Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has questioned the England Cricket team after suffering back-to-back defeats in the Champions Trophy 2025 which led to a group-stage exit.
Ashwin has called England to take subcontinent tours seriously after another ICC tournament debacle, this time in the Champions Trophy.
England suffered the loss in their opening two fixtures against Australia and Afghanistan, which saw their campaign cut short in the global tournament in Pakistan.
They also suffered a group stage exit during the ODI World Cup 2023 in India when they were knocked out in the group stage.
The pressure on Jos Buttler’s captaincy, he has admitted that the team should consider all possibilities. Ashwin who retired from International cricket at the end of 2024, has opened up on the continuous failures of the 2019 champions.
“I saw Jos Buttler’s post-match interview (after the Afghanistan game). He was very candid in saying, ‘I do not know what my leadership aspirations are in the future.’ They had a terrible 50-over World Cup in 2023.”
“And now they are out of the 2025 Champions Trophy. 1. They don’t qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final. So, with all that in mind, I think England are at a crossroads,” said Ravichandran Ashwin.
“There was a statement from Ben Duckett after losing the first ODI in India. He said, ‘We don’t care if we lose 3-0 to India. Because we want to beat India in the final of the Champions Trophy.’ It reflects their mindset. Is it so easy to go to a major competition and win the final?” he added.
Ashwin also analysed England’s batting and how their Bazball approach is backfiring.
“There is no consistent template in your batting. You were marketing and branding Harry Brook as the next generation’s sensation. But Harry Brook’s game is also sinking. He is now under immense pressure to produce match-winning knocks,” he said.
“What’s happened with England in this Bazball generation is something that they have to retrospect. Ravi Shastri has given an amazing comment: that England needs to take sub-continental tours very seriously,” he said.
“The World Cups England won in 2019 (ODI) at home and in 2022 (T20I) in Australia—they actually haven’t come to the sub-continent and won anything of repute.”
“Teams like Australia travel very well. They prepare well. They perform well. South Africa also prepares. They put in good performances.
“But England, I still feel, treats sub-continental tours just as a tick box. Has the time come for England to really dig in and think about it?” concluded Ravichandran Ashwin.
England will play their next Champions Trophy match against South Africa on March 01 at National Bank Stadium.
