England batsman Harry Brook has been advised by former Australian captain Ricky Ponting to change his strategy when playing in Australia. Brook’s start to the current Ashes series has mirrored England’s entire campaign, with glimpses of brilliance overshadowed by frustrating periods that have given Australia a commanding 3-0 series lead and helped them to reclaim the urn.
With the exception of top-ranked batter Joe Root, Brook has scored more runs (173) than any of his teammates, but the right-hander has only reached one half-century in six innings. Additionally, England’s momentum has been halted by a number of his dismissals at pivotal moments. Ponting, who has long admired Brook, feels that the England No. 5 must adapt his style of play to Australian conditions or face more disappointing performances.
I adore Harry Brook, you see.
He’s one of the world’s top players to watch, but I believe he’s practically undervaluing his abilities given some of his dismissals. Some of the things he is doing are unnecessary. Additionally, I imagine that some of his teammates or perhaps an English fan will find it annoying. For the past 15 years, he has had the opportunity to observe Joe Root play cricket. In The ICC Review, Ponting stated, “To be fair, this is no jab at Joe Root.”
“Jose Root is far more talented than Harry Brook. When his team required him to reach a hundred and chase down 435, he continued, “You see him trying to play little lap shots off Scott Boland against a yorker that could have easily knocked his middle and leg stump out of the ground.”
Ponting thinks the way Brook has been dismissed throughout the Ashes series will irritate both his teammates and England’s coaching staff.
“I’ll be critical of it, but I don’t believe I’ll be any more harsh than his coach or teammates would be because they should be critical of those kinds of errors since they’re what have cost them this Ashes series. Most likely, they won’t acknowledge it. They refuse to discuss it. They refuse to mention it. With that kind of criticism, they’re really rebellious,” Ponting remarked.
“Oh, that’s how we play, and we encourage them to play their natural games,” they will invariably remark when they return. However, you cannot do that in Australia or against them because they will take a mile if you give them a chance. And over the entire series, we’ve witnessed that,” he continued.
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