A humiliating Ashes deja vu, despite a new era
When England embarked on the 2025–26 Ashes tour under the Bazball banner, few could have predicted they would find themselves three Tests down with the urn already gone. Yet here they are—thoroughly outplayed, their revolution in crisis. Despite promises of fearless cricket and strategic innovation, England’s campaign has looked strikingly similar to previous failures down under.
Brendon McCullum, speaking to BBC Test Match Special, acknowledged that much of the blame for England’s Ashes collapse lay in the preparation. Reflecting on the series, he admitted, “It is disappointing when you lose and I’m sure there will be plenty of questions asked and rightfully so.”
The coach didn’t shy away from accountability either, noting, “We haven’t got everything right. I haven’t got everything right as a coach and I put my hand up for that.”
Planning gone wrong and doubts emerge
England’s decision to limit warm-up matches and rely on internal match simulations was inspired by previous success in India and Pakistan. McCullum explained, “I have been very strong about the conviction we had and our preparation and, you know, for us, it was a matter of trying to replicate what we have done in series that have been successful for us away from home.”
But he also conceded, “Maybe we didn’t get that right and I’ll acknowledge that.” As the tour spiraled, so did the confidence in their methods. “Ultimately you are responsible for how you get your side ready and how you prepare them,” McCullum added. “We are 3-0 down so you would probably say there was room for change there.”
Even with the best intentions, McCullum now accepts that the approach fell short: “Again, you put your hand up as a coach and say you might not have got that right.” He continued, “At the same time I felt it would give us our best chance because it has previously. Sitting here 3-0, it didn’t work.”
In hindsight, he pointed to over-training ahead of the Brisbane Test: “The five intense training days leading into Brisbane when we knew it was going to be hot,” and summarized the introspection simply: “A few things you look at retrospectively.”
Missed chances and blurred identity
The core of McCullum’s disappointment comes from the team’s inability to stay true to their aggressive brand of cricket. “Your job as a coach is to try get performance on the field. I was confident we had it right but obviously we didn’t,” he said. “The last two days [in Adelaide] have been our best cricket and that is because we have just played.”
England’s confusion under pressure was telling. “When you’re put under immense pressure, your decision making can become a little blurred at times and you don’t know whether to stick or twist,” McCullum noted. “That’s probably the disappointing aspect because I did think we were rock hard in our belief of the style we were going to play when we were down here, knowing we were going to be challenged.”
He concluded: “But I do think we got a little bit stuck and, again, I’ll put my hand up as coach and say there should have been that absolute clarity of ‘whatever happens in this series, this is how we need to play’ because that is going to give us our best chance.”
Looking ahead: changes or more of the same?
Speaking to TNT Sports, McCullum acknowledged the scrutiny around England’s planning: “What did we get right? What did we get wrong? Probably we go back to the preparation, that’ll be something that gets questioned.”
On the fourth Test at the MCG, he said England would stay flexible: “We’ll have a look at the conditions (in Melbourne) and, as we always do, we’ll try and work out what we think will give us the best chance in that game. If that’s changes, it’s changes. If it’s not, it’s not.”
Still, he emphasized that the series is not over. “We do have a great opportunity in the next two Tests. We need to find something out of this tour, salvage some pride and play for all the people who came to Australia to support this team and all the people back in England who have supported this team as well.”
Critics pile on: ‘No different’ than old failures
Former England captain Nasser Hussain, speaking on the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast (Ashes Daily episode), voiced both understanding and disappointment. “I quite like the fact they have done things different over the last four years since the last Ashes drubbing. They’ve thought ahead. If you carry on doing what you have always done, you will get the same results, so they saw we need to do something different.”
But after three matches, he added, “But actually, if you’ve come here and looked at them in the last three-four weeks you’d have thought ‘is it really that different from any other England side?’ They’ve not batted well, they’ve not bowled well, they’ve not caught well. Under key moments and pressure situations they’ve buckled.”
Hussain didn’t hold back in drawing historical parallels: “Every other England side apart from the (Andrew) Strauss side [in 2010-11] has come here and lost and lost convincingly. Joe Root has now played 17 Test matches in Australia; he hasn’t won one,” he said on the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast – Ashes Daily episode.
Hussain extended his criticism to England’s overall strategic shift under Bazball, suggesting that bold decisions failed to deliver meaningful change. “So that’s why there was this rethink, but actually, even after the massive rethink and left-field selections and ‘we must have pace’ and ‘we must have batters that put bowlers under pressure’, actually we’ve ended up getting exactly what we’ve had on virtually every other Ashes tour and that’s what disappoints me because I thought this time, with this opposition, it might have been slightly different,” he added.
He summed it up plainly: “It has been no different.”
Michael Atherton, also on the podcast, echoed the disillusionment. “We’ve been on a lot of Ashes tours – I think this is my 10th – and played in a few bad ones, watched a few bad ones, seen a few whitewashes.” He added, “Actually, this has been as disappointing as any for me because I felt England had the tools to do the job here or to at least challenge and I felt that there were weaknesses or areas to exploit in the Australian team.”
Atherton pointed out, “They have been beaten 3-0 in three Test matches by a team that has only had Pat Cummins for one game, that hasn’t had Josh Hazlewood for three, that hasn’t had Nathan Lyon for one and we’ve seen him go off with a hamstring strain and he probably won’t play the rest of the series.”
Atherton underscored the weight of this particular defeat by comparing it to one of England’s worst previous tours. “Your record-breaking Ashes defeat here in 2003/03 was against a truly great Australian team and that is what makes it so disappointing for me here.”
He then invoked a classic piece of Ashes wisdom to emphasize just how far short this England side has fallen. “An Ashes-winning captain of many, many years ago, Len Hutton, said you’ve got to play 25 per cent better than your best in Australia to win. What I feel about this team is that they’ve been 25 per cent below their best with bat, ball and in the field and that is what makes it such a disappointing three games for me.”
Selection, strategy, and no front-line spinner
Much of the criticism has been directed at selection decisions. Hussain questioned how England could arrive in Adelaide and not field a proper spinner: “And that’s the other thing I’d have to say to this England – they’ve had four years to prepare for this Ashes series and they get to Adelaide and they’ve not picked a front-line spinner.”
He continued, “Now, Stokes can look at that ball as much as he wants, and it was a good ball, when he got out to Nathan Lyon but that, for me, is like a moment they are playing their best spinner and we’re playing a part-timer and this pitch did spin on day four, day five.”
Public and player voices
Ben Stokes, despite the collapse, insisted on continuing the journey. “We’re not going to stop,” he said during the post-match presentation.
As England prepare for the fourth Test, Nasser Hussain raised tactical questions about team balance — particularly around Will Jacks. “You could argue he should just play as a batter who bowls a bit of off-spin,” he said, suggesting that England may be underutilizing his primary skills.
Looking at possible changes for the Boxing Day Test, he added, “So play at number three if you want in the next game. I wouldn’t be playing Ollie Pope in the next game, I’d either play (Jacob) Bethell or Jacks at three. I’ll have to think about that carefully.”
Michael Vaughan, writing in The Telegraph, warned of sweeping consequences. “The whole approach of this England side has been badly exposed on this Ashes tour, and you don’t have to look far into history to know that heads will roll after a defeat like this.”
Former captain Sir Alastair Cook acknowledged the clear superiority of the Australian side, but also pointed to the internal disappointment England would carry. Speaking to TNT Sports, he remarked, “Australia deserve it. England will feel an air of regret over these three games.”
Phil Tufnell, speaking on BBC Test Match Special, credited the hosts for their tactical edge. “It has been a thoroughly professional [from Australia]. Australia have out-thought England in many situations. You have got to take your hat off.”
Hussain also pointed out the rare opportunity England had been given, considering the number of setbacks in Australia’s lineup. “If you had told the England hierarchy here and back home that Josh Hazlewood isn’t going to bowl a ball, Nathan Lyon is going to get injured, Cummins is gonna miss a couple of Test matches, Smith is gonna be out, they’d have gone ‘wow,’” said Nasser Hussain on Sky Sports Cricket.
Kevin Pietersen, a vocal critic of England’s recent performances, didn’t mince words following the third Test. Reacting to England’s failure despite Australia missing key players, he posted on Twitter: “No Hazlewood, hardly any Cummins, Smith, Lyon etc etc, makes this defeat tough to understand!”
No Hazlewood, hardly any Cummins, Smith, Lyon etc etc, makes this defeat tough to understand!
— Kevin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) December 21, 2025
His frustration wasn’t just about the opposition’s injuries—it extended to England’s poor application with the bat. “Seen more dismissals this morning that tell me all I need to know about an earlier tweet I wrote, saying that, batters are not tuned into Test Cricket anymore,” he added, questioning the current generation’s Test-match readiness.
Seen more dismissals this morning that tell me all I need to know about an earlier tweet I wrote, saying that, batters are not tuned into Test Cricket anymore.
— Kevin Pietersen🦏 (@KP24) December 21, 2025
Michael Vaughan also chimed in on social media, poking fun at Stuart Broad’s now-infamous pre-series comments about Australia being the “worst team in 15 years.” With England trailing 3-0, Vaughan quipped on Twitter: “Broady was close pre series with his summary of both teams but he just got it the wrong way round … 😂😂 #Ashes”
Broady was close pre series with his summary of both teams but he just got it the wrong way round … 😂😂 #Ashes ..
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) December 21, 2025
Searching for meaning in a lost series
With two Tests remaining, England’s goal has shifted from winning the series to salvaging some dignity. The bold Bazball experiment may not be over, but it is battered. Whether lessons are learned and applied will be the true test—not of style, but of substance.
