Ashes - Dean Jones: England have no chance

Eurosport - Fri, 03 Jul 09:45:00 2009

In his first blog for Eurosport-Yahoo!, Australia great Dean Jones delivers a reality check to England fans ahead of the Ashes.

Dean Jones - 0

Everybody in England seems convinced the Ashes will be close. There is a real groundswell of belief that they can repeat their 2005 series win against Australia.

It's important to point a couple of things out. First of all, you are fifth in the Test rankings. In the last four years you have only won series against Pakistan, New Zealand and West Indies.

You have got a new captain and disciplinary problems within the team. Your strike bowlers struggle to take wickets and your spinners are not that good - do you really think they can take 20 wickets in a match?

England's top order batting is good, I rate it. But the bottom half of the batting is not going to produce many runs, it is nowhere near as good as the Australians.

However good your main batsmen are, at some point you're going to be 80/5 and that's when you need a contribution from the lower-order players. England won't get that.

I'm honestly trying to think why anybody would tip England to win this series.

Key players - England: Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen (pictured) are both really important and need to be on song. They are England's major players, but there are injury question-marks over both players and you have to be 100 per cent fit when taking on the Aussies.

Elsewhere in the team, it is time for James Anderson to get rid of the word 'potential' when people talk about him. Stuart Broad is still fairly early in his apprenticeship but it will be interesting to see how he goes. If he is anything like his dad Chris, I expect him to come in snarling at the Aussies.

Key players - Australia: Mitchell Johnson is the number one, he is a serious bowler. Look at how he roughed up the South Africans and then smacked them about the park with the bat. It was like watching a rerun of the West Indies in the 80s.

Historically, left-arm bowlers do not do especially well in England but if you have the quality it shouldn't matter. Wasim Akram certainly did OK.

Peter Siddle and Stuart Clark will do very well, they won't get smacked about or lose control. Batsmen can set up a Test match, but it is the bowlers who win it, and those three are the ones who will see Australia home in the Ashes.

Series prediction: Cardiff is England's best chance of a victory as long as they bat first, because my sources tell me the pitch just won't last five days. But on the better pitches like Birmingham and Lord's, you need good bowlers who can perform under pressure. I don't see how England will bowl Australia out twice.

If England win the toss at Cardiff they will lose the series three-one. Otherwise, it will be four-zip to the Aussies.

Dean Jones / Eurosport

Comment 13 - 32 of 32

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  1. Australia will absoulutely thump this very drunk­ foriegn england side. Imagine england without­ pieterson, strauss,panesar etc. I would like to see an­ english side with no forieners. We(AUS) WILL WIN SERIES­ 5-0

    From kellie, on Fri 3 Jul 1:44PM

  2. Finally someone with big enough" grape­ fruits" to come out and just say it. You English­ are truly in denial to even think that this is going to­ be a close encounter. You lot are too hang up on 2005­ and your MBE's that you forgot the most recent­ Ashes, and how England was humiliated! There's no­ goddess shinning on those short girls with no derrier­ and make-up mask, wake up and smell the coffee,­ you're about to get ran over. Australia is still­ the most dangerous side in cricket, and the great thing­ about them is that they can put just about any group of­ guys together and win. You're all convinced that­ without Warne and Glen they're nothing, but­ they've proven themselves, hence the reason why­ they are still at the top of the fod chain! England­ will be lucky to win one match. I predict a 4-1 for the­ Aussies!! For the record, I'm very much English

    From **, on Fri 3 Jul 10:14AM

  3. It is understandable that Dean Jones is denigrating the­ England team because it is difficult to beef up the­ Aussie team. There is no doubt it is the worst team to­ come out of Australia for 20 years. Sure they showed­ resilience and bounced back against SA but then one­ could say we did similar last summer. There are two­ things in this Aus side which WILL cause England­ problems - Mitchell Johnson, and the lower order­ batsman who will likely score more runs than the top­ order. If the English batsmen can rid themselves of the­ propensity for gifting their wickets and knuckle down,­ then it will be a close fought contest.

    From nocohere, on Fri 3 Jul 8:15AM

  4. Thats England giving the Aussie a hiding

    From starman_123, on Fri 3 Jul 1:45AM

  5. Puhleeze Aussie, Australia are no longer the feared­ team of this decade. Ponting is not producing runs and­ I really believe he is under scrutiny from CA and fully­ expect him to resign or be sacked after the Ashes. The­ Australian top order is very good but very streaky and­ often requires the tail to bail them out. Their bowling­ is nowhere as feared as it was two years ago and I will­ remind Dean Jones just who do Australia have that­ England need to fear as spin is concerned. Bret Lee is­ still good but not as good as before, Johnson not as­ menacing as you claim. You have not mentioned­ Sidebottom a left-handed bowler who gives fits any in­ English conditions. I think the will give the Aussie a­ run for the Ashes if not win it.

    From starman_123, on Fri 3 Jul 1:34AM

  6. The Donkey is a total @#$% what utter crapp I bet you­ have a fantistic amount of friends who think you are a­ utter pryick

    From Big Ken, on Fri 3 Jul 1:00AM

  7. Comment 23 (Donkey), you are not an­ Englishman;treatment in S.A - I assume you mean the­ British and Irish Lions - that's Rugby and­ irrelevent to English cricket.
    Brett Lee looked­ dangerous today with quick reverse swing but that's­ against comedy batting(back lift Solanki etc). I think­ our lower order looks stronger now than 2005 - Flintoff­ 7 Swann 8 Broad 9...
    Quote from Jones "your­ spinners are not that good." MATE as you might­ say, have you got any spinners - don't forget­ Warney is commentating.

    From robincatchpole, on Fri 3 Jul 12:14AM

  8. Donkey, there is obviously isn't anything English­ about you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    From Dorothy, on Fri 3 Jul 12:01AM

  9. This was an extremely biased opinion from a former­ Australian International. I agree that the Aussies are­ not the team they used to be and England have as good a­ chance as they have at winning the Ashes. COME ON­ ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    From Dorothy, on Thu 2 Jul 11:59PM

  10. davehelix22, are you seriously suggesting that Swann­ replacing Giles has a comparable impact on the England­ team to Hauritz replacing Warne for Autralia?

    From Bobito, on Thu 2 Jul 11:19PM

  11. England havent got a hope in hellllssss­ chance.
    Also...good to see them get "The­ treatment" over in SA.

    The Brits have always been­ arrogant bas**tards in their trearment of the so called­ "colonies"
    In most pubs there is an attitude­ of "we hate the SAfricans"

    I,for one as a­ born and bred "Englishman" hope the Lions get­ another SMASHING

    From donkey, on Thu 2 Jul 11:06PM

  12. Bobito i agree with you that the aussi's have lost­ lots for great players but warne, gilcrest etc were at­ the end of thier careers by the time of 2005. On the­ hand England have lost Vaughan, Hoggard, Jones x2,­ Giles. Harmison is finished and Flintof is not fit.­ Take you head out the sand and have a look around.

    From davehelix22, on Thu 2 Jul 10:52PM

  13. davehelix22, we don't need all 11 players to­ perform like the class of 2005. Australia no longer­ have Warne, McGrath, Gilchrest, Hayden or Langer. Lee­ is no longer the player he was and nor is Ponting. Sure­ Johnson and Hughes look very good, but this Australian­ side is a shadow of its former self.

    Jones points out­ that England are 5th in the test rankings. Well the­ only reason the Aussies are any higher is due to­ results from before Warne, McGrath, Gilchrest et al­ retired.

    I think people are unerestimating one­ factor. Australia's only spinner is a guy who would­ have absolutely no chance of earning a living as a­ cricketer if he came from any other country. Hauritz­ cannot win matches for them and he cannot play as part­ of a four man attack.

    From Bobito, on Thu 2 Jul 9:41PM

  14. Good one Deano. Have always respected you when you made­ that big ton whilst suffering the trots years­ back.
    Trouble is you were full of @#$% then and still­ are.
    Regardless of the @#$% we will win the first one­ and most likely take the series 2/1 or 3/1 depending on­ the weather.

    From silver coast surfer, on Thu 2 Jul 8:25PM

  15. As an english supporter i find it sad that i am­ agreeing with Dean. I cant see england winning a single­ match. They will be lucky to win a few session! When we­ won in 2005 every single player, played like their­ lives where on the line and we only just won. I­ can't see all 11 players preforming like the class­ of 2005. Right now i know the 2nd team are doing well,­ but that means nothing. Prepare for disappointment­ lads.

    From davehelix22, on Thu 2 Jul 6:28PM

  16. Just for the record, Dean Jones predicted an England­ win in the last Ashes series down under. Some pundit­ eh?

    From Bobito, on Thu 2 Jul 6:16PM

  17. Here we go again the Aussies are trying to talk­ themselves up, They are scared very scared. and well­ they should be. and they call us arrogant!!

    From Big Ken, on Thu 2 Jul 5:08PM

  18. Here we go again the Aussies are trying to talk­ themselves up, They are scared very scared. and well­ they should be. and they call us arrogant!!

    From Big Ken, on Thu 2 Jul 5:07PM

  19. Dean Jones, with an average of 46.55 off 50 odd Tests­ has the "Presence" to pontificate;­ unfortunately he carries the Aussie hubris as well. The­ last Ashes series here was proclaimed as a 5-0 win for­ Oz before the start. Now they are at it again.With­ their Test side bowled out for 358 and the England­ Possibles on 180-2 they should beware, the Godess of­ Cricket (and SHE is a Godess-look how she smiles on our­ English girls) is fickle; beware tempting the fate she­ bestows Dean. It might turn out "Alas Mouth and­ Jones"

    From TONY, on Thu 2 Jul 4:24PM

  20. Anyone remember a certain David Campesi- another­ Australian loudmouth- saying the same thing before the­ 2003 Rugby World Cup finals. I can envisage the same­ kind of result here.

    From stuart d, on Thu 2 Jul 4:23PM
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