England panicked and it cost them

Telegraph

04-08-2025

I do not want to be too hard on a team that have had a lot of misfortune this week. They went in without perhaps their most important-ever cricketer, and then lost a key bowler on the opening day. England lost by six runs to India effectively playing with 10 men, so I do not want to be too critical.
But the truth is England panicked. The closer they got, within 70, they tried to be more high risk. The approach was wrong on the final morning. It was too risky. If it takes 15 overs, so be it. You do not need to whizz 35 runs in five overs. All it needed was one steady head. Three of the last seven wickets were players dancing down the wicket to seamers.
If India lost in that fashion, we would have said they yipped up. If South Africa lost like that, we would say they choked. It was that bad a miss. That will really hurt. When you know you should win a game, it is so painful.
Of course you can look at it two ways. It is a great achievement to get so close, but when you have got 70 to win, you should waltz home in your own conditions. It was swinging but it was not spitting or keeping low. We should have been better at chasing that on the last morning. They had done the hard work. They had reached the point where they should win the game and they have not.
As a result, England have failed again to win a five-match series. They are great to watch and garner so much attention because of their style of play, but that has been their problem so far. They still have not beaten India or Australia under the management of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.
Nevertheless, this has been a brilliant series to watch, between two closely matched teams full of skill and heart. It got a truly incredible ending and kept us guessing right until the final morning.
A word for India. Every time I thought they looked down and out in this series they sprung back off the canvas, including on the final morning. I turned up thinking England would win, but led by Mohammed Siraj, they were magnificent. With their player pool, you would expect them to be a skilful side, but they have so much heart and such a great attitude that means they are never beaten. A drawn series here for them is an incredible achievement given the age profile of their team.
Good signs – and warnings – for Ashes
I have been encouraged by so much of what England have done in this series. Their batting is still not perfect but has matured, as we saw in the chase at Headingley and on the first day at Lord's. They have proved in this Test that they have the bowling depth to take a battery of quicks to Australia. Look at who was unavailable this week. Add Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue, who toiled so whole-heartedly here with Chris Woakes injured, to Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Brydon Carse, and you have the weapons to win – if they are rotated right. I like Jamie Overton's attitude and hit-the-pitch style and would take him, even if I might have looked at a more green-top style bowler for this game.
When Stokes is fit, I think they can beat anyone. When he is not, they can be beaten by everyone. When Ben is captain and the series has been hot, they have won. At the Oval, he was not. The mentality the captain brings, it is so clear and obvious when he is not out there. He cannot have the same impact when he is stood on the balcony or sat next to McCullum.
If in the worst case scenario Stokes is not fit for the Perth Test in November, I would much rather see Harry Brook lead England than Ollie Pope. He is a more natural captain and just much more like Stokes.
As good as they are when he is in the side, some of the think-tank's decision-making really worries me. I loved the pitch this week but it is hard to believe the first green top of the series was the right surface for an England team 2-1 up at home.
And then there is selection. I have to question England's handling of Jacob Bethell this summer. I am not remotely saying he cost England the game, but he looked like a cricketer who had not been playing. I felt for him. It is something England have never done. We have always picked young players, but with a bit of experience. They had a couple of years of scoring hundreds or taking five-fers. I feel we are trying to reinvent the wheel and when England are too maverick, things start to go wrong.
I would actually like to sit down with Rob Key and Luke Wright and ask them this: when you were 21, would you like to be thrown into a Test match on the back of no cricket? If they say they would not have minded, they are lying.
England did so much right this series, but I hope they learnt from this week. They have to be honest with themselves that if they are in that situation in Perth, Sydney or anywhere in between this winter: store this knowledge and win the game.
I do not blame Brook for trying to win the game quickly, but I hope he remembers the clinical option next time.
And I hope England are careful with their handling of Jamie Smith, who looked utterly exhausted. Over a five-match series we talk about how hard it is for the captain, for the bowlers, but sometimes forget about the wicketkeeper. He has kept for more than 1,000 overs and this week the ball was flying to all parts. He is at the start of his Test career and could be an all-time great. But he is an all-format player and England have got to be very wary that he is not overworked. As we have seen this series, the end is every bit as important as the last.
There is lots to like about this team and I think if Stokes is fit, they have a great chance in Australia. I just hope they learn from this missed opportunity.