England coach Chris Silverwood says he would pick the same team despite trailing the Ashes
England coach Chris Silverwood has declared that he would stick to the same team despite being 0-2 down in the ongoing Ashes series. Silverwood believes there's always going to be conflicts over the combination chosen; hence, he will refrain from making changes.
England's selection decisions in Brisbane and Adelaide have been met with criticism from all directions. The first Test at the Gabba saw the tourists omit James Anderson and Stuart Broad, especially on a track that would have assisted them.
In Adelaide, England chose an all-seam attack and paid the price for not picking a frontline spinner. Speaking to BBC Sport, Chris Silverwood said despite the results not going their way thus far, he would go with the same team. He stated:
"To be honest, I would. There is always going to be a divided opinion. You pick a team and not everybody's going to agree with you."
A brave fight on the final day but Australia win the second Test to take a 2-0 series lead.
Scorecard: ms.spr.ly/6017Zumm9
#Ashes | ๐ฆ๐บ #AUSvENG ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ https://t.co/U9VH9Z1MLS
Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of England's outings have been the performances of their batting unit, which has collapsed across four innings. Openers Haseeb Hameed and Rory Burns have fared terribly as their highest partnership thus far has been 23 runs.
England must create history to reclaim the Ashes urn
The simple equation for England is to win all three Tests to regain the urn, which they last held in 2015. Australia bounced back from a 0-2 deficit in the 1936-37 Ashes series to ultimately emerge victorious. The visitors are likely to make a considerable amount of changes to the line-up to replicate this fear.
Dawid Malan, England's highest run-getter so far in the series, could bat in the top order. Aside from Burns and Hameed, other players under the scanner are Ollie Pope and Chris Woakes for their lack of telling contributions in the two Tests. Australia are only likely to get stronger given the return of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.