London [UK], October 14 (ANI): Decorated all-rounder Ian Botham is worried about England’s preparation for the Ashes in Australia, scheduled to kick off on November 21, considering the warm-up schedule of the Three Lions “borders on arrogance”.
Botham, a stalwart in the history of English cricket, was a part of two victorious tours of Australia in 1978-79 and 1986-87. The current crop will look to replicate the heroics of Botham and his troops while trying to reclaim the Ashes for the first time in 12 years.
England has floundered in attempts to reclaim the ‘urn’ in the Australian territory, with their last Ashes win down under dating back to more than a decade ago in 2010-11. Captain Ben Stokes, armed with ‘Bazball,’ will look to return home triumphant, but Botham is worried about the gravity of the challenge that awaits his former side.
In the build-up to the oldest rivalry in cricket, England will play a solitary three-day warm-up against the travelling England Lions at Lilac Hill before walking out for the first Test at Perth’s Optus Stadium on November 21.
“I’m worried. We’re going to wander in and have a little game with the ‘A’ team. [It will be] ‘Alright mate, how are you? Good on ya’ and we’re going to go and perform? Not one [state match] which borders on arrogance. You’ve got to give yourself the chance. They are saying we play too much cricket… I don’t think you play enough,” Botham said while speaking on the first episode of the Old Boys, New Balls podcast, as quoted from Sky Sports.
“The conditions are different when you play cricket in Australia: the sun, the heat, the bounce, the crowd, the Aussie players, you’ve got to get used to all that. You’re not playing against the Australian cricket team, you’re playing against Australia – 24.5 million people,” Botham added.
While England retains firepower in its star-studded batting unit, the fast-bowling department remains an area of concern. Chris Woakes, who was the most experienced quick in the Test fold, announced his international retirement months before the tour.
Tearaways Mark Wood and Jofra Archer’s return has reignited the spark in England’s pace attack, but Botham remains wary of a situation where one of the two breaks down in the opener due to injury. Botham’s concerns stem from Archer’s return to Test cricket after a four-year absence, during which injuries had plagued him. On the other hand, Wood hasn’t played a Test since August 2024.
“Bowlers don’t get fit in gyms, that’s been proven. Look at the record with injuries – [Mark] Wood, [Jofra] Archer, Ben Stokes, Brydon Carse…they don’t play enough. You get fit by playing,” he said.
“If it goes horribly wrong, Mark Wood breaks down in the first game, or Jofra Archer does, or Ben can’t bowl, we are suddenly chasing the eight-ball before we’ve started. It’s a worry,” Botham concluded.
England squad for Ashes: Ben Stokes (captain), Harry Brook (vice-captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Mark Wood. (ANI)
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