Nasser Hussain has backed England saying they are not “lazy” and believes their recent results have added to the criticism around their work ethic.
England fell to a heavy defeat in Ahmedabad as India completed an ODI series whitewash earlier this month with Jos Buttler’s side now heading into the Champions Trophy, live on Sky Sports, lacking form and confidence.
Head coach Brendon McCullum defended his team saying the reduced training sessions were due to injuries while Buttler insisted there was not a “lazy environment or lack of effort” within the team.
“I wasn’t in India for England’s recent white-ball tour so I can’t comment too much on that but from what I heard they practised and trained as much as India – India perhaps did one more session. There was a lot of travel-play, travel-rest,” Hussain said.
“Maybe their batters struggling against spin could have gone off and had a net – there are always a lot of spinners in India, high-quality spin, that will run up and bowl at you.
“But this is always highlighted when you lose. Everything gets questioned. When you win it’s, ‘haven’t they got the balance right between rest and play’.
“What I will say is that when I saw England in the Test series in Pakistan under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, they worked as hard as any England side.
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Jos Buttler responds to Ravi Shastri’s comments that England held too few practice sessions during their tour of India.
“They realise there is more to life than just cricket but just because they like a bit of golf or time away from their hotel room to enjoy the county they are in, don’t make that out to be lazy. When they are at work, from what I have seen, they work hard.
“You have to get the balance right as you are there to win, it’s as simple as that. And it was no coincidence that the one player who did net on his day off in India, Joe Root, is arguably the best batter England have ever produced.”
Root is understood to have been the only player to partake in a nets session ahead of the third ODI defeat, with other members of the squad reportedly favouring a round of golf.
“Players aren’t all the same. Some want to go off and do things, some want to work nets – I was someone who wanted to be in the nets every single day because it made me feel good,” Hussain added.
“But some guys, like Darren Gough, you didn’t want in the nets every day. Ian Botham the same. It’s about knowing your team and not having one rule that fits everyone.
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Watch all the action from the ICC Champions Trophy live on Sky Sports from February 19 to March 9
“Naughty boy nets after you have lost is the worst thing ever – you can’t have that for 15-18 cricketers, but you can’t go the other way and say ‘we are not netting today, we are going to play golf all day long’ because certain players know the best thing for them is to hit cricket balls.
“My view is that touch and rhythm players need to constantly hit balls. I played with Graham Gooch at Essex and he got a brilliant hundred at Headingley one day and the next day he was back at Chelmsford hinting balls.
“Then you have fast bowlers. There is no way they can bowl 10 overs in a 50-over game, take a flight from one place to another, check into a hotel, get into a different bed, get up the next day sore, and then you say ‘our batters are out of nick so come and bowl for two hours’. That’s when injuries happen.
“Treat everyone on a case-by-case basis but if they say they are not going to net, then their performance has to show that’s what is best for them. And when you are in the nets you give it everything as you owe it to the travelling fans and yourself to be as well prepared as possible.”
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Nasser Hussain believes the upcoming Champions Trophy is a big tournament for captain Jos Buttler after England’s recent struggles in white-ball cricket.
ICC Champions Trophy schedule
All games 9am UK and Ireland
Group A
- February 19: Pakistan vs New Zealand (Karachi)
- February 20: Bangladesh vs India (Dubai)
- February 23: Pakistan vs India (Dubai)
- February 24: Bangladesh vs New Zealand (Rawalpindi)
- February 27: Pakistan vs Bangladesh (Rawalpindi)
- March 2: New Zealand vs India (Dubai)
Group B
- February 21: Afghanistan vs South Africa (Karachi)
- February 22: Australia vs England (Lahore)
- February 25: Australia vs South Africa (Rawalpindi)
- February 26: Afghanistan vs England (Lahore)
- February 28: Afghanistan vs Australia (Lahore)
- March 1: South Africa vs England (Karachi)
Semi-finals
- March 4: Semi-final (Dubai)
- March 5: Semi-final 2 (Lahore)
Final
- March 9: Final (Lahore or Dubai)
Watch every match from the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy live on Sky Sports between February 19 and March 9 or stream with NOW.
