England's World Cup triumph will have no impact on Ashes, believes Steve Waugh
Former Australian skipper Steve Waugh believes that England's World Cup triumph will have no impact whatsoever on the outcome of the Ashes, citing the glaring differences between the two formats. Waugh also believes that it'll be tough to separate the sides, and fears injuries might play a key part.
10 days after their World Cup triumph, the English Cricket team almost suffered a major embarrassment as they narrowly avoided a huge upset at the hands of neighbours Ireland. Prior to the encounter, skipper Joe Root stated that his men will carry the World Cup confidence heading into the Tests, but on the conclusion of the encounter, was quick to point towards mental fatigue and the overwhelmingness of the post-World Cup hangover as the reason for their slow start.
Former Australian skipper Steve Waugh, who was the last Aussie skipper to taste victory on English soil, firmly believes that England's World Cup glory will have no impact whatsoever on the Ashes, stating Test cricket as a "completely different sport" when compared to ODI cricket.
“One-day cricket is irrelevant to Test cricket. They’re different teams, different captains. It’s a different sport really. If you compare Test cricket and one-day cricket you’re almost not playing the same sport. It’s played in a totally different way," Waugh was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
“England will say it’s important for everyone and sure, if you win that’s great but when it comes to the first Test at Edgbaston it’s not going to matter what happened in the one-day World Cup,” he added.
With Australia having not won in English soil for 18 years, Waugh said that series' have been won and lost in fine margins, while pointing out the importance of winning the big moments. He also said that there has been plenty of series' in the past that could have gone either way while hinting at the unpredictable nature of the game.
“We’ve come up against some really good England sides in those last 18 years. We’ve had some tight series and moments when we could have won the series, probably a bit like the other way round for England in that period where they lost a lot,” he said.
With the Ashes starting in just two weeks post the conclusion of the World Cup, Waugh believes that the players will have their work cut-out, and said that teams will need to rely on their squad depth to bail them out of trouble. Waugh also believes that injuries might, unfortunately, play a key part in the series, with injury clouds already hanging over the likes of James Anderson and Usman Khawaja. The former Aussie skipper also praised the quality of both the sides, stating that it would be impossible to separate the sides on any given day.
“I really believe it’s a big ask for the fast bowlers on both sides to play five Tests in six weeks and that could have a big impact on the whole series, so for instance Jimmy Anderson gets injured, or Mitchell Starc gets injured for us, it could really affect the line-up," he said.
“Depth in the squad will be important but I honestly think if I was a betting man I wouldn’t back either side because I don’t know who’s going to win. It’s going to be that even. I think it’s going to be a fantastic series.” he added.
The two teams will play five tests over a duration of just 45 days, with the first Test, which will also be a part of the World Test Championships, set to commence on August 1.
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