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Despite Collingwood’s defense of England Ashes performance, the axe is beginning to fall

The scene of England’s inquest to their miserable Ashes performance was set – while a jubilant and proud Australian team paraded the Ashes urn in front of a joyous Hobart crowd, England were once again left to rue what might have been. England’s collapse in the final innings of the fifth test capped what had been another chastening tour down under. Avoiding yet another whitewash thanks only to a flurry of rainfall in the fourth test, in the aftermath of yet another poor series, many in and around the English game believed that the entire test set-up needed a reset.

One man who thought differently was former England player and now assistant coach Paul Collingwood. Speaking after the Ashes debacle, Collingwood launched a staunch defense of England’s efforts and performances.

Collingwood blamed the impact of the COVID secure bubbles that the England players have been playing in for the last two years. He believed that the mental impact of living inside these bubbles led to England being ‘sitting ducks’ ahead of their preparation for the Ashes.

Collingwood doubled down on his defense of the team, claiming that the England players should ‘receive medals instead of criticism.’ He went on to say, “I reckon if you had given us the best England cricketers from the last 100 years and put them in the same environment that those boys have lived in over the past two years with the preparation that we had going into this Ashes, even then they wouldn’t have had a chance”.

Collingwood has a valid point, England, to their credit, kept test cricket going through the pandemic, hosting COVID secure test matches against both the West Indies and Pakistan before then playing a five-match T20 series against Australia. The impact of living in these bubbles away from friends and family is sure to have taken its toll, but it isn’t a strong enough argument to detract away from what was a dismal display in Australia. England were outclassed by their opponents from start to finish and to avoid such humiliating defeats in the future, something needs to change.

It seems that the ECB agrees, and the axe has been quick to fall. It’s been announced that both Managing Director Ashley Giles and Head Coach Chris Silverwood will be leaving their roles with the ECB. Sir Andrew Strauss will take temporary charge of the men’s game and his first task will be to find a new Head Coach ahead of some vital matches in 2022.

England needs a dramatic overhaul if they are to compete with the very best once again and despite Collingwood’s defense of this beleaguered side, it was unlikely that the two men who oversaw one of England’s poorest ever performances would keep their positions. Strauss has already proven what a good administrator he is and will be looking to make a shrewd appointment. The road to regaining the Ashes will be long and tough, but at least the road to recovery has now begun.

Kirk is a lifelong follower of all motorsports, particularly Formula 1, Nascar and WRC. When not found at the side of the circuit, eyes stinging from the burnt rubber, he also covers tennis, eSports and other categories for us.

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