“England showed zero smartness, their rigidness and arrogance is evident” - Salman Butt lashes out at Ben Stokes and Co. over Bazball

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has slammed the England team for refusing to learn from their mistakes, terming them as rigid and arrogant. According to Butt, England have shown zero smartness while dealing with Australia in the ongoing Ashes 2023.

After losing the first Test by two wickets, hosts England are in trouble in the second Test at Lord’s as well. They were bowled out for 325 in their first innings on Day 3 of the match, losing six wickets for 47 runs.

Resuming their innings on 278/4, England kept losing wickets at regular intervals to concede a 91-run first-innings lead. While analyzing the hosts’ batting performance, Butt lashed out at England’s batters for showing a lack of game awareness and playing mindless cricket in the name of ‘Bazball’.

He said on his YouTube channel:

“When there are fielders in position for short balls, why can’t you just leave some balls? How many bouncers will they [Australia] bowl? For four overs or six overs? Nathan Lyon also got unfit. England showed zero smartness, their rigidness and arrogance is evident. This is not a good sign when you are playing Test cricket."

The former Pakistan captain opined that England are paying a heavy price in the Ashes for not having a Plan B in place and sticking to their premeditated approach.

Butt elaborated:

“I am saying from day one that England do not have a Plan B. This game is about muscle memory. They have got used to batting in this mode whether they want to bat for a few overs and score runs quickly. Look at what England have done till now. They did not bat for the whole Day 1 of the first Test. Now, they have been bowled out in 76 overs.

“What is the point of scoring at five runs per over when the opposition has gained a 91-run lead. Now, they are more than 200 runs ahead. From here, Australia can lose the Test only if they commit some blunders or England will have to come up with some extraordinary performances,” the 38-year-old added.

The short-ball ploy gets Australia one more wicket 👌

Mitchell Starc gets rid of Harry Brook for 5️⃣0️⃣, his 3rd wicket of the match 🤩

#SonySportsNetwork #ENGvAUS #Ashes2023 #RivalsForever #MitchellStarc https://t.co/hSuffhSUUk

England lost Ben Stokes for 17 in the first over of the day on Friday, June 30. Harry Brook, who was unbeaten on 45 overnight, fell for 50, while Jonny Bairstow perished for 16.

“Look at how many bouncers Usman Khawaja has left alone” - Butt on what England can learn from Australia

Praising Australia, Butt said that they have shown how one must play according to the situation. Urging the Englishmen to take a leaf out of the visitors’ book, the former opener commented:

“Look at how many bouncers Usman Khawaja has left alone. Look how many balls Steve Smith is leaving. They are playing on their own terms. England, on the other hand, are saying, do whatever you want, we will play this way only. If they lose this Test, it will be difficult to defend Bazball. If they win, it’s a different story.”

📺 Catch the best of the action from Day 3 at Lord's 👇

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Australia will resume their second innings on Day 4 on 130/2, with Khawaja unbeaten on 58 and Smith on 6.