England all-rounder Will Jacks in action during Ashes Pink-Ball Test at Gabba vs Australia. (PHOTO: AP)Deterred by England’s poor cricket which saw them getting thrashed by Australia in the first two Tests of the ongoing Ashes series — Perth and Brisbane — legendary England cricketer Geoffrey Boycott went on a ranting spree, thrashing the Ben Stokes side for their performance Down Under.
Boycott spared none of the English cricketers, calling Stokes’ claim of having a blueprint for playing in Australia a load of bull****. He questioned all-rounder Will Jacks abilities and skills as a Test cricketer and called him “a hit and giggle batsman in T20.” Jacks had replaced injured pacer Mark Wood in the playing XI for the Pink-Ball fixture at the Gabba in Brisbane. Boycott said even his mum could play Jacks spin bowling.
“Will Jacks took an amazing one-handed catch to get rid of the dangerous Steve Smith and in the second innings he made a gutsy 41. But if he is a Test match cricketer… no disrespect intended but he is a hit and giggle batsman in T20 and my Mum could play his bowling with my proverbial stick of rhubarb. There is no oomph or variation,” Boycott wrote in his column for The Telegraph.
Will Jacks scored 19 in the first innings and 41 in the second with the bat. He bowled 11.3 overs in the first innings and picked Australia’s last wicket of Brendan Doggett.
“In that energy sapping heat, when the ball got soft and old, a proper spinner was required to save flogging the quicks. England had three fast bowlers and Stokes to bowl seam. What they required was a quality spinner and for me England made a mistake in selection,” added Boycott.
On Stokes, he said: “Ben Stokes said England had a blueprint. They had been planning this tour for four years and know what they are doing. What a load of bulls***. We can’t believe anything Ben or his team say. None of them want to listen to anyone outside of their own camp. They are up their own backsides convinced that Test cricket has changed so much that only they know anything about the modern game.
“But what do I know? I am just a has-been who did four England tours of Australia winning two Ashes series and drawing the other two,” he added while taking a dig at Stokes’ comment calling former English cricketers “has-beens.”
Ahead of the Australia tour, Stokes had said: “Cricket has changed so much. Preparation is nowhere near as simple as it used to be. You could come out on a tour two months before the first game started. We’ve been preparing for this tour not over the last three weeks, but putting a lot of thought and process into this for a few years now. I don’t know what else we’re expected to be able to do.”
“There are quite a few factors that go into why we can’t prepare how the has-beens maybe prepared in the past. It’s all changed. We’re very comfortable with how we prepare because we leave no stone unturned.”
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