In his batting on Day 1 of the fourth Ashes 2023 Test at Old Trafford, Manchester, Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey may have been a little more aggressive, according to former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara.
Only 20 runs were scored by Carey in 49 balls, and Sangakkara clarified that the former didn’t appear to be looking to score rapidly with the second new ball. Instead, he adopted an overly defensive stance and ultimately lost his wicket.
The following is what Kumar Sangakkara had to say regarding Alex Carey’s strategy when speaking on the Ashes Podcast for Sky Sports Cricket:
“Carey lost many runs while attempting to protect Mitchell Starc from the new ball. Runs are important in the first innings, so in my opinion, that is incorrect. This is not a game that you are trying to save. Aggressiveness is required if you want to farm the strike, but Carey was torn between the two.”
“Given the significance of the series, he let the team down by failing to score 5–10 runs when it mattered.”
Australia’s poor batting against short balls, according to Kumar Sangakkara
The Australian hitters’ struggles against England’s short-ball strategy on Day 1 perplexed Kumar Sangakkara as well. He thinks that since the visitors were from a nation that generates bouncy fields, they ought to have been wiser and weathered the storm and waited for the England bowlers to grow weary.
In response, Sangakkara said:
“Before the bowlers truly tire, you can really continue the short ball barrage for two play sessions. You must be able to play and persevere during that time. With the short ball, Mark Wood and maybe Broad pose a serious threat.”
Anderson and Woakes less so. Even after spending their entire lives playing on bouncy wickets, Australia has simply not been able to achieve it, which is one of the key reasons why England are currently dominating.
Given that Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc are both capable batsmen, Australia will be hoping to reach at least the 350-run threshold.
Read Also:- Shah Rukh Khan Official World Cup 2023 Advertisement