Australian legend Ian Chappell came down heavily on England’s selection for the Ashes, particularly criticizing spinner Moeen Ali as well as wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow.
“They chose to offer red-carpet treatment to Moeen Ali, who in his prime was never much of a bowling or batting threat to Australia,” Chappell wrote in a column for ESPNcricinfo.
Speaking of Bairstow, he wrote,” They’ve chosen a wicketkeeper who is a batter first, in Jonny Bairstow, whose mistakes with the gloves have cost his side dearly.”
Bairstow and Ali have not in the best of touches in the 3 Tests played thus far with the wicketkeeper scoring 141 runs from 6 innings and his performance with the gloves also being subpar, dropping some costly catches behind the wicket. Moeen, meanwhile, has just 5 wickets from the two Tests he has played.
Chappell also rued the fact that England had introduced the pace option of Mark Wood a little too late, writing that their selection failure was a perennial problem.
“England rely heavily on the skill of Stuart Broad and his chokehold on David Warner to spearhead their attack. They belatedly introduced the big-hearted Mark Wood into the series and he proved his worth with a high-speed attack at Headingley. Wood’s inclusion highlighted a perennial English failing: selection,” he wrote.
The fourth Test gets underway at Manchester from July 19. Australia are leading the series 2-1 after their victory at Headingley and Lord’s before England scraped back a victory in Leeds.
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