MELBOURNE, (Reuters) – Australia’s cricket board has promised a review of the Ashes debacle after the dead rubber test at The Oval and will seek answers to the team’s continued flops on foreign pitches.
Eighteen months after blitzing England 5-0, Australia’s rout in Nottingham to surrender the Ashes 3-1 has again exposed the team as home-track bullies.
Australia have won four out of five of their past test series on home soil, but have been thrashed in away series against India, Pakistan and England in the last two years.
“After every series we will sit down and review, and I think there is an opportunity for a reflection on (our) style of play,” Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland told reporters in Melbourne.
“It’s not easy playing away but it’s something we have to get better at. We want to be the best cricket team in the world and to do that we have to be better at playing away.”
Losing the coveted urn to arch-rivals England is depressing enough in cricket-mad Australia, but the manner of the team’s capitulation after entering the series favourites and pumped-up with confidence has prompted criticism from all quarters.
Most of the blame has been heaped upon the batsmen, who struggled to adapt to English conditions and appearing inept when facing the moving ball.
Selectors, including coach Darren Lehmann, have also been roasted for a number of surprising decisions, including the omission of long-serving wicketkeeper Brad Haddin for most of the series and for failing to pick an all-rounder in the decisive loss at Trent Bridge.
Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting said he believed up to seven players apart from Clarke may never play another test after the tour wraps up at The Oval, with the ageing team in dire need of regeneration.
