Mark Taylor has criticized the repetitive tactic of consistently bowling short by Australia and England during the second Ashes Test at Lord’s. Despite the lack of seam or swing movement, England relied heavily on short deliveries during the opening session of the day, resulting in the dismissals of Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith just before lunch. More Australian batters, including Cameron Green and Alex Carey, fell victim to the same tactic. In the first innings, England also struggled against the short ball, receiving criticism for their inability to handle it despite being in control of the Test.
While Australia took the majority of their wickets in the second innings with fuller deliveries, they shifted their focus to short balls as the shine wore off the ball. Taylor expressed his concern over the dominance of short-pitched bowling and called for the umpires or match referee to intervene. He observed that when 98% of balls bowled in a session are short, it becomes too much and leads to a stalemate. Taylor found the tactic boring and monotonous, and he believed that neither the crowd nor the viewers enjoyed it.
Heading into the final day, the second Test hangs in the balance with England needing 257 runs to win with six wickets remaining. Taylor commended Australia’s bowling efforts, particularly Mitchell Starc’s in-swinging delivery that knocked over Ollie Pope and Pat Cummins’ short ball to dismiss Joe Root. These deliveries were deemed unplayable, and their effectiveness put Australia ahead in the game. Although Australia had a chance to wrap up the match at 4-40, England managed to stay in the fight.
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Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
