"Just an excuse for them to go out and do whatever they want" - Former Australian spinner slams England's Bazball approach after Ashes 2023 debacle

Former Australian spinner Xavier Doherty recently pointed out how the Bazball approach has failed to reap dividends for England so far in the ongoing 2023 Ashes series.

Slamming Ben Stokes and Co. for their underwhelming performances, Doherty stated that Bazball is nothing more than an excuse for England to play reckless cricket. The 40-year-old made these remarks while speaking on SEN Tassie. He said:

"I went into this Ashes series looking forward to Bazball and this exciting brand of cricket that England play and it’s turned out to be a bit of a flop, I reckon. I think it’s just an excuse for them to go out and do whatever they want with no accountability and just be reckless."

Doherty pointed out that while England have shown glimpses of brilliance on some occasions, they fail to build on these moments, adding:

"England have at times played some really good cricket and then just do something awfully stupid and then just say, 'Ah well, that’s all just part of it'."

The visitors dominated England in the first two matches of the series. The Ben Stokes-led side have been under scrutiny for their tactics.

The decision to declare at 393/8 on Day 1 of the Test series opener backfired, as the Aussies eventually secured a thrilling two-wicket victory. Furthermore, Australia took a 2-0 lead in the series by winning the second Test by 43 runs.

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"Just another excuse for the English to call Australia cheats" - Xavier Doherty on Bairstow's controversial stumping in second Ashes Test

Jonny Bairstow's stumping in the second Ashes 2023 Test has triggered a massive uproar, with several former England cricketers targeting Australian keeper Alex Carey for the dismissal.

Bairstow left his crease after ducking a short delivery off Cameron Green's bowling. Carey showed great presence and produced a direct hit to send the batter packing.

Speaking about the controversial stumping, Xavier Doherty criticized England's 'mob mentality'. He commented:

"It’s just another excuse for the English to call Australia cheats… it’s like a mob mentality. The cricket crowd over there is turning into a football crowd with the chants and the abuse.

"It’s just this unaccountable mindset that they’ve got, the rules don’t apply to us anymore so we’ll do and say whatever we feel like and then we’ll be the upholders of the spirit of cricket and we’ll tell other people what they should be doing."

The ongoing third Test is a must-win game for England as they look to stay afloat in the five-match series. Australia, on the other hand, have a significant chance of winning the Ashes on English soil for the first time since 2001.