A hilarious consequence came across Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell‘s mind had he got out like England batter Harry Brook (50) in the first innings of the ongoing second Ashes 2023 Test match at the Lord’s.
Advertisement
Even though he hit a fourth Test half-century at a brisk pace, Brook’s brief stay in the middle on Day 3 did no favour to him. Instead, it ended up unearthing a weakness which was there to be seen for the whole world. Second English batter to be dismissed in the morning session today, Brook walked back to the pavilion in the seventh over after an outright struggle against a barrage of short balls.
Continually peppered by the short stuff from Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc and captain Pat Cummins, the 24-year old batter eventually gifted his wicket to the Aussies by playing a “nothing shot”. Dismissed by a combination of Starc and Cummins, Brook wanted to create room for himself to hit the former on the off-side. That said, all he did was slice the ball to Cummins for a simple catch.
Glenn Maxwell Imagines Consequence Of Harry Brook-Like Dismissal
Former Australia batter and head coach Darren Lehmann was among the many people who appreciated Australia for both earning a 91-run first-innings lead and managing to not lose a wicket in the six overs that they faced before the lunch interval.
While Lehmann made no mention of Brook, Maxwell was quick to comment how Lehmann would’ve treated him as a coach had he gotten out like Brook. If truth be told, even Maxwell didn’t name the Englishman but the nature of his dismissal was such that the tweet was self-explanatory.
“You might’ve not let me back in the changerooms if I had’ve gotten out like that,” Maxwell tweeted.
Maxwell, who last played for Australia in an ODI against India earlier this year and hasn’t played a Test match in almost six years now, has always been pretty vocal about his Test ambitions.
Kevin Pietersen and Michal Vaughan Slam Harry Brook
Former English greats Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan didn’t mince their words in finding faults with Brook and his approach on Friday. Calling the match for Sky Sports Cricket, Pietersen applauded Australia for nailing their “short ball” plans to a tee. With Brook being a visible victim of the same, Pietersen predicted three daunting Tests in store for him.
“I don’t think Harry Brook has shown anybody that he play the short ball very well, so unfortunately for him the next three Test matches are not going to be fun.”
Vaughan, who took a dig at England losing six wickets in the first session, mentioned during his commentary stint for BBC that Brook’s shot selection wasn’t worthy of the highest level of sport.
“England clearly like losing. Seeing a player play a shot like that, it’s just not good enough at this level.”
