"Stop being so nice and get some mongrel in you!" - Kevin Pietersen's message for England ahead of Day 2 of 2nd Ashes Test
Former captain Kevin Pietersen has urged England to stand tall and take the game to Australia on the second day of the second Ashes Test at Lord's, after the hosts had a disappointing outing on the first day.
This comes a day after Pietersen launched a scathing attack on the hosts at Tea, criticizing their display and approach as 'shambolic'.
He took to Twitter to request the team to stop being nice and take the remaining five wickets at the earliest.
Pietersen tweeted:
"Come on, @englandcricket! Stand tall today and take it to the Australians. Stop being so nice and get some mongrel in you! Take those 5 wickets quick and bat well! This is The Ashes and not an exhibition game!"
🏽Come on, @englandcricket !
Stand tall today and take it to the Australians. Stop being so nice and get some mongrel in you! Take those 5 wickets quick and bat well!
This is The Ashes and not an exhibition game! 👊🏽
It is worth noting that during the Tea break on Day 1 of the Lord's Test, Pietersen criticized England for taking things too easy and nice and not showing the urgency to go out there and have a go at the Australian batters.
He said:
“You know Australian players [openers] were outside to bat before the English bowlers. The English bowlers this morning should have been on those stairs, saying, ‘We desperately wanna bowl out Australia.’ These two Australian batters are out there waiting for England."
He added:
"They [Australian batters] are the ones who should have been in the room saying, ‘No, no! Hold on, we don’t wanna bat,’ and, it’s all too easy and nice.”
Pietersen also hoped that head coach Brendon McCullum would give the team "the biggest hammering" for their ordinary display in the first two sessions.
England on the back foot after Day 1 of Lord's Ashes Test
Electing to field first under overcast conditions, England were on the lookout for early inroads. They never came, however, with Usman Khawaja holding up an end and David Warner waltzing his way to a half-century.
Thereafter, Steven Smith took centerstage and batted at his absolute best, even as he started off in attacking fashion.
He forged critical partnerships with Marnus Labuschagne first and then Travis Head and while a couple of quick wickets fell to Joe Root, Australia ended the opening day on 339/5.
🏏
Day 1 ends with Australia in control, but Joe Root's late double-strike gives England hope.
The game is finely poised. 🔥🏏
#ENGvAUS #Ashes #TheAshes https://t.co/eC43WiknA9
With plenty of work to do for the English bowlers, they will have to devise a strategy to get past Smith and clean up the lower order before they are batted out of the contest. Australia currently lead the five-match Ashes series 1-0.
Can Australia continue calling the shots in the Lord's Test? Have your say in the comments section below!
Also read: 3 most iconic Ashes Tests at Lord's