ASHES PODCAST | Will Stokes regret declaration and new ball call?! 👀 | First Test Recap

well the ashes have delivered once again

we have seen a game for the ages at the

start of the day the big question was

could Australia find a way of tracking

these runs down or could England find

the wickets they needed to get their

campaign kick-started off

I think at the end of the day Owen

Morgan and Kumar sangakara every single

person that is watching I know half of

Australia was still up uh watching this

everyone at the ground here at

edgebastian right around the country

they've just said

we expected this to deliver it did sit

down brace yourselves because we're

going to strap ourselves into a massive

massive ride at the start of the day

where were you sitting

how did they get it done

yeah at the start of the day I was

firmly in England's camp

I think turning up on a day like today

when there's there's rain forecasts and

over ahead conditions we know in England

that that can play play a huge part when

it comes to movement off in the air and

off the seams so that's the reason I was

in England's Camp it just we have had

one passenger play throughout this game

where there have been overheads

otherwise it's just been excellent

batting conditions a little bit of turn

on offer but

yeah I thought England would have got

the ball moving around early potentially

get a couple of chances from Usman

kawaja who's had an incredible test

match really has he'll definitely sleep

well tonight

yeah but I don't think they'll sleep

tonight

you know them too okay yeah so again it

ebbed and flowed throughout the whole

day but what a finale you know I think

it was past 4 a.m

um on the East Coast of Australia as the

winning runs were hit so you know for

both sets of fans just incredibly proud

both sides have left everything out

there I think if we had a pound for

every time we said or heard 2005 we'd

all be very very much powerful I think

the other one that certainly comes to my

mind because it's ashes was hittingly

the last time Australia was here 2019

where Ben Stokes and leech got them over

the line and and hung in there and it

had that kind of vibe about it I didn't

NASA mention the run out that lion

fumbled and was it Justin lager who

kicked the kick the bin then put the

rubbish back in yeah

but that's the Brilliance of a series

like this so many reference points in

history that you can draw from that and

and

things that happen even in 2023 taking

your mind back you know taking the minds

back of the commentators and the fans

back to these great moments that you

everyone remember that iconic moments

and some iconic moments created here you

know Nathan Lyon taking you know doing

the reverse and taking Australia over

the line Pat Cummins Usman cavajo's

Brilliance and stubbornness the

Declaration from Ben Stokes the

braveness of England Joe Roots

Brilliance and just the the skill versus

skill contest that we've seen over five

days and then add to that the Tactical

battle England really stubborn they

stick to what has worked for them in the

Bears ball era that was absolutely

brilliant Australia

still playing their style of cricket but

with a difference we saw on the first

day when the fields were spread that's

not the way Australia plays we never do

that but Pat Cummings was brave enough

to do it didn't care what we thought or

anyone else thought and stuck to it

through through five days of cricket

I think at the end of the day brilliant

curtain racer a great head-to-head

Battle of skill tactics and and

endurance and courage Australia has one

come up ahead by a very small margin but

I think both sides would be really

satisfied with the effort they put in

disappointed that in for England in

terms of that they've lost but Australia

winning a close game it'll stand both

sides really well in terms of the next

four test matches

not many questions in that sense for

both sides I think they would stick to

their guns and keep playing last time

Australia chased more than 250 for a

test match win it was back in 2011. Pat

Cummins was on debut all those many

years ago and he was not hit the winning

runs in that match as well you now look

at the Australian Skipper he's into his

17th test as a skipper it's sort of a

defining one for him isn't it yeah I

think it is and and given how much

strategy has gone behind their win

they've got they went a little bit away

from tactics like we've talked about for

the last five days a little bit more

defensive but getting to that finish

line is has been the objective and and

they've managed you know against the

Runner play a little bit you would say

to pull you know the the the win which

is obviously the most important because

Mitchell Stark was missing or at

strength of depth to their budding and

with Nathan Lyons stepping up and

[Laughter]

[Laughter]

guys are being aggressive or more

aggressive than previous England teams

so maybe he's just said you know what I

want some of this

um on the flip side Ben Stokes captaincy

I mean there was numerous times right

throughout the test where we we say the

words Brave you know the cricket smarts

he's redefining test match cricket he's

we know he's not going to stop with with

this aggressive approach what do you

think he'll be thinking once he sort of

settles down has a bit of think about

the the last five days oh he'll be

disappointed but quite satisfied as well

you know the performance they put in was

incredible we always think oh it's quite

impulsive Cricket or you know that

England play now it's very free-flowing

and free form and it's

there's a lot of planning that goes into

behind the scenes Brenda McCallum and

Ben Stoke sitting down and there's a

great fall for each other but I'm a

column and as an on Morgan pointed that

out as well when you're talking one day

but you know he gives off the impression

that he's very free-flowing and

everything's in it's almost a

free-for-all but there's a lot of

thinking that goes on behind it bench

talks is free-flowing he is expressive

he he doesn't let the game drift but how

he and McCallum kind of Meet the minds

meet and they settle on tactics is why

it's so attractive out there and that

partnership is you know paid great

dividends to to England so I loved talks

as captaincy not just this particular

test match but but but

throughout and I admired Pat cummins's

captaincy because one of the most

important things you've got to have

belief you can't have the captain waiver

because it your team's watching you

people are watching you and the message

they've sent each other and everyone

watching is

we are well set in how we want to play

this series England One Way Australia

the other yeah both ways can win yeah

there's nothing to choose between them

yeah we might call things old-fashioned

or defensive whatever at the end of the

day they're both trying to create a

result that's advantageous and both

sides had a magnificent game Stokes

especially should be very proud and very

happy at the way they played oh and

there was probably um the book end of

the games in terms of big decisions from

Ben Stokes the first was the Declaration

on day one fast forward to today on on

day five and there was a decision about

whether or not to take the new ball so

Joe root stayed on got a critical Wicket

but then they kept going with the old

ball there would have been a lot of

discussion between broad Anderson route

and Stokes to get to that point yeah and

and there was you know it's probably one

of Ben's biggest attributes he doesn't

mind taking advice on board from his

senior players and almost a brains trust

and I'd imagine if there was something

significant it would be sent on the

field as well from Brendan McCollum but

constantly taking in information

debating whether or not that was the

time to take the new ball it proved you

know very profitable Joe Wick Joe root

taking the wicked carry

um but we we saw right in front of our

own eyes what they why they were

digressing over that decision because

the new ball just get it on Ricky

Ponting at a tea time interval today he

said you know what some of the best

times to bat throughout this test match

have actually been against the new ball

so there might be a little bit of

hesitancy around it

um and it it did prove costly it

in many ways but I thought I do think it

was the right decision the game was

slipping away from them with the old

ball stew abroad did beat the outside

edge on a number of occasions but you

know what Australia played really well

yeah someone who played exceptionally

well for Australia for the majority of

the game I think prior to his dismissal

he hadn't been on the ground for just

3.3 overs is Usman kawaja in Usman Lefty

uh what what impressed you most about

because he came into this series there's

a bit of question marks around around

his form

um in England away he'd been great

hundreds in Pakistan hundreds in India

this was his sort of his last mountain

to climb really at the at the back end

of his career and he started the series

beautifully yeah he did I mean

amazingly impressive temperament

uh great

kind of tempo to the innings in terms of

just buckling down settling down for the

long hauling the same in the first

innings

allowing Partnerships to build and

Confidence from the non-striker watching

Usman kawaja just hit everything with

the middle of the bat taking down

moinale the way he did the ease and with

which he played on a pitch that was

turning there's so much like he saw the

celebrations was such a an outpouring of

just relief and and validation that all

is worked for to get here in England

forget the round Cisco before I think it

was very important that he he got that

hundred here it was brilliant the only

thing I think the Australian batting

liner might have to to to to to kind of

wonder about is there were a couple of

critical moments in my view in the chase

nothing in their first Innings uh one

was when David Warner got to the stage

and the runs were drying up and he had

this offside field and stopping

everything that he played all the good

shots that he played could he have

actually gone harder and because kawaja

was was just not going anywhere and then

Cameron green coming in moin had just

balled a couple of hours he couldn't

continue his finger was bad why allow

Joe root to both so many hours for not

many runs when he could have actually

with them feel all brought it could have

gone over actually reverse pressure a

lot quicker against England and really

made England kind of think about what

are we going to do now but kawaja's

presence and the fact that he took the

game down to

such a long ways from one end was was

remarkable and one of the main reasons

why Australia won as well ashes are

always a little bit spicy and there's a

little bit of spice coming in between

Ollie Robinson and Usman kawaja so

there's a bit of lip and a send-off in

in the first Innings during the second

Innings as well Ollie Robinson Boulder

but what he said was a half fully

outside of stump and question why it was

he didn't play at the fields up it was a

freebie and Usman said to him well

that's why you're not a batsman and it

went back and forth a little bit more I

can expect this to go and I think I

think Robinson also said oh he speaks so

it's starting to Bubble away a little

bit yeah it is here

if if I was a bowler bowling to I've

never bowled a lot um bowling does make

quite I'd stay I'd stay quiet yeah he

looks in serious form and and the most

impressive thing for me is the ease at

which he's doing it it doesn't look like

he's getting out of that bubble that

he's in and he's sticking to the process

you know he's probably made one mistake

over the course of five days which is

remarkable under the pressure under the

spotlight and taking on the

responsibility of scoring the bulk of

Australia's runs it's just incredible

start yeah we could chat about this test

match for quite some time but I'm

mindful of of time let's cast our mind

forward a little bit there's there

wasn't too many areas where you could

sort of have a point of difference

between the two teams within this test

match when you cast your mind forward to

Lords moanelli's obviously got the the

finger injury for for England

um there was no Mark Wood where people

were saying did that extra pace could

have come in handy within this test

where are the positions of change do you

think if any yeah they'll have to debate

that especially because that's flat the

sameness of an attack the Australia is

the same in terms of do they get stuck

in and also five test matches in a very

short period of time you can't have all

your the same fast Bowlers playing all

the games you saw Anderson not doing a

whole lot of damage I'm also interested

to see what the pictures are going to be

like especially if they continue to be

like this and Stokes has asked for that

is that actually working in England's

favor or will the groundsman listen and

if that's the case then they have some

serious decisions to make in terms of

the spin Department who are they going

to convince to come and play or they're

going to pick this talk about Liam

Dawson as as being a great option a few

decisions to be made in terms of that

and especially

this is England's stronghold Birmingham

they're one here they're not very happy

playing a lodge not a great history in

test Cricket so the Australians will be

mindful of that

um

but apart from that I think

both sides will just continue playing

their style of cricket and it's it'll

produce some amazing Cricket going

forward to Lords

Kim I just mentioned it there when you

win at edgebeston where you know

England's been so good I think they've

got a 54 win ratio here and then

Australia look towards who they've done

reasonably well

all of a sudden you know all going to

plan it's 2-0 so it's it's critical

isn't it because I think it's huge and

again we highlighted it before the

series starts English whole record at

age person is outstanding they need to

start well almost to reassure the

confidence in the change room and also

make selection a little bit easier the

the points that you've made around moan

alley Ben Stokes is bowling as well

you're clearly bold in discomfort today

although we did a great job I think

about five over so about seven runs and

obviously took the important Wicket at

Usman kawaja

um whether you bring Mark Wood in and

who it's for

um or you only were you happy with Joel

Roots bowling today if he Joe root

becomes the air and out spinner and you

bring possibly the mark wood or Chris

Wilkerson Chris Wilkes would lengthen

the batting lineup but and also his

record at Norwoods is incredible so a

few questions for England around

selection also Jimmy Anderson obviously

didn't play a big part in today either

so is that Fitness or just

um you know a little bit of rustiness

around that but if if you're Australia

you're a cockohoo it's absolutely great

news for Australia

um and a lot of work to be done on a

ground where they haven't had a lot of

success is there still a question around

bestow in the gloves

no from me yeah sorry speak to the

keeper

no no

definitely not he's ideal at number

seven

um modern day crooked you can't believe

we could keep it for the sake of bigger

keeping unfortunately that's the case

for folks he's a he's an excellent

batsman folks but bear stories is one of

the best in the world

keeping you something you can improve

and he'll be working very hard yeah I

played Devil's Advocate let's say that

you keep both in and you shift at

opening sport

yeah that's a good point again it was

raised in the series before but I

actually think that the the side that

they've gone with is a really strong

side uh Pope scored double hundred at

Lords

um ducat 150 Crawley you know set the

tone in this series then they don't tend

to react dramatically towards selection

I think molyn alley might be a force

change and then the other will be

tactical who can add to that same

bowling attack and and that'll probably

be it I think we'll be the ones talking

and trying to answer questions and I

think Stokes and Brenda McCullum and the

team yeah we hit the golf course Golf

Course or at the bar saying yeah

leave the questions and answers to the

rest yeah uh fella thank you so much for

that um thoroughly entertain the chat as

always thanks for joining us on Sky

Sports Cricket Ash's podcast a reminder

that the women's test a five-day test

starts the day after tomorrow at Trent

bridge and we'll be back with the

podcast for the start of the second test

at Lords on Thursday the 28th I have got

that right there we go I hope you've

enjoyed this evening uh commiserations

to England fans but I'm sure you'll be

bouncing back very very quickly we'll

see you in a week's time