England’s Ashes demise very surprising, says Mark Ramprakash
EXCLUSIVE: Mark Ramprakash didn't see England's demise coming after a humiliating tour of Australia in the winter
Mark Ramprakash admits he was surprised by England’s disastrous tour of Australia in the winter.
Alastair Cook’s men suffered a humiliating 5-0 Ashes series whitewash, whilst the tourists only managed to win one of their limited-overs matches Down Under.
It was very surprising to see things unravel
Mark Ramprakash
England team director Andy Flower stood down following his side’s abject performances, and the ECB also decided to axe controversial batsman Kevin Pietersen.
And Ramprakash, who was part of the Lions coaching set-up in Australia, was impressed by England’s preparation for the Brisbane Test, insisting there were no signs of their imminent demise.
“I definitely didn’t see it coming. I watched the first team practice before the first Test in Brisbane and the team looked very relaxed, very confident and they practised very, very well,” Ramprakash told The Sport Review, speaking on behalf of ESPNcricinfo.com.
“So, it was very surprising to see things unravel.”
The Australians, they got in amongst England and up in their faces if you like
Mark Ramprakash
Ramprakash felt a lot of factors contributed to England’s dismal form, whilst the former batsman also heaped praise on Australia’s ruthless performances.
“I don’t think you can nail it to one particular thing. I think there are a lot of different elements that all came together,” Ramprakash added.
“I suppose the first thing is to say that the Australians played outstanding cricket – not just Mitchell Johnson.
“He was obviously the spearhead but he was backed up brilliantly by Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle. The Australians performed very, very well.”
He added: “The Australians, they got in amongst England and up in their faces if you like.
“They dragged England into a toe-to-toe conflict – and that combined with Jonathan Trott going home after the first Test and Graeme Swann being off form along with Matt Prior, James Anderson not getting the ball to swing all contributed to England not playing their best cricket.”
ESPNcricinfo’s is the leading digital cricket brand in the world. It provides the most comprehensive global cricket coverage including news, analysis, statistics and live ball-by-ball coverage available at espncricinfo.com and via the ESPNcricinfo app on iOS and Android.
