3 mistakes England made in the 2nd Ashes Test vs Australia which they can't afford to repeat at Headingley
The 2023 Ashes has been a riveting series so far, with all kinds of discourse both on and off the field. It's been a true war of gamesmanship, but the more important battle, the one that's played between bat and ball, has gone in favor of the away side.
England were in with a chance at winning both Test matches. Ben Stokes' masterful hundred took them within touching distance of Australia's total in the fourth innings at Lord's. However, Pat Cummins and Co. have held their nerve under pressure so far to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.
The third Test will be played at Headingley in Leeds, the venue of Stokes' incredible effort in the 2019 series. With the urn on the line for the home side, they need to immediately iron out their flaws and come up with a win. There are several injury and availability concerns, though, so England will have their task cut out.
Here are three mistakes England made in the second Ashes Test against Australia which they can't afford to make at Headingley.
#3 Ben Stokes and Co. need more firepower in their bowling attack
The pitches for the first two Tests haven't given the bowlers much. To make matters worse, spearhead James Anderson has been insipid, putting a lot of pressure on the others to step up. The result has been a bowling attack that has lacked firepower overall.
Moeen Ali featured in the opening Test before blistering his bowling finger and sitting out the second. Josh Tongue came in, and while he added bite to the attack and was arguably England's best fast bowler in the match, he didn't have the impact someone like Mark Wood would have.
Ollie Robinson has held one end up decently, while Stuart Broad was splendid in the first Test and somewhat sub-par in the second. It might be in the hosts' best interests to rotate their side slightly and bring in not just Wood but also Chris Woakes.
England can't afford to go in with a four-pronged pace attack that features three similar bowlers, like they did at Edgbaston.
#2 England need to tone down the war of words and start actionizing
The Ashes series so far has been dominated by England having quite a few opinions on everything under the sun. However, the truth of the matter is that they simply haven't been able to win Test matches.
Robinson has lashed out at Usman Khawaja and stated that verbal warfare is normal at the Test level. Broad has thrown out several hyperbolic statements regarding everything that has transpired in the series, especially the Jonny Bairstow incident.
Both fast bowlers are writing columns in the media and so is Anderson.
Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have chimed in on the same, with the entire team contradicting many actions of their own players and support staff members from the past.
Given everything that has transpired in the 2023 Ashes, it would be easy for England to lose themselves in this battle and fail to see the bigger picture, which is that they need to start winning. Entertainment is something they've provided a lot of lately, but results will dictate how cricket teams are perceived and remembered.
It would be in the home side's best interests to let their cricket do the talking at Headingley.
#1 England can't approach the short-ball tactic with such carelessness
Both England and Australia resorted to the short-ball tactic throughout the second Ashes Test, but the hosts played some horrific cricket when confronted with the strategy.
Their batters, most of all Harry Brook, played some needless shots to be dismissed. In their attempt to stay aggressive and take on the bumpers, they lost their wickets cheaply.
This was especially evident in the first innings, where they were on course to get a sizeable lead but completely squandered the opportunity to eventually fall well short.
If the wickets stay unresponsive, the short-ball ploy is bound to make a few more appearances. It's understandable that England want to play attacking cricket, but they can't afford to play stupid cricket. They'll have to ensure that they finetune their approach in Leeds.