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Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
Brittle England batsmen fail to grind out ugly runs
Already, ahead of this winter's Ashes, this England team had been hailed as 'the most imposing' batting line-up they have sent to tour Australia. Not any more they won't, not after they lost seven wickets in an afternoon session that was only slightly extended. India's seamers reacted well after they had been thoroughly trashed before lunch by Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett: they pitched the ball fuller and got more out of the pitch than England, as they have done for much of the summer except when Ben Stokes has been bowling. Nevertheless, the image that England wanted to take to Australia, of being a 'most imposing' batting line-up, evaporated in the time it took for them to descend from 129 for one to 247 all out with the series on the line. The opening partnership by Crawley and Duckett was dazzling, even by their audacious standards, and threw India completely off their lengths. All that the rest of England's batsmen had to do was to keep out India's seamers – only three of them – until they had tired, and the tourists had to bring on their spinners. An Indian spinner duly emerged after 39 overs, but by then England had lost five wickets and let India back into the game. The lecture delivered over lunch by Professor Morne Morkel, India's bowling coach, must have been an impressive one. The three seamers did not even have to get the ball changed to expose what has lurked beneath the surface of this England side: a brittleness, a reluctance to grind it out and accumulate ugly runs. Since the last Oval Test, less than a year ago against Sri Lanka, England have been dismissed in fewer than 40 overs four times. On this occasion England lasted 51.1 overs, which forced Gus Atkinson and the two surviving seamers to go again, morning and evening. No country has made so many runs in a five-Test series in England as this India side: Jamie Smith has therefore had an enormous task as England's wicketkeeper in the first four Tests of this series but above all in this fifth Test, because Josh Tongue and Jamie Overton have sent Smith diving all over the shop. It was a tired dab with his bat at a 45-degree angle, when Sky Sports's experts had been preaching that the bat had to be either vertical or horizontal on this lively pitch. Why Overton was selected in the first place is a question that could be raised in the House – because he might touch 90mph in a Test this winter? Or because England think he is a useful No 8? Either way, after the call-up of Liam Dawson for the Old Trafford Test instead of Jack Leach, here is an echo of the old days when England's selectors opted for 'bits-and-pieces' players and for bowlers on the grounds that they could bat a bit. It is inexplicable that two bang-it-in bowlers were selected for an Oval green-top in Overton and Tongue. Tongue has worked hard for his place, and he showed at the start of India's second innings that he is no one-trick pony and can pitch the ball up. But if any Overton was to be selected, it should have been the other twin. Jamie has taken two wickets for 164 runs, and had three innings, for Surrey in the championship this season; Craig has taken 27 wickets and had 10 innings for Somerset. Jacob Bethell looked strange when he walked out in white clothes, as if they were borrowed. And since last Christmas he has played one first-class match – one red-ball game, that is, for Warwickshire. He looked a little rusty; he did not read the red ball that Mohammed Siraj swung into him. Bethell, Smith and Overton were blown away at the time when the ball was softening, and when Harry Brook required a partner to stay in. When England last won an Ashes series in Australia, back in 2010-11, their batting line-up consisted of Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook, both to be knighted, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Paul Collingwood and Matt Prior. When England toured Australia in 1928-9, their top four batsmen had either reached the landmark of one hundred first-class centuries or were soon to reach it, while another couple of their batsmen scored one hundred first-class centuries but were only selected for one Test each. Time will soon tell how imposing the line-up of this current England side will prove to be. I suspect they will be imposing in their audacity – when the going is good.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Tommy Freeman hands Lions major injury scare on eve of third Australia Test
Tommy Freeman has handed the British & Irish Lions a major injury doubt before their third Test against Australia. The 24-year-old winger, who has started the first two Tests, sat out the captain's run on Friday and it is understood he is struggling with a back injury. The Lions are targeting a first clean sweep since 1927 and a first unbeaten series since 1974. On Friday the Lions were adamant that Freeman would be fit to play in Sydney, claiming his absence was down to his workload being managed. It is understood, however, that contingency plans have been drawn up that could see Huw Jones moved to the wing and Owen Farrell coming into the starting XV. Mack Hansen would be an option if fully fit but he has missed the first two Tests with a foot injury and was deemed '85%' fit earlier in the week. Other options include Duhan van der Merwe and James Lowe with Blair Kinghorn switching from the left to the right wing. Jamie Osborne could also be a consideration. This season Freeman has featured in 33 matches, surpassing the 30-match limit mandated by the Rugby Football Union. 'He was just doing the light walk-throughs,' said the assistant coach John Dalziel. 'Wingers will do a lot of high-intensity running so he had the morning off. He's got to view a stadium which is hopefully going to come to life tomorrow. 'There's no easy way to be a winger when you are chasing kicks and balls up in the air in the way the first two Tests have gone, so it's quite easy for those guys to get their metres up.' Tadhg Furlong, meanwhile, has called on the Lions to make lasting memories as the tourists seek to wrap up a first clean sweep since 1927. The Ireland tighthead prop will make his ninth consecutive start for the Lions, moving to joint fifth on the all-time list and though the 32-year-old did not entirely rule out the 2029 trip to New Zealand, he conceded the clash in Sydney is likely to be his last for the touring side. 'You're still playing for the Lions, it's not hard to motivate yourself,' he said. 'My motivation is obvious. I'm not going to say I won't [but] I probably won't play for the Lions again. It's been very good to me. It's been very good to my career. You want to play well in it. 'Without being clinical about it, you want to give the best version of yourself to it. Sometimes the last memory is the lasting memory you have in a jersey. I want it to be a good one. I think you can use [that] towards your advantage, just the appreciation of it. Understanding what makes the Lions so special or why it's so special to you. You don't want to get too caught up and emotional about it because you have to do a job. 'Lions tours are some of the best days of your career and I'm delighted to be able to go again.' There were question marks over Furlong's fitness at the start of the tour after he arrived into camp in June with no game time since early May due to a calf problem. 'It wasn't a big enough injury to warrant [thinking I wouldn't make it],' he added. 'It was like, we need to get back and play here, lads, because it's on your calendar. You want it so badly. I think the cruel thing is when you go on one, you just want to go on more. You go on that first one and you take it all in. 'The second one, you want to perform and the third one you just want to appreciate it all because you don't want it to pass you by. There was a stage this season where we were having conversations with medical staff. It's like, what is going on here? We need to nip this stuff in the bud.' While Furlong forms part of an unchanged all Leinster and Ireland front row, Australia have changed two-thirds of theirs with Taniela Tupou coming in at tighthead and Billy Pollard promoted to the No 2 jersey after a late injury to Dave Porecki. Tupou nicknamed 'the Tongan Thor' has endured a difficult season in Super Rugby and will head to Racing 92 next season but Furlong is only too aware of the threat posed by the 23-stone prop. 'I first came across him in 2018, he was a young fella breaking through,' said Furlong. 'He was coming off the bench for Australia. He is what he says in the tin. He's incredibly powerful. He's dangerous in the scrum. Very aggressive. He poses his own threats around the park. He's a good carrier, explosive.'
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Itoje leads Lions on history chase with echoes of former Sydney glories in air
As the 2025 British & Irish Lions prepare for their last hurrah there are distant echoes of former glories in the damp Sydney air. A highly respected English lock forward leading out a history-chasing team in the same stadium which staged the 2003 Rugby World Cup final? It is not the worst of precedents for Maro Itoje as he and his modern-day Lions await their third and final date with destiny. Itoje and his squad would also dearly love to rekindle memories of another significant contest in this city. The decisive concluding Test of the 2013 Lions series was a classic example of a touring side saving its best until last, with a tiring Wallaby side eventually losing 41-16 after a certain assistant coach called Andy Farrell had urged the players to take their hosts to 'the hurt arena'. This time around, among other things, Farrell has been invoking the never-say-die ethos of the Irish boxer Katie Taylor, who was asked to record a few motivational words for the Lions. 'Prepare to win by skill but be ready to win by will,' was Taylor's pithy message and, despite the likelihood of wet conditions, Farrell is keen for his team to tick both boxes en route to a 3-0 series whitewash. Australia will have other ideas, of course, but even their head coach, Joe Schmidt, has acknowledged their agonising near miss in Melbourne last Saturday has been tough for his squad to absorb. The series is already gone, the influential Rob Valetini is sidelined again and they are up against opponents who still have a collective glint in their eyes. To make matters worse, the Wallabies have also been enduring further disruption on the eve of the game with Brandon Paenga-Amosa called up as emergency cover at hooker following injuries to Dave Porecki and Matt Faessler. When it rains as pours, as has very much been the case in a soaking Sydney over recent days. Whichever combinations are wearing gold, though, it will not affect the visitors' stated objectives. They want to fly home as the first Lions squad since 1927 to win every game of a multi-Test series, although the legendary 1974 team did famously claim three wins and a draw against the Springboks. There is clearly a debate to be had about whether beating a moderate Wallaby team compares, say, with outclassing South Africa at altitude but, either way, a 3-0 winning margin would stand the test of time. Emotionally, certainly, there remains much to play for. On the eve of the game, Itoje had his match jersey presented to him by Kate Hardman, who has been diagnosed with incurable breast cancer but is travelling around Australia in a camper van with her husband and three children, seeking to make family memories that will never fade. If that story doesn't heighten the Lions' desire to create a few last golden moments of their own, nothing will. And the more you think about it, the more a clean sweep would also mean to several squad members who have also had to overcome assorted challenges to reach this point. Andrew Porter, for example, was 12 when he lost his mother to cancer and subsequently had to battle mental health issues including an eating disorder. Four years ago, having achieved his lifelong dream of being picked for the Lions, he was injured before departure and was unable to tour South Africa. Among the things that have kept him going is a quote written down by his mum before her death. 'Do work you believe in, believe in what you do. Everything else is a waste of time.' For him and his family this tour has been the most heartwarming of postscripts. Everything is clearly relative but a place in the record books would also be something special for Tadhg Furlong, Dan Sheehan, Tom Curry, Huw Jones and Blair Kinghorn, all of whom have spent periods of the last year battling injuries which tested their resolve. Ditto Hugo Keenan and Tommy Freeman, who was struggling with a back injury on Friday, both late developers not obviously heading for Lions greatness in their teens. And not forgetting Bundee Aki and Jamison Gibson-Park, for whom the notion of wearing a red Lions jersey was never even on their radar. Sprinkle all these individual plotlines into the same crusading narrative and their shared power has been significant. The Lions could have folded at 23-5 down in Melbourne but, even in their darkest moments, the squad's competitive spirit has never wavered. This is also not a squad who are mentally already on the beach; the hosts may be in for another tough day regardless of the weather. Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion Admittedly the Wallabies did raise a smile by turning up for their pre-game team photo in fake moustaches in tribute to their retiring scrum-half Nic White, but it would be no laughing matter should the Lions get ahead early this time and stay there. White's box kicking, though, may prove useful in the conditions while the Exeter-bound Tom Hooper will want to make an impact in Valetini's absence. Hooper hails from Australia's self-proclaimed toughest town (Bathurst, in case you're ever passing) and, along with the colossal Will Skelton, offers a steely physical edge that Australia will definitely require. Even that, however, may not be sufficient if the Lions still have some collective gas left in the tank. Sheehan, Furlong, Itoje, Curry, Gibson-Park, Tadhg Beirne and Finn Russell would all be candidates for inclusion in a composite matchday 23 drawn from the last three Lions tours and one more command performance could yet elevate a couple more into that category. It is also increasingly hard to dispute Farrell's credentials as an all-time Lion king, capable of pressing performance buttons that other coaches struggle to reach. Even his captain, who used to attend the same Hertfordshire school as Owen Farrell, has been increasingly fascinated by Farrell Sr's instinct for what makes a rugby player tick. 'I don't know if it is a surprise but it has reaffirmed that he's just an impressive character,' stressed Itoje. 'He's a brilliant orator, he holds the room and is a great motivator of men. He's also quite thoughtful. Probably what has surprised me is how hot on detail he is. He is very particular on detail and how the week flows, which is very good from a players' point of view. I've enjoyed the experience.' All that remains now is to drag the Wallabies back into the hurt arena one last time.
