England hits a new low as Lions lose badly to Australia A
England hits a new low as Lions lose badly to Australia A
England’s already tough Ashes tour has gone from bad to worse, with even their England Lions team suffering a huge defeat. The Lions were crushed by Australia A by an innings and 127 runs in Brisbane, showing just how weak England’s bench strength looks right now.
This loss came just a day after the senior team’s heavy defeat at the Gabba, which left them 2-0 down in the Ashes. Things didn’t get any better down the road at Allan Border Field, where the Lions were bowled out for 166 in the first innings and then 295 in the second.
Young batter Asa Tribe fought hard and remained unbeaten on 129, but Australia A’s Fergus O’Neill took 4 for 53 and made sure England never had a chance of saving the match.
Australia A had already dominated with the bat, declaring on a massive 588 for 8, thanks to Nathan McSweeney, who scored an unbeaten 226 and strengthened his case for Test selection.
This defeat comes after another loss to a Cricket Australia XI last month, although many of these English players did help beat a Prime Minister’s XI earlier on the tour.
England’s main team now desperately needs fresh ideas before the third Ashes Test in Adelaide, but there aren’t many strong backup options.
Ollie Pope, who is struggling at No. 3 and hasn’t scored a fifty in the series yet, is under pressure. But his likely replacement, Jacob Bethell, still hasn’t scored a first-class hundred in 25 matches. Bethell did show some promise with a 71 against Australia A, but overall, his tour has been inconsistent.
Tribe’s century is the only hundred scored by any England Lions player on this tour, and no one else has made a solid claim for selection.
Another worrying sign is the form of young spinner Shoaib Bashir, who England have been preparing for this Ashes summer. He was expensive, giving away 115 runs in 25 overs without taking a wicket, and was hit for boundaries early in the match.
Because of this, England picked Will Jacks over Bashir for the Gabba Test. Jack took a wicket and also contributed with the bat.
England’s backup fast bowlers Josh Tongue and Matthew Potts didn’t play in this Lions match. Instead, Nathan Gilchrist took 4 for 128 while Josh Hull picked 3 for 103, but it wasn’t enough to stop another one-sided defeat.