Former England captain Michael Vaughan was astonished by Australia’s nail-biting draw against England in the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford, Manchester. The tense match saw Australia heavily relying on the unpredictable British weather during the last two days, ultimately securing their retention of the Ashes. As rain washed out the final day, England missed the chance to claim the remaining five wickets and level the series.
Heading into the final stages of the fourth Test, Australia found themselves in a precarious position, trailing by 61 runs with five wickets down at Stumps on Day 4. Their only hope was to endure Day 5 to maintain their hold on the coveted Ashes urn. Despite showing signs of nervousness and fear throughout the match, the rain rescued them, granting them a draw sufficient for their victory.
In his column for the Telegraph, Michael Vaughan boldly asserted that the Australian team played for rain and appeared rattled and scared of England throughout the Test match.
He wrote, “Australia were scared and petrified of England all week in Manchester and played for rain. Australia was rattled. They know that only rain saved them. It ranks as one of the luckiest escapes I can remember.”
Vaughan also acknowledged the individual brilliance of Marnus Labuschagne, whose performance stood out amidst the team’s struggles. However, he pointed out that older Australian teams would have posted much bigger scores in the first innings at Old Trafford. He expressed concern about the current Australian batting unit, which seemed to lack confidence in scoring big runs and settled for modest contributions in the 30s and 40s.
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Vaughan further added,” Marnus Labuschagne’s performance was the only positive. Older Australian teams would have made 400 in the first innings at Old Trafford. This Australian side looks like a batting unit that doesn’t trust themselves to score big runs, which is why they are only getting 30s and 40s.”
