Michael Atherton: Ashes defeat ‘will haunt England for years’ – ‘They didn’t give themselves a chance to succeed’ | Michael Atherton Cricket News

Michael Atherton fears England will be ‘haunted’ by their Ashes failure for years to come.

England lost the series after just 11 days of cricket after a series of mistakes in the first three Tests in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, and criticism for their lean preparation and aggressive style of cricket, as well as for being photographed drinking at a beach break in Noosa midway through the series.

A two-day victory in the Boxing Day match at the MCG, England’s first Test win in Australia in 15 years, ended any danger of a 5-0 tie, but they then lost the final game of the series in Sydney, their 14th defeat in their last 28 matches.

Atherton reflected on the 4-1 comprehensive defeat on the latest Sky Sports Cricket Podcast and highlighted England’s failure to prepare properly as the main reason they were unable to take advantage of Australia’s weaknesses and absentees.

“For me, it’s the margin of error,” Atherton said.

“I don’t think there’s anything worse for an athlete than not being given the best chance to succeed, regardless of how they prepare or how they play.

“England haven’t given themselves the best chance to do their best and that’s going to haunt them for years to come.

“Pat Cummins has played one game, Josh Hazlewood hasn’t played, Nathan Ryan has played one-and-a-half games and three of Australia’s top five players average in their mid-20s.”

“The cook should come.”

Despite enormous pressure, both head coach Brendon McCullum and managing director of men’s cricket Rob Key are expected to keep their jobs, but calls for his sacking are complicated by the fact that he is set to lead England’s white-ball team in next month’s T20 World Cup.

ECB chief executive Richard Gould issued a statement saying “necessary changes” would be made following the 4-1 defeat.

Atherton feels that changes may be needed in terms of approach and personnel.

“When Mr. Stokes and Mr. McCallum came in, it was the end of COVID-19 and everyone was ready for the release they provided,” he said.

“It was a beaten team, but we had a lot of first-class, high-class players, so that freedom was perfect for it.

“But the team is at a different stage now and the young players need to play hard and learn about winning cricket.

“The team is at a different stage so it may require a different approach from the coaching staff.

“I gave the example of Sir Alastair Cooke coming in as an assistant or something to raise standards.”

Nasser: “England were fooled and flattered”

Nasser Hussein added:

“Australia played better cricket and were a more consistent team.

“They were relentless with the ball and with the bat, a couple of their cricketers, Steve Smith, Travis Head and Alex Carey, did really well.

“England had chances but they couldn’t take advantage of them.

“Despite all the hype around this series, it’s been going like any other series in Australia since 2010-2011 and England are being fooled by flattery.

“They’re playing catch-up cricket, they’re playing really damaging shots, and director of cricket Rob Key called the shots ‘stupid’ when he sat down with us on the podcast.

“The new-ball bowling was incredibly different for both teams.

“My only memory from this series would be Travis Head pulling the ball and cutting it, giving you an idea of ​​where England were bowling.

“The next one was probably a well-placed shot from England when they needed to be ruthless.

“Look at how two great players in Joe Root and Steve Smith and a classy young player in Jacob Bethel played.

“They had the right tempo. Ruthless, beyond my corpse, but not just blocking and getting bored. Why can’t Jamie Smith see that when Marnus Labuschagne comes on to bowl?”

Ashes Series in Australia 2025-26

Australia won 5 consecutive games 4-1