Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has lambasted England captain Joe Root for not putting the record straight to his bowlers during the second Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval. The English bowlers bowled a short pitch line that didn’t work in favour of the visiting side.
Root did not mince his words immediately after Australia completed a 275-run win, lamenting that England’s bowlers were making the same mistakes as they did during their 0-4 series defeat in 2017-18.
Ricky Ponting suggested Joe Root was not firm enough on strategy with senior players after the England captain revealed his frustration at how his team bowled in the first innings. Speaking on cricket.com.au, the former cricketer said:
“I nearly fell off my seat when I heard that. “Whose job is it then to make them change? Why are you captain then? If you can’t influence your bowlers on what length to bowl, what are you doing on the field?”
Ricky Ponting added:
“Joe Root can come back and say whatever he likes but if you’re captain, you’ve got to be able to sense when your bowlers aren’t bowling where you want them to. And if they’re not going to listen, you take them off, simple as that. Give someone else a chance that is going to do it for you. Or you have a really strong conversation with them on the field to tell them what you need. That’s what captaincy is all about.”
The tactics of the England bowlers made the life of Aussie batters easy who piled on runs in the first innings to put the visiting side under pressure from where they never recovered.
“They bowled full in the game was when Joe Root wasn’t on the ground” – Ricky Ponting
Joe Root has made clear his frustration with his bowlers after England went 2-0 down in the Ashes with defeat at Adelaide.#Ashes pic.twitter.com/2LKp9ve2nZ
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) December 20, 2021
Ponting also suggested the most promising period of England’s bowling performance in Adelaide had come when Root was off the field due to a groin knock. Leading in his stead, Ben Stokes oversaw the Aussies lose 3-7 on day four including the prized scalp of Steve Smith for six.
“The interesting thing for me is the only time they bowled full in the game was when Joe Root wasn’t on the ground,” he said.
“The start of day four when they had a meeting on the ground before play started, Ben Stokes took over the captaincy, and that was the only time in the game they pitched the ball up,” Ponting added.
England will have truckloads of work to do before they return to the field for the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
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