England Ashes Fiasco: Who Signed Off Must Go, Says Agnew
England suffers a humiliating 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia. ECB decisions, coaching flaws, and player errors leave fans furious after 5-Test series.
This was my 10th tour of Australia with England, and it was, quite comfortably, the most disappointing.
Record numbers of people turned up to watch the matches, demonstrating the immense interest.
Everyone, myself included, thought it would be a closely fought series that would go down to the wire.
Instead of being a memorable series, it was a huge disappointment and, like so many tours before it, ended with question marks hanging over the English team and the game itself.
England essentially faced Australia's second XI for much of the time, won four of the five tosses, and still managed to lose it – the defeat in the fifth Test in Sydney confirming a 4-1 series loss.
You don't have to look far for the answers. England coach Brendon McCullum has already admitted as much.
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Forget the batting in Perth or the bowling in Adelaide, I pinpoint July 24, 2025, as the moment England lost this series.
I remember how angry I was that day – the day the pre-series net practice and an intra-squad warm-up were announced – because we all knew England's plans weren't good enough to win an Ashes series here.
It's hard to believe that anyone at the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) signed off on it. Whoever did, whether it was Director of Cricket Rob Key, Chief Executive Richard Gould, or someone else, should lose their job.
Selfishly, you don't know how many more tours like this you're going to work on. That's why I was angry, but also sad.
But thousands of England fans, with whom I spent most evenings talking, have spent their life savings to be here.
Their emotion isn't disappointment. They are angry and deserve better.
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With soft dismissals and dropped catches, they have watched a team so undisciplined it's embarrassing. Compare this to Australia, who catch everything, give you nothing with the ball, and rack up huge individual scores.
The ECB now has a duty to provide some explanation to the England supporters.
It seems McCullum will be given a chance to turn things around, assuming he agrees to change his ways. I don't think that's going to happen.
He played and captained in a similar style with New Zealand. He coaches and lives his life in the same relaxed manner. McCullum is great company, a good bloke who did a good job in his early years in charge, but it's been shown that his methods don't work with this set of players in Test cricket.
Bazball hasn't been good for some players like Ollie Pope, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, or Gus Atkinson. They've been a bit overwhelmed by the expectations placed upon them.
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There needs to be more emphasis on playing more cricket matches and more flexibility, and a greater focus on county cricket, where players learn their game.
Does McCullum even think this is the right way?
Whatever happens, one thing England must retain is Ben Stokes as captain.
They cannot afford for McCullum to leave and Stokes to follow suit.
Yes, he's been part of this mantra just like McCullum, but his comments during this series suggest he wants more.
I don't think this series has been particularly good for him as captain.
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I don't know why Josh Tongue wasn't given the new ball before the final day of the series, and some of Stokes's field placements or tactical decisions have been wrong.
But he is England's best leader. Certainly, Brook, Stokes's vice-captain, has shown he is absolutely not the right person to lead the England Test team. Brook batted irresponsibly from the start, he learned nothing, and he really needs to go away now and work on his game.
If he doesn't, he will fall far short of his potential, which would be a great waste.
When it comes to other changes, I hope we haven't seen the last of Pope because he is a talented batsman.
England need to move on from Will Jacks, who isn't a good enough bowler to be the sole spinner in a Test attack.
The really interesting question is about wicketkeeper Smith. Who will be behind the stumps for England's first Test next summer?
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The way Smith has looked so vulnerable here, averaging 23.44 with 211 runs in 10 innings and dropping catches, is a serious concern.
The truth is, only Tongue and Jacob Bethell can leave this tour with their heads held high. Brydon Carse was given the wrong role – he's a player who comes on at first change and bowls fast in long spells, not an opening bowler – but he deserves credit for the way he toiled consistently throughout all five Tests.
Bethell's innings of 154 in Sydney was the innings of a player who has played 50 Tests, not five.
Brook should take inspiration from him on how to play a proper Test innings.
A tour that began with so much promise has ended with very little to be happy about.
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