"Where are we going with this?" - Stuart Broad questions as focus shifts to Ollie Robinson as a villainous character
Veteran England seamer Stuart Broad questioned where the narrative is going as Ollie Robinson has now been branded as the villain. Broad recalled how the Australian media used to paint him in the same vein.
Robinson invited backlash after giving an expletive-laden send-off to Usman Khawaja after dismissing him in the first innings of the opening Ashes Test. Although the match referee decided to let him go with a warning, the incident didn't sit well with the Australian cricket experts and fans.
In his column for The Daily Mail, Broad wrote:
"One other thing: weren’t T-shirts being sold in Australia 10 years ago about me, with swear words on? Now a couple of expletives the other way and everyone is piling in. Where are we going with this?"
The Nottinghamshire seamer felt the incident was blown out of proportion and criticized Matthew Hayden's torching of Robinson.
"A lot more has been made of words on the field between Ollie Robinson and Usman Khawaja than ought to have been, to be honest. Ultimately, the ICC had no problem with Ollie’s reaction to dismissing Khawaja in the first innings and I didn’t like Matthew Hayden’s disparaging comments about him," he said.
Broad added that English and Aussie players are very good friends off the field and that some of the previous Ashes series had a lot more going on verbally.
"There was a bit of emotion on the field, but off it we are obviously seeing the Australian guys in the pavilion corridors all the time, eating lunch in the same room and we enjoyed a nice-natured week. Every time there was a rain break, guys were chatting to each other and it is ironic that it blew up into a story because I’d probably say out of all nine Ashes series in which I’ve played, verbally it was the quietest first Test I can recall from an on-field perspective," he said.
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting notably called out Robinson, saying that he should learn to back up his words with performances.
"Ricky Ponting was the most famous ex-Aussie cricketer he could think of" - Stuart Broad defends Ollie Robinson
With Robinson justifying his sledging of Khawaja by citing Ponting's example, Broad suggested that the 29-year-old had a "bit of a mind blank." He elaborated:
"Ricky Ponting had a bit of a nibble because Robbo brought his name into things during a press conference, but not because Ricky was a huge sledger. Ollie had a bit of a mind blank, Ricky Ponting was the most famous ex-Aussie cricketer he could think of, and that Australia team he played in was hardly full of shrinking violets, so the hoo-ha that was created surprised us."
England went down by two wickets in the first Ashes Test and will be keen to level the series in the second.