The 2nd Test of the Ashes 2023 series is being played at the iconic Lord’s in London on Wednesday, June 28. It would be interesting to see if the English batters continue to play with their famous ‘Bazball’ philosophy. They did approach the aggressive stance in the first Test but it backfired on them as they lost the match by 2 wickets.
Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer has raised questions about England constantly announcing their playing XI almost 24 hours before the play. The former India opener took to Twitter and said that it reveals the plan of the team to the opposition, just like the hosts have announced that they will go into the second Ashes 2023 Test at Lord’s with a four-pronged seam attack.
“What’s the benefit of announcing playing XI to the media a day or two before the test? Why reveal your plans to the opposition earlier than you have to? Thoughts? #Ashes23” he tweeted.
Brilliant start by Australian batters
Talking about the match, England skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to field first. Coming to bat, Australian batters David Warner and Usman Khawaja gave a brilliant start to the team and stitched a 73-run stand for the first wicket but just before the end of the 1st session, Khawaja was bamboozled by Josh Tongue’s breathtaking inswinging delivery which went straight to the wickets.
However, on the other hand, Warner smashed an outstanding half-century but became the second victim of Tongue. Meanwhile, Stokes talked about Tongue after winning the toss and said that he is a great allrounder.
“Disappointed not having Woody, but Tongue is a like-for-like replacement. Joe is really enjoying the challenge (with the ball) and is turning into a genuine all-rounder. You can name a numerous amount of things in the last Test, but we could have been a lot tidier in some of the moments.” Stokes said after winning the toss.
England’s Playing XI: Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Jonny Bairstow (wk), Stuart Broad, Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, James Anderson
Here’s how fans reacted:
Because Keh ke lenge hum?
— Sanjeev (@geniusparadox) June 28, 2023
Mostly show off , bazball is all about pomp and show more than anything
Real bazball would be they announced the playing XI before and play wood in place of tongue 🤪🤣🤣— Raazi (@Rg86037221) June 28, 2023
Moen ko bahar kar diya
— Abhinav singh (@Abhinav_tmk) June 28, 2023
McCullum hates monotony
— Sanpa (@SantoshPatil3) June 28, 2023
They were very clear about their plan.
— V Sridhar (@srineel66) June 28, 2023
Being proactive rather than reactive
— Rahul Mehra (@Rahulm2604) June 28, 2023
Because then selectors can say: pic.twitter.com/Di83fl3ijH
— Dexter Murugan (@tyagi_langda) June 28, 2023
Chupa ke humne toh bohot teer maar liye
— Anthony Gonzales (@Awarahoon4) June 28, 2023
Bhaukaal banane ke liye
— Mohit Sharma (@Krishnamohitt) June 28, 2023
