"Well, England and Australia have certainly adhered to that saying. There's another one you hear a lot in cricket these days: there's a ball with your name on it. It frees batters up, takes the pressure off, and allows them to run down the wicket, to play scoops and ramps, in the belief that they have to be proactive because there's a good ball round the corner."
"Modern batters don't want to trust their defence and, if the world's best players have that mindset you hear it a lot from this England setup you're going to get a lot of unnecessary dismissals, leading to accelerated matches. That's what we saw in the fourth Test, exacerbated by an unsatisfactory pitch. In Perth at the start of the series England blew a match-winning position to lose the game inside two days,"
A quick-game proverb explained shortened county matches and applied to recent Tests between England and Australia. A 'ball with your name on it' mentality frees batters to play aggressive shots, reduces trust in defence, and increases unnecessary dismissals. Accelerated matches resulted, worsened by unsatisfactory wickets. England lost a match in Perth after surrendering a match-winning position inside two days, and Australia recovered in Melbourne. Brendon McCullum's philosophy of 'running towards the danger' encouraged Australia to press forward. England showed determination and competitive spirit to earn victory later in the series, but selection decisions such as Jacob Bethell's promotion to No 3 prompted frustration.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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