Melbourne: In-form batsman Dawid Malan says the Ashes may be gone but England must remain aggressive in the final two Tests against Australia.
Australia reclaimed the Ashes urn with an emphatic innings victory in the Perth Test earlier this week, condemning the remaining Melbourne and Sydney Tests to dead rubbers in the five-Test series.
But Malan, who is the best performing of the tourists’ batsmen with 302 runs at an average of 50.33, said that despite the series being lost, pride was at stake.
“I believe we need to be as aggressive with these guys as they are with us,” he told reporters ahead of the fourth Test in Melbourne, starting on Boxing Day.
“If you ever take your foot off the gas with these blokes, they seem to really dominate.
“I think — batting, bowling or fielding — we have to be aggressive. One little mistake out here, and these guys seem to pounce on it,” added Malan.
“You have to be mentally strong. It is a tough place, but it is as tough as you make it.”
The Middlesex left-hander, who scored his maiden Test century with 140 in Perth, said England had their moments during the series, but have not sustained them.
“You can look back at all three Test matches and say we were in the driving seat for two or maybe three days,” he said.
“It’s just those crucial moments — one session a game, we’ve lost and just fallen away.
“It is disappointing we’ve got nothing to play for in terms of the Ashes but the pride of our players will want to make this 3-2 and we want to show we can perform out here.”
He added that England remained united on what has been a miserable tour.
“No one is feeling sorry for themselves, blaming people or anything like that,” he said.
“We hold our hands up and we need to improve. None of us are the finished article. It’s not through lack of trying.”
Meanwhile, wicketkeeper Tim Paine has joined pace spearhead Mitchell Starc as a doubt for Australia in the Boxing Day Test.
Starc hobbled through Melbourne airport on crutches on Friday cushioning a bruised heel but was not yet ready to concede defeat.
“It won’t be my choice,” he told reporters, on his possible selection.
Reports said that Starc, who is Australia’s leading wicket-taker in the Ashes series with 19, could be ruled out of the fourth Test as soon as Saturday.
If Starc is unable to recover in time, understudy Jackson Bird is expected to take his place in the eleven.
With Australia having already claimed the Ashes, another factor against the left-armer playing in the Boxing Day Test is an upcoming series in South Africa, with selectors keen to pick a healthy Starc in the touring party.
Paceman Ryan Harris, who often played in pain throughout a Test career that included Australia’s home Ashes success four years ago, knows how much of an impediment a bruised heel can be.
“I have had it. They can be quite painful,” Harris told radio on Friday.
“You can’t hide it. You can’t change anything — the way you land or try and get around it.”
Reports emerged on Friday that Paine is also no certainty to play in the showpiece Melbourne Cricket Ground Test.
Paine, who is averaging 43.33 with the bat and has taken 15 catches and a stumping in the series, did not travel to Melbourne with the rest of his teammates because of personal reasons.
The Daily Telegraph reported that Paine had remained at home in Tasmania after his father-in-law suffered a stroke.
If Paine is unavailable for the MCG Test, selectors have several options to consider.
Dropped batsman Peter Handscomb could potentially play as a wicketkeeper, while Cameron Bancroft was behind the stumps for Western Australia during the the early rounds of the domestic Sheffield Shield season.
