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England’s cricketers have already become the target of ridicule in Australia just one day into the new Ashes series.
The tourists made the worst possible start to the five-match series after choosing to bat first in Brisbane, with opener Rory Burns bowled by Mitchell Starc with the very first ball of the match.
His dismissal prompted yet another dramatic top order collapse from England, who were reduced to 11 for 3 when captain Joe Root was dismissed for a duck.
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Ollie Pope (35), Jos Buttler (39) and Chris Woakes (21) provided some resistance in the middle order but England were eventually skittled out for just 147 before play was called off for the day due to rain.
Australian fans were quick to take to social media to mock England, with the Queensland Police account even chipping in.
“Queensland Police are launching an investigation into a group impersonating a Test batting order at the Gabba,” they wrote.
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Queensland’s Fire and Emergency account also took aim at England captain Root.
“Joe Root isn’t the only one who got a today! Toowoomba FRS Station was called to reports of 5 ducklings trapped under a grate,” they wrote.
“Four came out easily but the 5th, little ‘Joe’, was determined not to get caught (unlike his namesake). Eventually all were returned to mum safe & well!”
England will hope to bounce back quickly on day two and Pope has backed his team-mates to learn from their mistakes.
He told BT Sport: “It’s obviously frustrating that we didn’t get the big score we wanted, but we have to realise it’s a long series, so we’re not going to get too down about today and we’ll come back hard tomorrow.
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“We didn’t get the score we wanted. It was frustrating not to kick on and get that big score, but the game situation lent itself at that time to some positive batting.
“The pitch was quite tennis-bally and I realised early on in my innings I could leave a lot of balls. I think we’ll learn from our mistakes in the second innings.”
Meanwhile, former England captain Nasser Hussain believes Root got it wrong at the toss but insists it wasn’t an easy call.
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“Obviously 147 all out tells you it was the wrong decision with the way it seamed around and bounced and sometimes you can confuse it all. I know, I did it,” Hussain told Sky Sports News.
“You turn up, look down at a pitch, see it's green and has rained, so what is your strongest suit?
“Anyone who has watched England over the last three or four years would say bowling is England's strongest suit.
“What is Australia's weaker suit? That is their batting. Sometimes just forget the stats, forget everything, look down at what is in front of you and try and try make a decision.”
Featured Image Credit: PA ImagesTopics: Cricket
