Ashes 2023: "England have already said they're not going to settle for draws" - Kumar Sangakkara hails Ben Stokes' captaincy during Day 3

Former Sri Lankan legendary batter Kumar Sangakkara was impressed with the way England wrapped up Australia's lower order on Day 3 of the first Ashes 2023 Test in Edgbaston on Sunday. He feels it had a lot to do with well-set fields by skipper Ben Stokes and the bowlers who bowled to the fields.

England's short-ball ploy was something Australia couldn't handle as their last four wickets fell for just 14 runs. Sangakkara credited the hosts for taking that aggressive option and proving that they are pushing for a result.

Here's what Kumar Sangakkara had to say while speaking on Sky Sports Cricket:

"This is where England are ahead, especially Stokes. He understood singles wouldn't matter to the tailenders - they were going to come out swinging. The fields were really well set to create those chances, showing the Australians they needed to take chances. The thinking was brilliant; the captaincy was brilliant, and England have already said they're not going to settle for draws."

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Kumar Sangakkara on Moeen Ali's importance

Kumar Sangakkara also opined that England will need off-spinner Moeen Ali to bowl and bowl well in the fourth innings. He feels the pitch has very little in it for the pacers and that spinners will be more effective as the wicket is a bit slow and is turning.

On this, Sangakkara stated:

"It's going to be a crucial issue, and it will be crucial to their thinking as well in terms of how much time are they going to need to bowl Australia out and who is going to do that well for them in terms of spin? England need a spinner to do the hard yards. It's turning, it's staying low, you've seen how flat it was for the fast bowlers and how hard they had to work and try to get wickets. Moeen's role is crucial, they'll try to get him back fit to bowl, but if you're the captain you're going to worry. Root is good, but is he good enough?"

England need Joe Root and Ollie Pope to bat big on Day 4 and help them set a defendable target. They might also need Root to bowl later in the game if Ali's finger injury prevents him from bowling.