Ashes 2017/18: How big of a disaster was it?

So yet another Ashes tour has reached a conclusion, and there is only one team that leaves Australia with their tail firmly between their legs. England have been given a hiding, undoubtedly, which has left the cricketing circle questioning the decisions and events that took place in the lead-up and during the series.

Discipline, selection and lack of resources stand out among the issues, but was this series really the disaster it looks on paper? Let’s take a look at some positives from the tour:

Changes based on results:

Jonny Bairstow scored a fine 119 at the WACA as he and Dawid Malan (140) combined to form England's best partnership of the series

One of the issues that experts expressed during the series was the English batting order. In the first two Tests, Moeen Ali had batted above Jonny Bairstow, at no.6. While Bairstow is certainly the better batsman, England’s ploy could be understood as Ali was more attacking, which could have provided some sort of an antithesis to the much quieter batsmen in Root, Vince and Cook.

While the series went pear-shaped for Ali, they attempted to bring in a change by interchanging Ali and Bairstow’s positions, which immediately bore fruit with the wicketkeeper-batsman compiling a masterful century in the next Test, the third, at the WACA.

Sticking with a composed XI:

James Vince was persisted with at the top

A hallmark of recent Ashes tours Down Under had been the panic-stricken changes that England had brought in coming into the 4th and 5th Tests of the series, maybe in a bid to avoid a whitewash.

Bringing in players such as Scott Borthwick (2013-14) and Chris Read (2006-07) for solitary Tests are examples. While both are fine players, with Read known for his exceptional glovework in County cricket, the dynamic of the team was ignored before ringing in these changes. The margins of defeat were more severe in ‘06-07, and while a defeat is a defeat, irrespective of margin, the ’06-07 drubbing came after arguably the greatest Ashes series of the modern era in 2005, which saw England winning for the first time since the late 80s.

Baptism of fire for Root:

Joe Root's first overseas tour as captain was a combination of controversy, lack of resources and a high-class Australian bowling attack

In his first overseas assignment as England’s newly appointed Test captain, Joe Root certainly underwent a baptism of fire as far as captaincy was concerned. While with the bat, the series may have been quiet for him, his captaincy displayed that England have chosen the right man to lead them in the longest format.

While there were many occasions where England could have pressed home the advantage but failed, the one moment where they had left the Aussies, or one Aussie rather, in David Warner, gasping for air was in the 4th Test at the MCG.

Warner spent an uncharacteristically long time in the 90s, especially as he inched painfully towards his hundred. The faux-pas that occurred on 99 aside, it was a period of play that saw England actually inducing a false shot from an Australian batsman, giving us glimpses of Root’s capability with the thinking hat.

Showing a little faith:

Liam Livingstone has received his maiden call-up to the Test team. He has previously represented England in T20Is

England have announced the squad for the series against New Zealand, and contrary to certain assumptions, announced a largely unchanged squad, with Liam Livingstone coming in, and the likes of Jake Ball, Tom Curran and Gary Ballance dropped. Importantly, they have stuck with the same batsmen that played the Ashes, even though there were calls for Mark Stoneman, James Vince and even Alastair Cook to be dropped.

Vince and Stoneman both got a number of starts against a high-quality Australian pace attack, which in hindsight is commendable for two players playing their first overseas Test series. Cook’s monumental 244* at the MCG emphasized just how strong-willed he is. While some say that that innings saves him for a series or two, something to be noted is that that 244* was the highest score by a batsman in the entire Ashes campaign in a series which saw a combined total of 12 centuries being scored in five Tests, and Steve Smith plundering upwards of 700 runs in the series.

While 4-0 and 5-0 may not look too different, especially to the English fans and media, there have been certain positives to take away, which can be consolidated upon in the upcoming series against New Zealand.