In the second Ashes Test at Lord's in London, former England captain Michael Vaughan expressed strong criticism towards the batting performance of the team led by Ben Stokes. Australia, led by Pat Cummins, made a remarkable comeback on the third day of the match, aided by England's own shortcomings. England began their first innings on Friday with a score of 278 for 4, with Captain Stokes undefeated at 17 and Harry Brook at 45 not out. However, they squandered this opportunity due to their lack of determination and poor shot selection.
Need to get rid of stupidity
Taking advantage of the cloudy conditions at Lord's on Friday, the Australian bowlers capitalized and swiftly dismissed the remaining six wickets of England for a mere 47 runs. As a result, the Ben Stokes-led side was bundled out for a total of 325 runs, losing their last nine wickets for just 137 runs.
"England need to be realistic. They cannot mix entertainment with stupidity,' Vaughan said on Test Match Special as quoted by Daily Mail.
"For the first 188 runs, England played good cricket with proper shots. The Australian bowlers got no help as the ball was not doing anything, so they resorted to short balls. What came next was pure stupidity," he added.
Australia in supreme command
Australia's Mitchell Starc emerged as the standout performer among the bowlers, taking three wickets for 88 runs. Josh Hazlewood and Travis Head also made valuable contributions, each claiming two wickets. Consequently, Australia obtained a significant 91-run lead over England in the first innings.
In their first innings, Australia managed to post a total of 416 runs, primarily due to the exceptional century scored by Steve Smith. Smith's commanding knock of 110 runs propelled his team's innings, coming after England's captain, Ben Stokes, won the toss and elected to bowl.
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