As someone who has experienced at first hand the two domestic set-ups in England and Australia, I feel slightly torn by what has happened over the first three Ashes Tests.
Don’t get me wrong: once an Aussie, always an Aussie. To see Australia 3-0 up is most definitely not a bad thing as far as I’m concerned. But the cricket lover in me and the coach who has worked closely with some of the English boys, wants to see a good contest; a last-day run-chase on a turning pitch with the Ashes on the line.
After all, what’s the series people still come up to me and ask about? You guessed it: 2005. The one-sided Ashes wins, not so much.
Australia have already won the Ashes series with three wins in their first three Test matches
Joe Root's England side are in disarray and enduring intensifying scrutiny over their decisions
So it is inevitable that the events of the past few weeks get you thinking about the differences between the countries’ domestic structures and how England might go about giving themselves a better chance on future trips to Australia.
One thing that struck me during my time at Yorkshire and Sussex was the question of whether English cricket was as accessible as it should be to the population at large. With the country’s huge British-Asian population, I always wondered whether the right pathways were in place to make the most of the undoubted sporting talent in the UK. Yes, football is your No1 sport. But shouldn’t cricket be bigger than it is?
England has a much larger population than Australia but it seems as if your potential pool of players is so much smaller and from a narrower social background. Here in Australia, we see far more state-school kids make the grade, as well as youngsters from rural areas.
I remember when I first came to England and wondered about the haphazard nature, at times, of routes into county sides. In Australia, if you want to play first-class Shield cricket, you have to be aligned to a grade team in the main city of your state. The pathway is defined and talent becomes concentrated. In England, it’s all a bit more random.
It is also the case that once you get into one of the six teams who take part in the Sheffield Shield, your goal is to take the next step and win your baggy green with Australia. The fact that Travis Head and Alex Carey are part of the Test team is a huge thing for South Australian cricket. Moments like that are the reason we exist.
In England, what counts as success for a county side may be different, because if you lose players to the Test team it weakens your chances of winning trophies and that doesn’t go down well with the members.
