Home
Former England captain Nasser Hussain has said that he has "never seen England play as badly" as they have in the ongoing World Cup 2023. Hussain does not want the criticism to be redirected from players to England’s cricket structure which features multiple formats including England Cricket Board’s (ECB) brainchild The Hundred.
After England's eight-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka in Bengaluru, Hussain lashed out at the tactics used in the tournament so far.
“Back to back, I’ve not seen England play as badly as that. They’ve changed their tactics, they’ve gone back to their all-rounders. They changed the toss, they batted first. So it shows really that tactics are important, the team is important, what you do at the toss is important, but the most important thing in any sport and in cricket in particular, is having players at the top of their game, especially in a World Cup,” Hussain said on Sky Sports.
“If you walk in that dressing room now and asked them to put their hand on their heart and say, are you in good nick? I reckon maybe one or two could say that. They have all collapsed as a unit and their form has deserted them. Compare that to South Africa and their batting lineup, everyone’s in nick. You look at India and their batting lineup, Rohit, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill – all in nick.
“Some of those cricketers on that park today would go in your best ever England white ball XI. It’s just been a bridge too far for most of them.”
After four losses from five games resulting in England slipping to the ninth spot in World Cup points table, there is criticism around lack of focus on 50-over cricket in the English domestic season. Hussain lost his cool as he feels there is nothing wrong with the structure by giving examples of in-form batters Virat Kohli and Heinrich Klaasen.
“What I don’t like is giving players a cop out. And I feel like sometimes we do that in English cricket. When we win the 50-over World Cup and the 20-over World Cup, aren’t they great? We’re brilliant. And when the wheels come of it’s the structure. It’s the structure of English cricket, we’re a disgrace. We play 20-over cricket, we play 100-ball cricket, we don’t play enough 50-over cricket,” the 55-year-old said.
“How much 50-over cricket domestically has Virat Kohli played? Or Heinrich Klaasen or anyone out here? They don’t play domestic 50-over cricket, they learn from T20 franchises around the world. That’s what’s made this great side over the last six years, travelling round the world playing T20 franchises. It’s such a lame excuse.
“You’re giving the players a cop out when you blame the structure. The structure that made them world champions, it is exactly the same structure. Yeah, you may have taken the eye off the ball a little bit and not given them enough practice and games going into the tournament. But it was the structure that produced them, so when they mess up, they mess up, not the structure. It’s always county cricket, it’s the Hundred, it’s the Blast – Root had to answer a question on maybe we get rid of the Blast – that’s what’s made our cricketers. County cricket makes the cricketers that we are. Whether it be the Hundred, the Blast, 50-over cricket, whatever. That’s what makes them and when they fail, they take the responsibility.”
Hussain also blamed the team management for the chaos that led to Jason Roy getting left out of the squad. “I think there’s been a lack of clarity and we touched on it after the Mumbai defeat. We’re not going to pick Harry Brook and we’re going to pick Jason Roy in the initial squad against New Zealand and then Matthew Mott saying to Michael Atherton, it’s not the final squad. Then Jason Roy has a few back niggles and Brook does come back in,” he said.
He criticised them for the decision on Ben Stokes as he questioned, “Then you go to Ben Stokes and Ben Stokes comes out here and doesn’t play a few games. Then was he fit for Afghanistan, could he have come in then? The tournament’s going away from them, he’s out here, he’s come out of retirement, can you get on the park?”
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
