Former Australia all-rounder Matthew Hayden has made a bold statement ahead of The Ashes, saying he will walk the Melbourne Cricket Ground wicket if England’s Joe Root fails to register a century in the Test series this winter.
So how nervous is Hayden feeling after Root’s scores of nil and eight in the first Test in Perth, which the tourists lost two days after an epic capitulation.
“I’m worried for a number of reasons!” the great Baggi Greens said Ski Sports Cricket Podcast as he joins Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton ahead of the second day-night Test in Brisbane from Thursday (4am UK/Ireland time).
“The last thing I want to do at 54 is spend the rest of my life in prison! Seriously, though, I probably haven’t seen much compelling evidence since Root in Perth.”
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Sky Sports’ Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain discuss whether Root’s legacy as the greatest all-time great will be affected if he fails to score an Ashes century in Australia
Root, England’s all-time leading run-scorer but still without a Test in Australia after 15 matches and 29 innings, was twice against Mitchell Starc in the series opener, falling behind in the first innings before ending the run in the second.
Hayden added: “I know Joe likes to own that fifth and sixth stump channel and Australia won’t have to go anywhere but what I’ve seen – those little spots.”
“Gaba will be no different, especially under the lights with the pink ball. It will be a big challenge for Ruto.”
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Speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast, Nasser Hussain and Matthew Hayden look back and discuss the infamous tossing decision in Brisbane.
England would have been 1-0 up had they shown awareness of the game
England were in such a dominant position at lunch on the second day of the first Test, reaching 59-1 and holding a lead of 99, only to be reduced to 164 in the afternoon session.
At one stage, they lost three wickets without a run in six balls with Ollie Pope, Harry Brooke and then Root perishing in the drive, a no-no on the fast and bouncy Optus Stadium surface.
With Australia chasing 205 for victory, Travis Head – promoted to open the batting after Usman Hawai’i overcame the back – smashed a 69-ball hundred in his 123 from 83 deliveries as the hosts cruised home in 28.2 overs, leaving England captain Ben Stokes “flabbergasted”.
Hayden added: “When England were effectively 100-1, a little bit of match awareness through a bit more calculated risk and Australia is done. You’re 1-0 up.”
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Stuart Broad considers what Harry Brook needs to adjust ahead of the Brisbane Test
“Brook is such a good player. He looked head and shoulders above the other English batsmen with the amount of time he has, the class.
“Surely he would have wanted an extended batting himself? If he had had a bit more capacity to absorb the pressure, I honestly believe we would have been looking at a different result.”
Speaking about batting in general, Hayden said, “I think it’s always worth letting your eyes adjust, get a feel for the conditions. It can be a period of four or five times when you’re changing gears.”
“You don’t see a Ferrari hurtling around a corner at 350mph – they have to pull back, go through the gears. That’s the art of hitting and why it takes so long to learn this great game.”
What can Crawley learn from Head’s stunning innings?
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Speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast, Matthew Hayden, Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton debate whether Travis Head is the best player across all formats at the moment.
Zak Crawley won the pair in Perth – the first for an England introduction since Atherton in South Africa in 1999 – with his average under 31 as a result.
So what would Hayden’s advice be to the tester ahead of Day Night in Brisbane?
“He needs to find his natural pace. My method was to wear the bowler down at The Gabba – the moment I started thinking about playing on the wicket, I would get out. I thought he would cut and then second slip would be in his hands.
“Zach is a natural striker of the ball but I don’t think if I was coaching him I would ask him to do that in the first 30 or 40 minutes.
“With Head the other day in Perth, we all remember his sloppy innings – but we won’t remember the job he did in the shadows ahead of that brilliant raid. He had at least 20 balls where he just absorbed the pressure.”
I mean someone like Lord Botham. He was a generational player who could change the game and that is Head in this generation. He can change gears, change momentum. When he came out in Perth, I was looking at the body language of the England players and their necks were broken – they couldn’t believe he had opened.
Dog thrower guilty of wrong hitting technique?
Finally, in an era of fast-ending Test matches, Hayden explained why he thinks batting skills may have eroded to some degree.
“Is bare technique capable of withstanding periods of pressure on wickets that move slightly with the new ball? The answer is clearly no.”
“My theory is that a wanger (dog thrower) throwing the ball downfield at a million miles an hour doesn’t give the players enough time to move their feet.
England cricket coach Brendon McCullum uses a pass thrower in training
“What I’m seeing is guys taking an initial step in the balance – it might be a little bit of movement – but then they don’t move the second time around.”
“I think there’s too much reliance on (these devices) as opposed to looking at signs. The bowlers give you the evidence. You can look at a fast bowler and know he’s going to be short.”
“Playing so much T20 cricket carries over to the longest format as well.”
If Root’s technique isn’t on point from now on, we might just see a naked Matthew Hayden. That’s quite a mental image…
Root’s best score in a Test match in Australia is 89
Ashes series in Australia 2025-26
All times Great Britain and Ireland
- First Test (Perth – November 21-25): Australia beat England by eight wickets
- Second test (day/night): Thursday 4 December – Monday 8 December (4am) – The Gabba, Brisbane
- Third test: Wednesday 17 December – Sunday 21 December (11.30pm) – Oval Adelaide
- Fourth test: Thursday 25 December – Monday 29 December (11.30pm) – Melbourne Cricket Ground
- Fifth test: Sunday 4 January – Thursday 8 January (11.30pm) – Sydney Cricket Ground