00:00When Brendan McCullough and Ben Snokes launched Brassball in 2022, it was held as a revolution
00:06in Test cricket. Aggressive batting, rapid scoring, bold declarations, England promised
00:12to abandon caution and play without fear.
00:15Yeah, another disappointing week. But again, on the back of that, we're going to have to
00:20speak about that and do that again for next week. But yeah, another disappointing week
00:25where sort of again, we sort of were able to pull the game back, you know, a little bit
00:35towards us and then let it go again, you know, on a couple of occasions. And that was the same
00:41thing last week as well. So yeah, another another disappointing week with again. There were some
00:48moments in that game where, you know, we were looking like the team, you know, with
00:55obviously the ability that we have in the dressing room of, you know, if we can sustain that quality
01:00of cricket for longer periods of time, which we haven't been able to do in these first
01:05two games, then, you know, hopefully then the performances will start coming from that.
01:11The early results were remarkable. England's run rate surge, centuries flowed and the side
01:16became one of the most exciting teams in world cricket, earning praise for revitalising the
01:21test game. Yet the true test is under resilient pressure. In the away Ashes series, it's exposed
01:29bats balls of honourabilities. In the first test, England's batsmen collapsed. Australia's
01:34fast, bouncy pitches posted modest totals and allowed the host to dominate.
01:39The worst thing to do now is to not have hopes and not realise that we've still got the opportunity
01:49to do what we came out here to do. We are 2-0 down. There is three games left. If we lose
01:54hope over the next couple of weeks, well, even from next week, then, you know, we might as
02:00well nobody turn up. I don't, I haven't lost hope. That dressing room hasn't lost hope. And
02:05yeah, I'll be doing everything as I can as a captain to, to make sure that everyone is positive,
02:13positive as they possibly can be. Because any type of negativity or anything like that,
02:17that comes into the mind when it's our time to perform. It's no good.
02:22Discipline and patience, hallmarks of traditional cricket, were often sacrificed for aggressive
02:29intent, leaving England vulnerable. Despite strong performances at home against WTC rivals,
02:36their bowlers could not compensate for repeated batting failures abroad.
02:41By the second test at the Gabba, the severity of the problem was clear. An eight-wicket defeat
02:46left England 2-0 down in the series. Criticism of the system has grown, with pundits suggesting
02:52that Bazboll, brilliant in home conditions, struggles to adapt when confronted by disciplined
02:58opposition in challenging environments.
03:03Everyone, you know, everyone fights for the, the team. You know, if you didn't feel like
03:13people were going out there and showing fight, then, you know, believe me, they wouldn't be here.
03:17And, yeah, it's, as I say, it's, the mental side of this game is just, yeah, tough. And
03:29being in the right frame of mind, whether it's a, you know, you're on top, that's the easy
03:32part. It's when you're behind or where you are in the pressure moments, that's the hard
03:35part of being able to deal with the mental side of what this great game brings to you.
03:40So, yeah, just making it very clear in everyone's mind that, you know, you are going to experience
03:47this. What are you going to do to make yourself feel comfortable in those moments? You know,
03:51because, you know, we've been, we've been the team who've done that to other oppositions
03:56before where we have, you know, put them under serious amounts of pressure and they've not
04:00been able to stand up to what we've offered. And at the moment, we've not been able to stand
04:06up to what Australia have thrown at us. And that's as a collective group, not as, not
04:11individuals. You know, we are one team, but we are full of 11 players. So, yeah, just need
04:17to be better at those moments.
04:20What began as an inspiring experiment now, it's been remembered as a reckless gamble. England's
04:26Ashes hopes hang by a thread and Basbel's brilliance has been overshadowed by its shortcomings
04:31under pressure. The challenge for McCullum and Stokes' stark evolved the approach, restore balance
04:37or face the possibility that England's bold experiment has already run its course.
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