Langer criticizes Bazball mindset and fallout from England’s collapse
The Ashes opener in Perth was supposed to be a five-day epic — a sunlit showcase of Test cricket in front of a packed Optus Stadium crowd. Instead, it was over in two. Travis Head’s thunderous 123 and England’s reckless collapse meant the match wrapped up before Day 3 even began, leaving fans, broadcasters, and the sport itself reeling from what followed.
Former Australia head coach Justin Langer didn’t mince words. In a sharply worded column in The West Australian, he directed his criticism not just at England’s execution, but their entire approach to the longest format.
“For the England cricket team, this is a disaster,” Justin Langer wrote in The West Australian. “Having been in front for a lot of the game, their lack of respect for the conditions, their opponent and the game of five-day cricket has cost them in this instance.”
Langer, who coached Australia until 2022 and remains one of the format’s staunchest advocates, said the collapse spoke to a wider problem in how England approached the game under their Bazball philosophy. “Missed opportunities tend to keep you awake at night.”
But for Langer, the pain went beyond the scoreboard. The early finish robbed thousands of fans of the Test match experience they had waited months to enjoy — including, as he shared, a number of children whose dreams were dashed.
“In the bigger picture, it is not only England that bear the cost of a two-day Test match. What about the kid who misses the opportunity to watch their first day of Test cricket at Optus Stadium?”
“In the last 24 hours I have heard three stories of heartbroken kids, robbed of the dream of seeing their heroes live,” Langer wrote. “The health of the game is inherently linked with kids falling in love with it. Without that, the game is unsustainable.”
He warned that moments like these, when fans are shut out by the premature end of a match, cut deeper than most realise. “Two-day Tests are three days of missed opportunities for those kids to fall in love with the game.”
Adding a personal dimension to the disappointment, Langer said it hit close to home. “Friends of mine are in that category. We have been talking about day three of the Perth Test for six months. They are shattered.”
Beyond the emotional cost, Langer underscored the tangible financial toll of the shortened Test. “The 2,000 casual staff who miss out on working a shift on Sunday. Let’s not forget them… most will be disappointed and missing out on their much-needed wages.”
He added that the commercial damage extended well beyond staffing. “Their employers at Optus Stadium bear the brunt as much as anyone. They, Cricket Australia and the broadcasters lose millions of dollars.”
According to Langer, the early finish of the match meant a significant financial blow for Cricket Australia and Optus Stadium, with millions lost across ticketing and food and beverage sales. “Day three, a Sunday, will cost CA and the stadium around $10 million [about £5 million] (approx. US$ 6.5m) in ticket and food and beverage sales,” Justin Langer wrote in The West Australian.
“That’s a lot of money that goes back into grassroots cricket,” he added, pointing to the longer-term consequences for community development.
And then, there was the staggering waste. “The hundreds and thousands of dollars’ worth of wasted food prepared to service the 50,000 patrons is a travesty,” Langer wrote.
The collapse that handed Australia a memorable win also left behind a very different kind of mess — one that, in Langer’s view, extends far beyond cricketing pride. His message was clear. Five-day cricket isn’t just tradition — it’s a responsibility.
