A "Perthetic" performance by England in the third Test of the
Ashes, thereby conceding the historic urn to Australia, was blasted
in the British press yesterday, most of which called for the
resignation of coach Duncan Fletcher.
England, set a near-impossible 557 to win, seemed as if they
might make a battle of it on the final day before yet another
collapse at the crease, where they lost their last five wickets for
just 14 runs.
Australia wound up with a 206-run win on the final day of the
third Test, setting off scenes of jubilation at the Waca Ground in
Perth.
The Sun tabloid, Britain's best-read daily, led the charges,
dubbing the defeat "Perthetic", writing in its match report: "Sorry
England surrendered The Ashes in record time yesterday."
It published a top-10 list of why England lost the Ashes, with
Flintoff's captaincy, the squad selection, and selection on tour
comprising the first three. Only one reason was attributed to the
Australians.
"The real story of this series has been an England side with a
soft underbelly being crushed by a bunch of rampant and
revenge-hungry Aussies," the tabloid said, noting that it would be
hard to imagine Fletcher holding on to his job following next
April's World Cup.
The Daily Mirror published a photo of a beleaguered
England captain Andrew Flintoff walking back to the pavilion after
being dismissed on the final day, under the headline: "Dump
Dunc".
Inside, it dedicated an entire page to "How Fletcher lost the
Ashes".
"England went back to the future in spectacular style to lose
the Ashes at the earliest available opportunity and start wild
Australian celebrations that made Trafalgar Square in 2005 look
like a tea party," the tabloid said.
The Daily Telegraph similarly looked back at England's
triumph last year on the cover of its sports section, which
featured the text: "England waited 16 years and 15 days to regain
the Ashes in the glorious summer of 2005."
"The historic urn was in England's possession for just one year,
96 days and 12 hours."
"Yes, England have been made to look like dingbats but
(Australian captain Ricky) Ponting leads a magnificent team."
Inside, Geoffrey Boycott said that Fletcher's run as English
coach should end following the World Cup, and suggested that the
search for a new coach should begin in the English summer.
Flintoff also bore the brunt of much criticism, with The
Guardian's report on the Test reading: "Flintoff for the moment has
lost the art of wicket-taking ... while his batting has gone to
pot."
Its headline inside the sports section similarly read, "Captain
and coach carry the can of sloppy thinking", noting that "the
captaincy, at least, must be reconsidered."
The Independent's back page was adorned with a photo of Andrew
Symonds carrying Shane Warne after the Ashes were clinched, next to
an article under the headline: "Fletcher's job on line after Ashes
failure".
"Poor preparation and selection have been cited as two of the
principal reasons for England's disappointing show in Australia,"
the newspaper said.
The Times, meanwhile, reported that England are expected to
welcome Michael Vaughan back to the team for the one-day
international series in Australia, both as captain and opening
batsman.
It noted first that "Duncan Fletcher is a great coach. He has
worked sporting miracles for English cricket ... But Fletcher got
it wrong in Australia."
"Badly wrong."
(China Daily December 20, 2006)