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Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden has issued a strong warning for England, saying the visitors are staring at a heavy Ashes defeat unless more players show the grit and commitment that Ben Stokes brings to the field. His comments came alongside sharp criticism of Jofra Archer's approach during the 2nd Test at the Gabba.
Hayden took a dig at Archer for arriving at the ground with a pillow tucked under his arm on Saturday, just before Mitchell Starc and Australia's tail forced England to toil in the field for more than half a day. The former opener also questioned Archer's decision to bowl at full pace only once the match was virtually out of England's grasp, something captain Steve Smith too pointed out during the ending to the Test in Brisbane. "It was really quite painful to watch with Jofra Archer," Hayden said, as quoted from The Sydney Morning Herald. "That look is exactly what, as an opening batsman, I'm looking for when he's circumnavigating the ground early on day three with a big job to do, and carrying a pillow into play," he added. "Straightaway my head would be 'I'm not only going to try to not let him sleep in the day, but I don't want him to be sleeping in the night on that pillow'. The optics are one thing, but actions speak louder than words in this case. There were periods in Perth where he cranked it up. But largely speaking, when it really counted in the first innings (in Brisbane), he bowled the majority of those overs at 130-136km/h," he noted. "Then to see that stark difference of airspeed in Australia's second innings, and have all that verbal barrage and fake smiles. That's never going to endear Jofra Archer to his own fans, let alone a great player like Steve Smith," he said. "Certainly, for people who know the game very well, that was a very disappointing reaction with very little humility and a whole bunch of bravado, which ended up going for 5.6 an over and the contest is knocked out of the park in 10 overs ... his airspeed was well down, and that says it all," Hayden added. Archer endured a rough outing in Australia's final innings, conceding 28 runs in five overs at a time when Australia needed only 66 to win. The hosts chased down the target with ease in 10 overs, with Steve Smith smashing an unbeaten 23 off 9 balls, including two sixes and two fours, to wrap up the victory. Hayden praised the England captain Ben Stokes, "At one stage, we had him talking on the audio of stump (mic) and going 'we have to lift our shoulders here, this problem's not going away', and he was bloody magnificent." "He is a gutsy trier. But what he needs is 10 other blokes to go in the same direction," he noted. (ANI)
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