“What happened with Kohli there – Kohli was bang out of order. Virat Kohli should have been banned for what he did. You know how much I love Virat Kohli and what he has done for the game, but there’s a line, and you do not cross it,” Harmison told the talkSPORT Cricket podcast.

Following the incident, the International Cricket Council (ICC) fined Kohli 20 per cent of his match fee. This was done so because Kohli had made physical contact with Konstas and his actions breached ICC’s Code of Conduct.

Harmison also advised Konstas to improve his defensive technique rather than trying to emulate former Australia opener David Warner and his attacking playstyle.

“Sam has got the scoops, he’s got the big shots. But does he have the defensive technique for Test match cricket against the world’s best? That’s something he needs to figure out. If he gets it right, he has a great chance because he can be aggressive and has a good mindset for attacking the ball. But I just think he wants to be David Warner, and technically, he’s nowhere near as good as Warner,” Harmison said.

“If he’s opening the batting against England, I’d be happy. I really would. But he’s only 19, and he’s going to improve. However, if he continues to be aggressive verbally, he’ll face consequences. India is one thing, but the Ashes – with all the pressure it brings – is another level entirely. I’ve no issue with him having a go at India; he tried to rile them up because they were wasting time, and India got Khawaja out and won. But the Ashes will be a different challenge,” Harmison said.

The post ‘Should have been banned…’: Ex-England star’s BLUNT verdict on the Virat Kohli-Sam Konstas spat appeared first on Cricket Country.

several fans and experts believed that England’s ‘Bazball’ approach did not work for them and the result was a clear indication of it against India. However, former England pacer Steve Harminson believes that the national side played good cricket in India and even gave the hosts ‘a real headache’ during the series.

“I thought they (England) played excellent cricket in India. They gave India some real headaches. But then, all of a sudden, when you get to a point that you go, ‘oh no, they’ve done it again’. How many times you see a crash of wickets? That’s the problem, where you need to read a room. You can’t have everything in an ideal world. The way these red ball players play now, it’s far better than what it was in the previous regime,” Harminson said.

I don’t think India killed Bazball. I think India played better cricket in their own backyard. They made smarter decisions under pressure. But I think there were definitely times during those five Test matches where England gave India a real headache. And not many teams have done that to India in India,” he added.

Meanwhile, the decision of bowling first, taken by England captain Ben Stokes was greeted with a huge cheers from the crowd along with the spectators eager to witness the last chapter of a record-breaking Test career.

Since his debut against Zimbabwe as Lord’s in 2003, Anderson has taken 700 wickets in Test cricket, the most by any fast bowler.

The post “Bazball Didn’t Work for India”: Massive Claim Made by Ex-England Star appeared first on Cricket Country.

The five-match Test series between India and England will kick off on January 25 next year with the first Test in Hyderabad. The fifth and final Test will be held in Dharamshala and the series will conclude on March 11.

Harmison, who is also a former team-mate at Durham and a close friend of Stokes, said that arriving in India just three days before the start of the series would be disastrous as they would not be able to get used to the Indian conditions and the tourists deserves a 0-5 beating at the hands of Team India in such a situation.

Harmison had said to talkSPORT as quoted by Sky Sports, “If England go in three days before, they deserve to get beat 5-0, they really do.”

“I am an old man; that is what they will say. Times have changed, but preparation hasn’t changed. I love this new approach. I love Ben Stokes and [head coach] Brendon McCullum. But I am sorry, going three days before… You would never do that for an Ashes series.”

“You would never go to Australia three days before the Gabba, so why go three days before Hyderabad? For me, it stinks, it absolutely stinks,” concluded the former pacer.

To this, Stokes replied, as quoted by Sky Sports, “Good job we are going to Abu Dhabi for a training camp before we go to India for even more training before that first Test then, is not it?”

England lost their previous Indian tour by 3-1 in Tests on spinning surfaces back in 2021. They do not have any warm-up matches scheduled but do have a week-long workout in the UAE.

Stokes is also racing to be fully fit for the first game, having undergone surgery on his left knee at the end of November.

England is not expecting Stokes to bowl during the series but having him fully fit will definitely help England, as the all-rounder has done wonders for Three Lions with the bat on numerous occasions.

England Test squad: Ben Stokes (c), Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root and Mark Wood.

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“The difference between that and 2003, 2001 and 1999, 1997, was in 2005 we were a team. We’d grown up as a team, we played as a team and we behaved off the field like a team. In 1997, 2001, 2003/04, you had a lot of selfish characters playing for England.”

“Some great cricketers, don’t get me wrong� but when you look at – and I’ve got no problem saying this – the likes of Nasser (Hussain), Athers (Michael Atherton), Thorpey (Graham Thorpe), Corkey (Dominic Cork), Darren Gough, Andy Caddick, there was a group of individuals playing together as a team where you look at 2005, we were a team,” Harmison was quoted as saying by SEN Radio on Thursday.

Harmison was responding to a claim from former Australia pacer Jason Gillespie, who pointed out that England in the 2005 Ashes played with an urgency and intensity not previously seen. “I noticed a big difference in the England side in the ’05 Ashes� we’d never felt that as an Australian side before.”

“England would normally go out in dribs or drabs going onto the field� (but this time) it was really noticeable that as soon as the umpires walked out there, Michael Vaughn was straight out there, everyone was straight out there, quick chat and then they would literally run to their fielding positions, the bowler would run and hand his cap to the umpire and before our batters were halfway onto the ground, the whole England team was set up ready to play, ready to rock,” said Gillespie.

Vaughan was appointed as England captain in 2003 and got back the Ashes to England in 2005, which was the side’s first Test series win over Australia since 1986/87. Harmison, who played 63 Tests for England, further said, “Looking at (the Australian team), your boys were a team. You might have had some differences, but we never picked up once (on any of them).”

(IANS NEWS)

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The fifth Test was called off just hours before it was due to begin due to Covid-19 outbreak concerns in the Indian team after the second physiotherapist tested positive. “Due to fears of a further increase in the number of Covid cases inside the camp, India are regrettably unable to field a team,” read the statement from ECB on Friday.

“It’s rubbish, it really is. My initial thoughts are that this is the beginning of the end for Test cricket. When you’re choosing to go down this road, that’s it done. Let’s be fair before we start throwing stones, England did it to South Africa. Let’s get that straight from the very start. We’re not the totally innocent party in this because we came home when we didn’t know what was going on.

“But this is all about the IPL. End of,” said Harmison on talkSPORT;s Breakfast show on Saturday.

“As much as I’d want to sugar coat it, I don’t think I can. The IPL starts in five days, and a month before the tour started India asked if they could move the last Test match forward or clear four days so they can fit the IPL in. All of a sudden this happens. It doesn’t sit well with me and I feel so sorry for the people of Manchester,” added Harmison.

The 42-year-old, who played 63 Tests for England between 2002 and 2009, felt very sorry for the people in England who were looking forward to an exciting finale of a hard-fought Test series. “It stinks, it really does. I feel so sorry for the England players, the England supporters, and I feel sorry for the game of Test match cricket, because this for me is where it starts, if we’re starting to cancel games.”

“This series has been fantastic, up there with one of the best, and not to have a chance to go 2-2 or for India to have a chance to go 3-1 and showcase what a fantastic side India have been, for me this mars everything. Test cricket is alive largely because of one man – Virat Kohli. He speaks so positively about Test match cricket, he loves it, wants to play and thinks it’s the pinnacle. But now all of a sudden India don’t want to play and that’s it, the game’s gone, the game has gone in Test match cricket.”

Harmison concluded by saying India flexed its muscles in not playing the fifth Test due to the second leg of IPL in the UAE.

“We don’t know the full facts, but when teams are pulling out like that, two hours before the match, this is down to players saying, ‘if we contract Covid now we have to stay here for ten days and the IPL is starting’. It’s a short window there and money makes the world go round, but there’s a point where integrity comes into it. For me, this is India flexing their muscles and saying, ‘we’re not interested in playing — my bat, my ball, see you later’.”

The post IND vs ENG: Steve Harmison Believes IPL’s Second Leg Played a Part in Manchester Test Cancellation appeared first on Cricket Country.

It could come as a surprise to fans as Harmison did not name Jasprit Bumrah or Mohammed Shami, instead, he went for the more experienced Ishant Sharma, who he reckons is Kohli’s go-to bowler.

“You’ve got a tall bowler in Ishant who likes to get the ball going in naturally and because he has such a nice seam position, he can at times roll his fingers a little bit and get the ball nip away. So that way he’s very very dangerous as you can be doubtful about where your off stump is. That’s why he is Virat’s go-to man as he can give him a lot of overs,” Harmison told ESPNCricinfo.

It was the tall Indian fast bowler that took the crucial wicket of Jonny Bairstow at the stroke of tea on the final day at Lord’s that gave India the momentum and advantage heading into the final session.

The ex-English pacer who played 63 Tests, 58 ODIs and 2 T20Is for England, reckoned Shami and Ishant complement each other very well.

“With that, you’ve got somebody like Ishant who is 6 foot or 4 and Shami who is about 5 foot 10. One is bringing the ball back in, the other is taking it away. They complement each other a lot,” he added.

The third Test starts on August 25 and India would have the momentum and the lead on their side. The Kohli-led outfit would start firm favourites at Leeds.

The post Not Jasprit Bumrah or Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma is Virat Kohli’s go-to man, Ex-English Pacer Steve Harmison appeared first on Cricket Country.

Ganguly, a former India captain was known to not take things lying down and if experts are to be believed, his aggressive style of captaincy changed the face of Indian cricket. While stressing on the fact that most people didn’t get along with Ganguly, Harmison spoke about an incident when he dismissed the former India captain for 99 and Flintoff who had gone off the field, came running back to abuse the left-handed batsman as he was on his way back to the pavillion.

‘What was it with Sourav? He rubbed people off the wrong way. People didn’t get along with Sourav Ganguly. I remember playing my debut and I got him out for 99 first ball of an over. Andrew Flintoff had just gone off to the toilet, and literally, Freddie ran the drinks back on to abuse Sourav as he was going back for 99. Ganguly is a lovely guy but it was just something about Sourav Ganguly that people did not get on with him,’ Harmison said on his YouTube Show ‘Test of Time’.

Ganguly was known to get under the skin of the opposition and in a series against Australia in 2001, he made the then Australian captain Steve Waugh wait for the toss that annoyed the Aussies to no end.

‘It was an accident actually. In the first Test match, I left my blazer in the dressing room. They were such a good side and I was really nervous in that series because it was my first big series as captain. Last 25-30 years I haven’t seen a team as good as Australia in that generation. Initially, I forgot my blazer in the first test but then I realized that he reacted to it. It was working on them, working on the team, and how they went about their jobs. They were a bit grumpy with all that and it worked for us as we won the series 2-1,” Ganguly told Mayank Agarwal in a video uploaded by BCCI on Twitter last year.

The post Sourav Ganguly Rubbed People Off Wrong Way: Former England Fast Bowler Steve Harmison appeared first on Cricket Country.

ASHES 2019 FULL SCHEDULE | ASHES 2019 LATEST NEWS

Flintoff called time on his international career in 2009 and has been working as a television presenter recently after a brief foray into boxing. The allrounder hopes to return to cricket in a coaching capacity and already has lower-level qualifications.

England are currently looking for someone to replace Trevor Bayliss who is due to step down at the end of the current Ashes series against Australia.

Flintoff, who helped England win the Ashes as a player in 2005 and 2009, concedes it is too soon to expect to get the job now.

But the 41-year-old refused to rule it out in the long-term. “Coaching is definitely an ambition. There are probably two or three coaching jobs I’d like – England, Lancashire or Lancashire Academy,” he told BBC radio’s Test Match Special programme on Friday.

“I’d love to be England coach one day, just not quite yet.” Flintoff, who played his county cricket with Lancashire, has already done some coaching work with the Under-13 side at his old side.

“I’ve got two of my coaching levels – me and (former England team-mate) Steve Harmison might do our level threes soon,” he said.

Flintoff, who played 79 Tests and 141 one-day internationals for England, revealed he applied for the national team coaching job when it became available in 2014.

But he was not taken seriously and the role went to Peter Moores.

“A few years ago I applied for the England coaching job – we were getting beat, I was in the office and thought, ‘I’m going to apply’,” Flintoff said.

“I wrote an email for the interview, a month passed and I’d heard nothing. I chased it up, then I got a phone call saying they thought it was somebody taking the mick!”

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ASHES 2019 FULL SCHEDULE | ASHES 2019 LATEST NEWS

The series, widely rated as one of the greatest in the longest format of the game, started off with a searing spell from England’s Steve Harmison in which he hit Australian openers Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer before hitting Ponting which left him with a bloodied cheek.

READ: Ex-Australia internationals slam fans after Smith booed

“That was a really fiery morning and last night brought back a few memories of what it was like,” Ponting told cricket.com.au. “I remember when I got hit, I think ‘Vaughny’ (England captain Michael Vaughan) said to his players, ‘no-one go and say a word to him and check if he’s OK’. Which was fine by me, because my eyes were going a bit as it was, so I reckon I would have told them to get away in no uncertain terms anyway!”

On Saturday, Steve Smith defied the England bowlers once again but he was stopped from scoring a third consecutive century in the series by debutant Archer, who regularly hit speeds north of 90mph on Day 4.

Archer first hit Smith on the forearm before send a hurling a bouncer flush on the prolific run scorer’s neck while he was on 80. It forced Smith to retire hurt and the Australians were visibly shaken by that, considering the similarity to the blow that the late Phillip Hughes received which eventually led to his death in 2014. But Smith was good enough to walk off and resumed his innings as soon as the next wicket fell.

Ponting said that Smith won’t be afraid the next time he comes out, considering that fact that he managed to push his total to 92 on Day 4 and that he is an experienced Test batsman.

“I don’t think it’ll be a series-defining spell,” Ponting said. “He’s made 92 again. I know he’d made 70 or so before he copped that first knock … and I wouldn’t be surprised if they do attack him a bit more now.

“But the one thing I like is that Archer didn’t get Smith out. Smithy got through it without losing his wicket. Assuming everything is OK with that blow in the neck, he’ll front up and do it all again in the second innings. (Smith coming back onto the ground) might seem incredibly courageous to the average person sitting back and watching it, but that’s just what you’re expected to do. That’s part of the job of being a Test batsman.

“He won’t have any fear because it’s just what you do every day. You face bowlers in the nets every day and you get hit every now and then. But certainly nothing changes in your mindset.”

Langer had spoken about Smith’s reluctance to wear a stem guard attachment to his helmet which would have softened the impact and Ponting said that he understands that.

“I understand why they would want to make it mandatory to wear it,” said the batting great. “But I also understand as a player that your helmet is such an individual piece of equipment. And obviously Smithy doesn’t wear the stem guards because it’s a comfort thing and he doesn’t like the feeling around the back of his neck.”

The post Archer spell brought back memories of 2005 Ashes series, says Ricky Ponting appeared first on Cricket Country.

Veteran pacemen James Anderson and Stuart Broad hold the key to England‘s bid to reclaim the Ashes this summer, according to their former teammate Steve Harmison.

Test cricket’s oldest battle resumes at Edgbaston on Thursday, with Joe Root’s side aiming to maintain the feel-good factor in English cricket after World Cup glory.

But Harmison, who won the 2005 Ashes on home soil and played alongside Broad and Anderson during the 2009 series win over Australia, said England had the trump cards with their two experienced bowlers.

“The two pace attacks are different in dynamics, out-and-out pace against experience,” Harmison told Britain’s Press Association at an event organised by Ashes sponsors Specsavers.

“Australia have bowlers who can blast you away — Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, James Pattinson and Josh Hazlewood.

ALSO READ: Australia’s Ashes squad: Uncapped Michael Neser named, James Pattinson and Mitchell Marsh recalled

“But if they don’t get it quite right they can go at six an over. Broad and Anderson will very rarely go at six an over.

“They’ll be down on pace compared to the opposition, but they’ll have total control of what they’re doing.”

Harmison added: “Broad and Anderson are still the first two names on the teamsheet for me, because in English conditions it’s still better to have their experience than any 90-miles-per-hour bowler.”

Anderson, England’s leading Test wicket-taker with 575 scalps, missed the 143-run victory over Ireland with a calf strain but is expected to play against Australia.

Jofra Archer was also named in the squad after a side strain and should provide the raw pace to supplement Broad and Anderson.

ALSO READ: Ashes 2019: Jofra Archer gets maiden Test call-up as England announce squad for 1st Test

England’s batting is a concern after Ireland bowled them out for 85 in their first innings at Lord’s but Australia also have batting frailties and few of their players looked in good touch during an inter-squad warm-up match.

“David Warner and Steve Smith coming back (from suspension) helps Australia, but there are question marks over their middle order,” said Harmison.

“That’s what makes this series so interesting, and England’s middle order could make that 70-80 run difference.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a series of high quality as the two teams are not as good as their white-ball sides.

“But sometimes that lack of quality can make for a better series. England are slight favourites with the home advantage, but I see it a lot closer than people think. I take England to win by the odd game.”

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