicket for cheap.

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“It's Bazball with no sense, all those three to start. Now we want some smarts in the game, and that just isn't smart, especially from a guy with over 10,000 runs. Trying to create something out of nothing. They're well ahead of the game, and that passage of play there could prove costly,” Warner said on air while commentating for Fox Cricket.

Starc's stellar Test record against Root

Meanwhile, Starc has now got Root's wicket on 10 occasions in Test cricket. While the latter had knicked the ball straight to Marnus Labuschagne in the slips in the first innings, he got an inside edge and dragged it straight onto the stumps on the second occasion.

Root's wicket saw England lose their fourth wicket in a space of just 11 runs and get restricted to 76/5. They then went on to lose Ben Stokes and Jamie Smith in quick succession to leave them reeling on 104/7. However, Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse turned out to be their saviours and formed an important 50-run stand to take them over the 150-run mark.

Australia require 205 to win

England would eventually by bundled out for 164 runs in their second innings, setting up a target of 205 for Australia. Scott Boland was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4/33 while both Starc and Brendan Doggett also contributed well with three scalps each. Notably, this is the lowest target ever set at the Optus stadium in Tests and now the Aussies will be fancying their chances of starting The Ashes on a strong note.