Fletcher’s crimes:
Woefully inadequate preparation of our strike bowlers
Pathetic handling of Trescothick
Picking Flintoff as Captain. He may be the best player on the pitch and a genuine inspiration, but that does not make him a Captain. The Captaincy will do nothing but dilute and suffocate the very flair that makes him so dangerous. Flintoff leads by being ‘mates’ with the players and it doesn’t work.
Failure to stand up for English cricket and throw the recent ICC Champions trophy to the dogs, in favour of a proper build up to this series in Australia.
Over reliance on injured players coming straight back to the team without form. Giles, Flintoff, Harmison, Anderson all fit that bill. There is even talk of Vaughan playing in later tests even though he has not played since the last Ashes series.
Staggering decision to pick Giles over Panesar for this Test just because Giles MIGHT score a few runs. If you are looking for a bowler who can slog some runs, try Mahmood, who scored 46 runs just three days ago.
The team decision this morning told the Aussies that we have no confidence, and if you do that you might as well stay at home.
Flintoff’s crimes:
Conspiring with Fletcher to allow the above list of crimes to takes place
Preference for Giles over Panesar and Mahmood over Anderson. Panesar must have burst into tears when he saw Pieterson being asked to bowl spin.
Failure to react to what the pitch and the batsmen were showing him in the first session. Harmison did not bowl that well but ball after ball went flying through extra gulley, yet he never once plugged the gap.
Flintoff didn’t think today and he didn’t manage his bowlers. He lost control early, had no plan and chased the game for most of the day.
If this is the tone of the series then Flintoff can only expect to go the way of our last cricketing great – I.T. Botham, and England will come home empty handed.
Make Vaughan Captain again, crutches and all.
