Australia’s quicks says they bowled full after watching England’s wicketless start; Jason Behrendorff reflects on his journey to Lord’s
Aussies given short shrift after ignoring England’s lead
Jason Behrendroff and Mitchell Starc took more wickets than England's entire bowling attack put together in their World Cup clash at Lord’s, and the duo say they learned from the tournament hosts' mistakes.
But England captain Eoin Morgan bristled at suggestions, also made by the likes of Shane Warne and Darren Lehmann on social media, that his quicks bowled too short with the new ball, instead claiming they were unlucky not to make early inroads.
The contrast in how the two sides begun their batting innings proved telling in the 64-run win that has guaranteed Australia’s spot in the semi-finals.
Aaron Finch and David Warner survived a number of close calls early on to register a decisive 123-run opening partnership. England, on the other hand, lost a wicket just two balls into their reply before slumping to 4-55.
Spin legend Warne tweeted that Jofra Archer and Chris Woakes had bowled "way too short" with the new ball, while former Australia coach Lehmann agreed that they didn't put the ball in the right areas.
Fascinating first 10 overs of the match at Lords. Australia have done very well on a difficult surface & the watchful approach is the right one today in these conditions ! England have been way to short with the ball as the conditions favour the ball. 280 looks a good score%E2%80%94 Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) June 25, 2019
Big ✔️ Aussies 1st 10 overs, ball going all over the shop and not putting the ball in the right areas. Too short @MacquarieSport the England Bowlers. 0/44 of 10 @cricketcomau%E2%80%94 Darren Lehmann (@darren_lehmann) June 25, 2019
Australia’s bowlers made the same observations, according to Behrendorff, and vowed to bowl differently when they had the ball in their hand.
"That's something we were assessing as they were bowling. They didn't hit the stumps, or balls weren't going to hit the stumps too often," said the left-armer, who claimed his maiden ODI five-wicket haul.
"So we made a conscious effort to try to pitch up and we hit the stumps as much as we could early doors.
"I think we executed that quite well on the whole, which was really positive. We were able to get off to an excellent start with three wickets in the first ten overs, which is always really important."
Told about Behrendorff's suggestion England missed a trick, Morgan said with a knowing smile: "Of course he did.
"Early on, I don't think we did bowl short. I've just been shown a highlight reel of short deliveries in which poor shots were played.
"They were supposed to be short. They were aimed at guy's shoulder or armpit. I thought we didn't have the rub of the green early.
"We made Australia play and miss a lot. But that's his (Behrendorff’s) opinion and he's entitled to it."
Compared to England's seven wickets in total, Behrendorff and Starc took nine wickets between them, with the former shining brightest despite it being just his eighth ODI and his second game of the World Cup.
Behrendorff took 5-44 and Starc, who snagged 4-43, revealed the WA quick had turned to the senior bowler for advice on how to contend with the famed Lord's slope.
But his quest for inside knowledge came up empty.
"He actually asked me this morning if there was anything of note about the wicket and the angle, and to be honest I didn't have much for him – I haven't played here in about four years," Starc said.
"Apart from the slope of the wicket, for all of us it was just about learning how England bowled at us in the first innings.
"As a bowling group we all wanted to bowl a bit fuller and make them drive the ball and I think we did that really well.
"If you look at the numbers, we definitely bowled fuller than their bowlers. It was a positive for us to bowl them out and win the game fairly strongly."
Behrendorff would likely have played a lot more than his 15 total international games had it not been for a series of crippling injuries in recent years and the 29-year-old admitted he'd had doubts over whether he'd get to this point.
"Some days, especially during all the rehab periods, you think, am I going to get back? Am I going to be able to get out there and play for my country?" he said.
"It's one of those things you dream of as a kid to play cricket for Australia, and then to come here and play at Lord's in my first time here.
"It was something special."
2019 World Cup
Australia's squad: Aaron Finch (c), Jason Behrendorff, Alex Carey (wk), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa
June 1: Australia beat Afghanistan by seven wickets
June 6: Australia beat West Indies by 15 runs
June 9: Australia lost to India by 36 runs
June 12: Australia beat Pakistan by 41 runs
June 15: Australia beat Sri Lanka by 87 runs
June 20: Australia beat Bangladesh by 48 runs
June 25: Australia beat England by 64 runs
June 29: New Zealand v Australia, Lord's (D/N)
July 6: Australia v South Africa, Old Trafford (D/N)
July 9: Semi-Final 1, Old Trafford
July 11: Semi-Final 2, Edgbaston
July 14: Final, Lord's
Sync Australia's World Cup schedule to your calendar HERE
For a full list of all World Cup fixtures, click HERE