Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Football
Netball
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
How to tune into Sport NationWhat confounds Ian Smith about England’s Ashes approach
SEN • November 26th, 2025 1:22 pm
Photo: Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
New Zealand cricket icon Ian Smith has been keeping a close eye on The Ashes from across the ditch.
The Sport Nation Mornings host says the series has made big headlines in NZ which have not made pretty reading for the English and their Kiwi coach Brendon McCullum after the first Test loss in Perth inside two days.
With the English coming to Australia with McCullum’s attacking style, things came unstuck for them at Optus Stadium as they threw away a winning position at Lunch on Day 2 to miraculously lose by eight wickets just four hours of cricket later.
England’s middle order clearly failed to learn from the mistakes of their teammates during their second innings, with three wickets falling in succession to wide length balls outside off that all of Ollie Pope, Harry Brook and Joe Root opted to attack, leading to a collapse.
For Smith, it’s England’s insistence to not change their plans despite obvious evidence that confounds him about the side.
“For God's sake, we're just reading headline after headline over here, and it's not reading well from England's point of view,” Smith told SENQ Breakfast hosts Ian Healy and Corey Parker.
“But the thing that gets me through the whole thing, and I know Brendon pretty well, and we know Stokes’ character, is the resilience.
“Surely, things have got to change. I mean, they've got 11 days in between a 2-day Test and the next Test, it's like starting the tour all over again.
“It confounds me, actually, because cricket is a game where you learn on the go.
“It doesn't matter how old you are, how many games you play, but every day is a learning process where something happens that hasn't happened before, and it just gets me that they just seem unwilling.”
Millsy's not writing the English off after the opening Ashes Test | Millsy & Guy
Despite winning in astonishing fashion, Smith thinks that Australia are flying under the radar with this new-look England side grabbing most of the attention both down under and internationally.
With that in mind, he thinks that the home side is in a brilliant position to improve themselves as the pressure is heaped on the opposition.
“In terms of cylinders in the car, I think Australia operated on about three cylinders,” Smith said.
“It was far from a convincing performance, but I would imagine there's a bit more common sense and a little bit more behind-the-scenes preparation about Australia.
“If you tour Australia, generally as the tourists, you are second fiddle to everything in terms of the media and attention.
“But, Australia now, unbelievably, because of England and their resistance to change, are almost flying under the radar.
“They'll be doing some really serious work behind the scenes, I can promise you that.
“They have a group of guys who will leave no stone unturned. They know exactly what they're going into. They know exactly that there'll be a bounce back, or an attempted bounce back from England, and an aggressive one at that.
“I'm not worried about Australia's prep, because they've been through this. It's their backyard. They'll just go about their business.”
Tune into Sport Nation for live ball-by-ball commentary of The Ashes series, the second Test begins December 4, available on the Sport Nation app via SEN.
