England bowling selection defended | Stokes to be assessed

“If we’d all bowled to the best of our ability then we’d have put Australia under a bit more pressure”; bowling coach Jon Lewis defends England’s bowling selections in Brisbane; all-rounder Ben Stokes will be assessed overnight after jarring his left knee

Last Updated: 09/12/21 11:14am

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England Elite Pace Bowling Coach Jon Lewis defends the team’s bowling selection for the first Ashes Test as Australia dominated day two in Brisbane that saw Ben Stokes bowl David Warner off a no-ball

England Elite Pace Bowling Coach Jon Lewis defends the team’s bowling selection for the first Ashes Test as Australia dominated day two in Brisbane that saw Ben Stokes bowl David Warner off a no-ball

England’s bowling selection for the first Ashes Test has been defended by elite pace bowling coach Jon Lewis, while all-rounder Ben Stokes will be assessed after sustaining a knee injury.

Australia are in command after day two at The Gabba and closed on 343-7, a lead of 196 runs, following an 85-ball century from Travis Head.

The tourists’ decision to rest James Anderson and leave out Stuart Broad for the series opener had been questioned and after left-arm spinner was targeted by Australia’s batters, Lewis was asked whether England should have picked another seam bowler.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “We looked at the pitch on the morning of the game and decided to go with the make-up of the team that we have.

“That was what we felt was the right decision and I think if we’d all bowled to the best of our ability then we’d have put Australia under a bit more pressure than they were today.

“However, we still took seven Australian wickets today. We are a bit behind in the game, but I know the guys will come back fighting in the next three days.”

Mark Wood took the key wicket of Steve Smith just before tea on day two

Joe Root’s team were hampered by Stokes jarring his left knee and being restricted to bowling only four overs after lunch and Lewis says the all-rounder’s condition will be evaluated ahead of day three.

“Ben will be assessed overnight by the medical team and we’ll see how he pulls up in the morning,” he told reporters.

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Australia batsman Travis Head believes England ‘aren’t on the ropes’ despite his century on day two of the first Ashes Test putting the hosts in firm control at the Gabba

Australia batsman Travis Head believes England ‘aren’t on the ropes’ despite his century on day two of the first Ashes Test putting the hosts in firm control at the Gabba

Meanwhile, Ollie Robinson rued the injury worry over Stokes and “missed opportunities” in the field as England were ground down on a second demoralising day in Brisbane.

Robinson was the standout performer for his side, taking 3-48 to confirm credentials as a serious Test performer, but his best efforts were not enough to turn the tables on a game that may already have slipped through the tourists’ fingers.

David Warner had three lives on his way to making 94 – bowled by a Stokes no-ball, dropped by Rory Burns at slip and spared a run-out by Haseeb Hameed’s close-range miss.

Ben Stokes only bowled four overs after lunch after jarring his left knee

“It’s always tough when a seamer goes down, especially in these conditions,” Robinson said.

“He (Stokes) has got something that not all of us have – he’s got that pace and bounce – so it hurts us a little bit. The other boys took the slack and I thought it was a good effort in the end.

“It was a warm one. They were tough conditions for us but the boys toiled hard. There were some missed opportunities and on another day we could have had them four down early.”

Robinson was able to offer a small glimmer of good news, welcome stuff in the current climate, by brushing off concerns over his own fitness after he appeared to be feeling his hamstring deep in the evening session.

“My body is doing OK,” he said. “I came off for some strapping and maintenance but I’ll rest up tonight and come back (on Friday).

“It came out well. I was consistent and had a lot of plays and misses. I sort of felt like I was going to get Warner out every over.”

Ollie Robinson was the pick of the England bowlers with 3-48 on day two

Stokes’ day might easily have turned out differently had he managed to keep his boot a couple of inches further back when he clipped Warner’s off stump when he had just 17.

It later transpired that was one of 14 no-balls he sent down before lunch, none of which were called in real time. Confirmation arrived eventually that the technology had malfunctioned and would not be available in the match.

Lewis added: “What a fast bowler needs is some sort of understanding of where their feet are. He needs some feedback from the umpires.

“It would have been nice for the first no-ball to be called for he could have made an adjustment so from then on he would have been behind the line.”

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