'You Messed Up, Not the Structure' - Nasser Hussain Blasts England After Sri Lanka Debacle
England has put in a dismal show in World Cup 2023
In a dominant display at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday, Sri Lanka bested defending champions, England, with an impressive eight-wicket win in Match 25 of World Cup 2023.
ENG vs SL: Hussain's no-holds-barred critique of England
As a result of this loss, England has now slid to the ninth position in the World Cup 2023 points table. Post-match critiques were abundant, with ex-England skipper, Nasser Hussain, being particularly outspoken.
Hussain criticized the tendency within English cricket to point fingers at the structure when things go awry, implying it's an easy way out. He highlighted that the same structure that is now being blamed brought them their T20 and 50-over World Cup victories.
“What I don’t like is giving players a cop-out, and I think sometimes we do that in English cricket. When they win the 50-over World Cup and the T20 World Cup, aren’t they great? They are brilliant, and when the wheel comes off, it’s the structure of English cricket. We are a disgrace; we play 20-over cricket, we play 100-ball cricket, we don’t play enough 50-over cricket. That’s what’s made this great side over the last six years: travelling around the world, playing T20 franchises. It’s such a lame excuse. You are giving the players a cop-out when you blame the structure. The structure that made them the world champions. It is exactly the same structure,” said Hussain.
Juxtaposing the situation with international players like Virat Kohli and Heinrich Klaasen, the former English skipper pointed out that they hone their skills in T20 franchises rather than focusing solely on domestic matches.
He also stressed that while there may have been some preparation lapses leading into the tournament, the primary responsibility lies with the players, not the structure.
“How much 50-over cricket domestically does Virat Kohli, Heinrich Klaasen play, or anyone out there? They don’t just play domestic. They learn from T20 franchises around the world. Yeah, you may have taken the eye off the ball a little bit, not giving them enough practice leading into this tournament, but it was the structure that produced them, so when they mess up, they messed up, not the structure. It’s always, oh, it's County cricket, it’s the Hundred, it’s the Blast, or maybe we get rid of the Blast. That’s what made our cricket. Its country cricket makes the cricketers that we are. Whether it be the Hundred, the Blast, 50 over, whatever, that’s what makes them, and when they fail, they take the responsibility, in my opinion," added the 55-year-old.
Coming to the game, England had a challenging day, getting all-out for a mere 156 runs. Key contributions came from Ben Stokes with 43 runs from 73 balls, and Jonny Bairstow who scored 30 off 31. Lahiru Kumara stood out for Sri Lanka, taking three wickets for just 35 runs.
Sri Lanka's chase was steered to victory primarily by Pathum Nissanka's unbeaten 77 and Sadeera Samarawickrama's brisk 65 not out. From England's side, only Willey made an impact, claiming two wickets for 30 runs.
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