{"id":338320,"date":"2025-12-10T00:54:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T00:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/338320\/"},"modified":"2025-12-10T00:54:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-10T00:54:09","slug":"uk-view-rob-key-bazball-criticism-noosa-ben-stokes-comments-brendon-mccullum-overprepared-nasser-hussain-michael-atherton-latest-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/338320\/","title":{"rendered":"UK view, Rob Key, Bazball criticism, Noosa, Ben Stokes comments, Brendon McCullum overprepared, Nasser Hussain, Michael Atherton, latest news"},"content":{"rendered":"

While England\u2019s Bazballers soak up the sunshine and knock back schooners in Noosa<\/a>, many former English players, journalists and pundits\u2019 heads are spinning.<\/p>\n

England\u2019s managing director Rob Key is in the gun alongside coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes, as the Poms sit on the brink of losing the Ashes before Christmas for the fifth time this century.<\/p>\n

Former England skipper Nasser Hussain is urging Stokes to hit his teammates between the eyes with some brutal home truths.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\ufeffWatch The Ashes 2025\/26 LIVE and ad-break free during play with FOX CRICKET on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Hussain\u2019s former teammate Mark Ramprakash, who said before the series began that he had never been so confident heading into an away Ashes, is expressing fear for the next generation of England cricketers.<\/p>\n

But they may benefit from a change in attitude towards county cricket if the current English hierarchy are ousted soon, with the first two Tests showcasing the importance of a healthy domestic competition \u2014 something that Key, Stokes and McCullum have blatantly ignored.<\/p>\n

There is also the matter of the sacrifice of a legend for this tour, which has resurfaced as those with sharpened knives awaited a time to strike.<\/p>\n

Here is the best of what the UK are saying about the English team!<\/p>\n

Will Khawaja make the cut for 3rd Test? | 03:47<\/p>\n

\ufeff\u2018THE PROCESS TURNED OUT TO BE TOILET WATER\u2019: POMS DISRESPECT COMES BACK TO BITE<\/p>\n

Throughout the Bazball era, discontent has always bubbled away in the background about the England regime\u2019s treatment of the county game and their selection policies.<\/p>\n

The English tried to poke fun at Australia\u2019s \u2018Dad\u2019s Army\u2019 team pre-series with 26-year-old Cameron Green the only player under the age of 30, but experience has come up trumps in Perth and Brisbane.<\/p>\n

Most notably in Australia\u2019s bowlers, with Scott Boland capturing key wickets and Michael Neser taking his first Test five-wicket haul at the Gabba.<\/p>\n

Many have been quick to point out the irony in Neser running through England in the second innings with Alex Carey standing up the stumps, given the England hierarchy\u2019s disdain for such tactics.<\/p>\n

It is unfair to compare Neser to a county medium pacer \u2014 he was operating at more than 130km\/h and the fact Carey was up to the stumps said more about his brilliant glovework than the 35-year-old\u2019s pace \u2014 but Key\u2019s words from last year were ringing in English ears with every Neser wicket.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t care how many wickets you take,\u201d Key told The Telegraph in March 2024. <\/p>\n

\u201cI want to know how hard you are running in, how hard you are hitting the pitch and are you able to sustain pace at 85-88mph.\u201d <\/p>\n

England coach Brendon McCullum with managing director of the England cricket team Rob Key.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

That premise is why England had focused so heavily on getting Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, who was ruled out of the remainder of the series, fit for this tour.<\/p>\n

It is also why tall left-arm quick Josh Hull, with a current first class average of 42.72, was plucked from obscurity last year and handed a Test cap against Sri Lanka at The Oval.<\/p>\n

Based on that logic, Neser would never get a look-in if he was English.<\/p>\n

It also means that bowlers with prolific records for their counties are not even spoken about by England\u2019s selectors. <\/p>\n

\u201cSuch thinking means that Yorkshire\u2019s medium-fast bowler George Hill, say, who took 51 Division One wickets at 16.7 last season, is not even in the England Lions squad in Australia,\u201d The Telegraph\u2019s<\/a> Tim Wigmore wrote.<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s selectors on the other hand are giving considerable weight to domestic performances, and it is a method that is proving to be fruitful.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoland and Neser were selected over younger \u2013 and quicker \u2013 alternatives based on the weight of their first-class records,\u201d Wigmore wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pair have both taken over 400 first-class wickets at an average of around 23. To Australia\u2019s selectors, these years of toil have perfected their craft, enabling them to slot in seamlessly for the Ashes in lieu of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hazlewood dealt cruel Ashes blow | 05:30<\/p>\n

The efforts of experienced campaigners so far in the series is also why some English fans, pundits and media alike have cast their minds back to James Anderson.<\/p>\n

Test cricket\u2019s all-time leading wicket-taker among fast bowlers was forced into international retirement last year, handed a farewell Test against the West Indies at Lord\u2019s but told he was not in the plans for this Ashes tour.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe put on a brave face, but it was against his will, a decision made by Ben Stokes, Brendon McCullum and Rob Key, based primarily on whether he would play in this Ashes series,\u201d Nick Miller wrote of the end of Anderson\u2019s Test career in The Athletic<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cPretty much every decision that has been made in the last couple of years was done so with it in mind, from the persistence with Zak Crawley, to the plucking of Shoaib Bashir from nowhere at the expense of more established spinners while muttering something about release points and a hunch that his height would suit the pitches, to the focus on express pace bowling as the only way to take wickets in Australia. All of it was predicated on the idea that things will be different this time. Trust the process.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut here we are. Things are not different. They are very the same. The process has turned out to be toilet water.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miller said that moving on from Anderson, aged 43 and with poor series against Australia and India as his final outings, may not have been unreasonable and it was no sure thing that the legend would have taken wickets Down Under, given he featured in the past three fruitless away Ashes series.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut would it have been any worse with him there? The point is that the best English bowler ever, the best bowler any of us will probably ever see play for England, was sacrificed\u2026 for this? He wasn\u2019t allowed to go on his own terms\u2026 for this? You\u2019d cope with such a tough decision if it resulted in, well, results\u2026 but for this?\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE<\/p>\n

\u2018That is beyond me\u2019: England hit beach, beers as greats take aim at controversial Ashes move<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2018Is it fair?\u2019: Great\u2019s verdict on Aus selection squeeze, Khawaja future as mass changes loom<\/a><\/p>\n

Team news: Luckless England star out for series as Aussies confirm own big injury blow<\/a><\/p>\n

England coach Brendon McCullum, managing director Rob Key, national selector Luke Wright and captain Ben Stokes in Perth.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

\ufeffSTOKES \u2018MUST DELIVER SOME HARSH TRUTHS\u2019<\/p>\n

One of the key pillars of Bazball has been the absence of negativity.<\/p>\n

No telling a batter that was a silly shot.<\/p>\n

No telling a bowler that he missed the mark.<\/p>\n

No telling a fielder that if he spent more time practising, he would have taken that catch.<\/p>\n

No negativity is allowed in the England dressing room.<\/p>\n

But several former England players have said it is time for that to change.<\/p>\n

Former England captain Nasser Hussain believes Ben Stokes needs to deliver his teammates a dose of reality to figure out who is up for the fight, and who is headed for the scrap heap.<\/p>\n

\u201cStokes said he will be having conversations with his teammates in the nine days between now and the third Test in Adelaide and, when he goes and knocks on their doors, he must deliver some harsh truths,\u201d Hussain wrote in The Athletic<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has to look those players in the eye and decide who is mentally strong enough because England cannot afford another game of just rocking up and playing the same way.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are not thinking smart. They are not thinking straight under pressure. It cannot just be: \u2018Let\u2019s go again, lads.\u2019 The first sign of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results, and England cannot afford that now.<\/p>\n

\u201cStokes and McCullum have been backing their players since 2022, but now it\u2019s time for all of them to take individual responsibility. The captain and the coach\u2019s necks are on the line. Key\u2019s neck is on the line, too. They have to be hard-nosed.<\/p>\n

\u201cStokes must decide whether any of the players are carrying mental baggage from their traumas on this tour. You have to find out who is thinking \u201chere we go again\u201d as opposed to \u201cI\u2019m going to put an end to this\u201d. He has to find the ones who will resolve to make it different next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weatherald and Stokes exchange words! | 00:23<\/p>\n

Former England wicketkeeper Matt Prior agreed strongly with Hussain\u2019s sentiments.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like these guys have almost taken the mickey out of Ben and Baz (McCullum),\u201d Prior told Daily Mail Sport<\/a>. \u201cThe captain and coach must be thinking, \u2018Hold on, we\u2019ve put our careers on the line for you. What are we getting back? Now is the time you repay us for that faith\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving been at the ground and watched training, then seen the match, you\u2019ve basically got two guys here ready for a fight, and that\u2019s Stokes and Root,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was watching them in the field, on those hot days in the middle of the Test. Who were the guys hustling around?\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior then harped back to his era, saying on the victorious 2010\/11 Ashes tour, the types of dismissals England were falling to in Brisbane would not be tolerated.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first thing is to find out who doesn\u2019t want to be here,\u2019 he said. \u201cWe can\u2019t have passengers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, Pope\u2019s played 60-odd Test matches,\u201d he added. \u201cHe\u2019s not a youngster any more. Time to really step up. And how many chances has Zak Crawley had? He\u2019s averaging 31.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the moment. The time has come. For years, McCullum and Stokes have stood by these guys. Every time Crawley nicks off, they go: \u2018He\u2019s our guy. We\u2019ll back him.\u2019 This needs to be repaid.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow\u2019s the time for Stokes to call in his chips, and say: \u2018Zak, you can\u2019t walk out there, nick it to slip, and walk off. I need you to make better decisions. Ollie, I need you at three, and I need you to go out there and fight.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cJeez, if we got out like some of those dismissals at the Gabba, we had Flower and Graham Gooch waiting at the door, let alone Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson, Graeme Swann and everyone else. Chipping the ball back, one after the other, to Michael Neser bowling 80mph, with the keeper up? They\u2019d have been like: \u2018What are you doing?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

AUS take 2-0 lead after fiery clash | 04:42<\/p>\n

As Prior pointed out, England\u2019s issues with Crawley and Pope are not new.<\/p>\n

The Telegraph\u2019s Tim Wigmore once again pointed to the disrespect shown towards county cricket by selectors when the likes of Crawley and Pope have been afforded so much rope.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince June 2023, England have now played 29 matches in the World Test Championship, won 13 and lost 14. During this run of games \u2013 all England\u2019s Tests in this period, bar the one-off match with Zimbabwe outside the Championship \u2013 Zak Crawley averages 33.7 and Ollie Pope just 31.8,\u201d Wigmore wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cYet their main rival to a player in the top three, Bethell, has yet to make a first-class hundred. Based on County Championship pedigree, compelling alternatives do exist.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaseeb Hameed averaged 66.2 last year as he captained Nottinghamshire to the title. He even scored at a strike rate, 58, that would have been unimaginable to anyone who observed his strokelessness Down Under four years ago. Dom Sibley, another relic of the Chris Silverwood years, averaged 60.7 for Surrey in Division One. James Rew, three months younger than Bethell but with 11 more first-class centuries, averaged 45.8.\u201d<\/p>\n

England’s prep under microscope | 03:56<\/p>\n

\ufeff\u2018CAN\u2019T UNDERSTAND\u2019: ENGLISH PREP BLASTED AGAIN<\/p>\n

In the lead-up to the Gabba Test, all the talk was on England\u2019s choice to send the Lions to Canberra for the Prime Minister\u2019s XI game.<\/p>\n

It stayed in the spotlight throughout the day\/night contest as the likes of Jamie Smith struggled with bat and gloves against the pink ball, which he had never come across in a professional match before.<\/p>\n

There was no tour game scheduled between Brisbane and Adelaide, but former England captain Nasser Hussain believes McCullum and co. should have done their best to find one instead of going to Noosa.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t understand England\u2019s schedule for the week ahead,\u201d Hussain wrote in his column for The Athletic. <\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I can appreciate why they had only one game against their Lions before the first Test as there were rounds of domestic state matches going on in Australia when they arrived from New Zealand.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd, OK, maybe you don\u2019t send your players to Canberra to play against the Prime Minister\u2019s XI after the first Test because conditions there are clearly so different to those in Brisbane.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut now England will be going into the third Test without playing a single warm-up game against Australian opposition, and that is beyond me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Skull calls for Kellaway’s Ashes debut | 00:58<\/p>\n

The Noosa trip has been widely mocked given McCullum uttered his belief that his side were \u201coverprepared\u201d for the Gabba Test having done five days of training in the nets beforehand.<\/p>\n

It was a comment that former England captain Michael Atherton believes was calculated.<\/p>\n

\u201cMcCullum, for sure, knew what he was saying with his \u201coverprepared\u201d line,\u201d Atherton wrote in The Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was not a slip of the tongue, as he repeated it to various outlets. He may have been trying to deflect attention from his players onto himself, but that is probably overthinking matters. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is clear, which is something Stokes also reiterated after defeat, is that he wants energies channelled into the white heat of competition rather than the build-up to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Atherton added: \u201cCoaches across all sports prepare their players differently, and have various theories on what constitutes best practice. What matters, though, and what coaches should be judged on, is outcomes. <\/p>\n

\u201cMcCullum has made his choices around preparation and the evidence, so far on the field of play, has not reflected well on them: with bat, ball and in the field, England have been exceptionally poor.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘Trained too much’ – McCullum | 00:43<\/p>\n

\ufeff\u2018REAL, LONG-TERM IMPLICATIONS\u2019: WORRIES FOR ENGLAND\u2019S FUTURE<\/p>\n

Former England batter Mark Ramprakash was one of the most optimistic former players about the chances of Ben Stokes\u2019 side before the series began.<\/p>\n

Now, he fears that Bazball may be making irreparable long-term damage to the next generation of England batters.<\/p>\n

Ramprakash has been escaping the early winter English weather in recent weeks by spending plenty of time in the indoor nets with budding batters, who he believes are being left confused by what they are watching from their national side.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy worry is that there will be real, long-term implications from all this. I work with boys in county pathways and they are absolutely scrambled,\u201d he wrote in The Guardian<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cCounties are bombarding young players with talk of power hitting, reverse sweeping, aggression. In the past couple of weeks I\u2019ve spoken to three boys, all with different counties, and when I have asked about their batting all three told me they are hyper-aggressive and look to score off every ball. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing we have seen, in this series and across Test history, is that on pitches that do a little bit, that have uneven bounce, and against bowlers of the highest skill, that isn\u2019t going to be possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe really amazing thing is that there is another approach, and England have the best in the world in their dressing room. But no one seems to be looking for the next Root, and England have certainly not looked to pick anyone else with anything like his skillset.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While England\u2019s Bazballers soak up the sunshine and knock back schooners in Noosa, many former English players, journalists…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":338321,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[3443,6074,18761,1724,64,63,689,7292,129295,188203,122618,18580,188217,14675,188221,651,188185,18762,2667,188189,188219,188206,136022,188191,3746,188218,188212,146956,188188,188210,33217,45893,188198,188199,158170,162832,20850,90277,147681,113215,188201,188214,33830,653,17071,188211,2105,188208,188192,188215,188190,1209,188209,44226,160455,188195,33835,163551,44227,51148,38703,74154,181901,33831,188196,163557,188200,24774,124996,31024,24773,29547,188220,87444,1736,188205,677,188202,1948,38693,701,1934,188213,27750,188216,188194,188204,188193,1124,12540,85,1210,18784,11545,131013,188187,5338,24833,188197,79237,174100,188207,188186,19121,20339,41283],"class_list":["post-338320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-adelaide","tag-africa","tag-alex-carey","tag-asia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-capital-territory","tag-australian-opener","tag-australian-opposition","tag-australian-selectors","tag-australian-side","tag-blowmarnus-backs-selectors","tag-brendon-mccullum","tag-brilliant-glovework","tag-brisbane","tag-brutal-home-truths","tag-cameron-green","tag-canberra","tag-captain-ben-stokes","tag-changes-loomteam-news","tag-chris-silverwood","tag-class-average","tag-confident-heading","tag-county-cricket","tag-county-medium-pacer","tag-county-pathways","tag-day-night-contest","tag-domestic-performances","tag-domestic-state","tag-dressing-room","tag-eastern-africa-sub-saharan-africa","tag-english-bowler","tag-english-ears","tag-english-fans","tag-english-hierarchy","tag-english-players","tag-english-skipper","tag-english-team","tag-exchange-words","tag-exchanges-words","tag-express-pace-bowling","tag-five-wicket-haul","tag-fox-sports-news","tag-gareth-copley","tag-george-hill","tag-getty-images-inc","tag-graeme-swann","tag-graham-gooch","tag-healthy-domestic-competition","tag-hit-beach","tag-india","tag-injury-blowmarnus-backs","tag-jake-weatherald","tag-james-anderson","tag-james-rew","tag-jamie-smith","tag-jimmy-anderson","tag-josh-hazlewood","tag-kerry-okeeffe","tag-luke-wright","tag-managing-director","tag-mark-ramprakash","tag-mark-wood","tag-match-situation","tag-matt-prior","tag-medium-fast-bowler","tag-michael-atherton","tag-michael-neser","tag-mitchell-starc","tag-nasser-hussain","tag-nathan-lyon","tag-national-selector-luke","tag-nets-session","tag-new-zealand","tag-nick-miller","tag-oceania","tag-opening-batting-decision","tag-pat-cummins","tag-professional-match","tag-queensland","tag-scott-boland","tag-selection-policies","tag-selection-squeeze","tag-selector-luke-wright","tag-side-stare","tag-single-warm-up-game","tag-skull-calls","tag-south-australia","tag-southern-asia","tag-sports","tag-sri-lanka","tag-steven-smith","tag-strike-rate","tag-stuart-broad","tag-team-pre-series","tag-the-gabba","tag-the-times","tag-tim-wigmore","tag-toilet-water","tag-tour-game","tag-understrength-home-team","tag-winter-english-weather","tag-young-players","tag-zak-crawley","tag-zimbabwe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=338320"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338320\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/338321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=338320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=338320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=338320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}