The buildup to an Ashes series takes on a familiar trope. First, there is the excitement of the upcoming series. Then, there is the convoluted selection debates that almost always end in the selectors getting it wrong in the eyes of literally everyone. Then, just when you think we might be able to concentrate on the cricket, the phoney war of words breaks out as one side or the other looks to gain some sort of psychological advantage from saying mean-spirited things.
We have seen this last bit step up in intensity in recent days with Nathan Lyon’s remarkable press conference, but the start of the Australian team’s efforts to get inside the heads of the English tourists started a while back with talk of “scars” being reopened from the last time England toured Australia.
Now, there is no getting away from the fact that England were truly dreadful on the last tour of Australia. An ageing team that were reaching the end of their careers arrived physically and mentally drained. When they were confronted with Mitchell Johnson in the form of his life they had no answers. They limply surrendered.
However, there are some issues with the idea of using that experience to play on the minds of the English top order.
Missing the target
First, they have more recent Ashes memories to call upon. Remember, England have won four of the last five Ashes series, most recently in 2015 when Stuart Broad was the destroyer, not an Australian quick.
It is less than two years ago that Broad took 8/15 as Australia were bowled out for 60 on a good batting pitch in the first day. A day which finished with Joe Root on an unbeaten century on that very same pitch.
Second, there are very few players left in the England squad from that last tour of Australia. There are only three batsmen who played in the last series in this squad, and two of those are Joe Root and Alastair Cook, players that you would back to succeed far more often than they fail.
It was David Warner who got things going this time when he started talking about “hate” and “war”.
“As soon as you step on that line it’s war,” Warner told ABC Grandstand. “You try and get into a battle as quick as you can. I try and look in the opposition’s eyes and try and work out: ‘How can I dislike this player? How can I get on top of him?’”
Warner has done a lot of growing up since he was throwing punches at Root in an Australian-themed bar in Birmingham back in 2013, but it is nice to see that he hasn’t forgotten his roots.
His comments made a lot of people upset, which you would hope, even at a subconscious level, was his intention. Michael Vaughan was put out, Geoff Boycott said it was “not cricket” and Marcus Trescothick called it “pathetic”.
Lyon took it all up a notch with his comments that made you suspect it was all planned. Speaking of the 2013-’14 whitewash, Lyon suggested that the England players were terrified of Mitchell Johnson. “I was standing at leg slip and I nearly had to push a couple of guys back towards the stumps.”
The moment in that Lyon press conference that raised the most eyebrows was when he decided to go after Matt Prior, claiming that the former England wicketkeeper wanted to go home mid-series rather than continue to face Johnson. Quite why he brought up a player who retired in early 2015 is unclear.
Is there any impact?
The real question is whether any of this has a real impact other than filling up column inches. The idea that some guff spouted at a press conference will have any effect on how runs are scored or how many wickets are taken is tenuous at best. In truth, these sort of mind games make very little difference in the greater scheme of things. All it does is make the players doing it look small-minded and petty.
When Lyon is saying that he wants his team to end the careers of his fellow professionals you can’t help but shake your head. There is no moral judgement here, it just seems a bit sad that a cricketer thinks he needs to resort to macho bluster.
There are times when it seems that the current Australian team have bought into the mystique of Test sides of the past. We have all heard the stories of the “mongrel spirit” of the teams of Allan Border, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh with the funnier moments entering into cricketing folklore. But in truth for every moment of on-field hilarity there have been 1,000 times when it was just outright abuse.
People can do and say what they like, but it is all a bit embarrassing. It was all best summed up by Alastair Cook who saw Lyon when he arrived at the Gabba for training and the two of them had a nice chat about their respective families.
“It’s quite funny, it just makes me chuckle.”
Cook probably has exactly the right reaction to all of this.
