Adelaide [Australia], December 21 : Following his side's Ashes series loss to Australia, England head coach Brendon McCullum admitted that he could not get the preparation right heading into the series.
England's dream to crush Australia with 'Bazball' were dead and buried despite a resillient show by their batters in a chase of 435 runs, as they were bundled out for 352 runs and left waiting to capturing their first Ashes series Down Under since 2010/11 and end their winless run of 18 Tests in Aussie land following that historic series across following four tours. The method which was specially prepared to take down a ruthless pack of Aussie bowlers and batters with the highest intent and attack to be displayed by bowlers and batters alike, failed for the first two Tests and even adapting a more traditional method could not save England at Adelaide as they still made a few brain fades with the bat, itching to feel the ball on the bat.
Speaking to TNT Sports after the match as quoted by ESPNCricinfo, McCullum said, "We are obviously disappointed. We came here with high hopes, high ambitions and lofty goals, and we have been outplayed across three Test matches. You have got to cop it sweet when you do not quite achieve what you are hoping to."
We knew coming down here that Australia is a very strong team in their own conditions. We thought we would be competitive and seize some pressure moments, but we have not been able to do so. With the ball, we have not quite been relentless enough with our accuracy and challenging on the surface in the areas we need to. With the bat, we have not scored enough runs, we haven't quite found the tempo we need to operate at either. And in the field, we have let opportunities go," he added.
England's sole warm-up match took place before the series against England Lions at Lilac Hill in Perth, which provided England with very little intel of conditions across the main Test venues. Even when there was time to play a pink-ball practice match against Prime Minister's XI, England's mainstays chose not to, instead going straight to Brisbane for five days of intensive training. After Brisbane's loss, McCullum had remarked that England perhaps "over-prepared", a remark which did not go well with a lot of fans and English cricketers.
"I know that that will be something that is questioned," McCullum said. "When you have lost 3-0, you have got to put your hand up and say, 'maybe I did not get that preparation right."
"Ultimately , you are responsible for how you get your side ready and how you prepare them. I had conviction, we had conviction in our methods in terms of preparation, not just leading into the first Test but also in between Tests. I look back now and think, did we need more leading into the first, and did we need less leading into the second? They are the changes over time you look back on and say Would I do it differently?."
"Retrospectively, we lost 3-0, so you would probably say there was room for change there. Again, you put your hand up as a coach and say you might not have got that right. At the same time, I felt it would give us our best chance because it has previously. Sitting here 3-0, it did not work," he concluded.
England's batting was deeply flawed and inconsistent, as none of their batters making a century except for Joe Root in the pink-ball Test. But with the performance shown by lower-order in a bid to chase down 435 runs, McCullum feels that his side is finally showing the character that they should have shown throughout the series.
"I do feel like the last day-and-a-half, two days, we have probably played our best cricket, and that is because we have just played," he said. "I feel like, for the previous nine days, we were so caught up and so driven to achieve something, and succeed, that we almost got in our own way, and we stymied our talent and our skill and our ability."
"It has only been the last two days that we have let go and just played, and actually competed, and probably had our best two days of the tour. So there is a lesson in that, and not just for the players. There is a lesson for the coach, and the coaching staff as well. How do you free guys up when the pressure is at its highest, rather than having to wait to these last two days," he concluded.
After Australia won the toss, they opted to bat first. But the relentless pace of Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse put them in a soup at 94/4. It was Usman Khawaja's veteran instincts and signature cuts and sweeps during his 126-ball 82, consisting of 10 fours, which slowly brought back the momentum to the Aussies, with Alex Carey also firing at the other end. Carey brought up his maiden Ashes ton, scoring 106 in 143 balls, with eight fours and a six. A half-century run stand between Mitchell Starc (54 in 75 balls, with eight fours) and Scott Boland (14*) troubled England just when they wanted to bundle Aussies for below 300. Aussies scored 371 in 91.2 overs.
Archer (5/53) delivered a brilliant fifer for England, with Josh Tongue and Will Jacks getting a couple each.
Later, Nathan Lyon (2/70) and skipper Pat Cummins (3/70) kept England away from forming big partnerships, reducing them to 168/8 by getting wickets just when England looked to find an escape. However, a century stand between skipper Ben Stokes (83 in 198 balls, with eight fours) and a resolute Archer (51 in 105 balls, with five fours and a six) powered England to 286, with their trail at 85 runs. Boland played a significant role in wiping out the tail-end with three wickets.
In their second innings, England had the upper hand over Australia at one point, with Australia at 149/4. However, hometown heroes Travis Head (170 in 219 balls, with 16 fours and two sixes) and Carey (72 in 128 balls, with six fours) revelled amid loud cheers from the crowd, outbattling England one delivery at a time. While England was better with the ball on day four and wiped them out for 349 runs, a record run-chase of 435 runs awaited England.
Tongue (4/80) and Carse (3/80) were amongst the top bowlers for England.
England's run chase was one featuring promise and brain fades in equal measure. After a first-ball boundary, Ben Duckett (4) lost his wicket while Ollie Pope (17) continued to find slip fielders. With England reduced to 31/2, Joe Root (39 in 63 balls, with five fours) and Harry Brook put on a 78-run stand, giving their team some normalcy. Root continued to be a "nicking machine", falling to Cummins for the second time in the match and for the 13th time overall in Tests.
Crawley, who looked uncharacteristically patient, carried England's hopes forward with Brook until a brain-fade reverse sweep from Brook ended his stay at 56 balls and triggered a mini-collapse from 177/3 to 194/6. Jamie Smith (60 in 83 balls, with seven fours) and Will Jacks put on a 91-run stand, making England fans believe and dare to dream until the adrenaline of counter-attacking Starc got the best of Jamie. Jacks (47 in 137 balls, with three fours) put on a half-century stand with Carse (39* in 64 balls, with four boundaries and a six) to keep England's heart beating, but after Jacks was gone, there was no coming back as Australia bundled out England for 352 runs.
Cummins (3/48), Starc (3/62) and Lyon (3/77) shone with the ball, denying England another shot at an Ashes series win in Australia since 2010/11 and keeping them winless in Aussie land since that glorious moment. Australia took an unassailable 3-0 lead, and Carey was given the 'Player of the Match' honours for his knocks of 106 and 72.