Ricky Ponting: England's planning, thoughts and structures have just been completely wrong

The former Australia captain criticised England's team selections in Brisbane and Adelaide, accusing the tourists of constantly planning ahead without focusing on the game in front of them

England's Ashes campaign was doomed for failure from their team selection for the first Test, believes Ricky Ponting.

Speaking after the tourists' innings defeat at Melbourne ensured that the series was finished as a live contest before even reaching its middle day, the former Australia captain accused England's decision-makers of overthinking their big calls to such an extent that they ended up snookering themselves.

Recalling the opening Test at Brisbane, for which there was a poor weather forecast and a green pitch, as well as little history of spinners playing a key role, England opted for Jack Leach over Stuart Broad, while leaving out James Anderson as a precaution to have him ready for the day-night Test in Adelaide.

Anderson told reporters after his four-wicket haul at the MCG that he had been "fit for that game". It was just the third time in 169 matches that England had gone into a Test without either of their great fast bowlers.

"They've out-thought themselves with their selections for Brisbane, looking forward to Adelaide and then looking forward to the MCG," said Ponting, analysing the series for Channel Seven.

"Pick your best team from the start and then see how far that group can take you. The fact that Anderson and Broad didn't play in Brisbane is staggering."

^{James Anderson and Stuart Broad were both left out at Brisbane (Chris Hyde/Getty Images)}

Once selecting Mark Wood, Chris Woakes and Ollie Robinson as their seam attack – alongside Ben Stokes, in his first competitive red-ball game for England since March after a significant spell out of the game – they won the toss in overcast conditions but chose to bat first. Rory Burns was bowled round his legs by Mitchell Starc to the first delivery of the series, which set a grisly tone for all that has followed.

"The fact that Joe Root didn't bowl first in Brisbane was staggering," added Ponting. "The fact that Mark Wood didn't play in Adelaide was staggering. He looked like one of the most likely bowlers up in Brisbane."

Wood was a rare bright spark in a nine-wicket defeat, offering searing pace and hostility in a team otherwise absent of those qualities, with Jofra Archer and Olly Stone both missing with injuries.

But with England worried about the burden on their X-Factor fast bowler, they rested him for the pink-ball Test at Adelaide, instead unleashing Broad and Anderson together – both fresh after missing the opener, but also rusty because of the shortage of cricket in the build-up.

For the second time this year – following a similarly galling defeat at Ahmedabad – they had drastically misjudged the conditions of a day-night Test.

"All their planning, and thought, and structures have just been completely wrong and it's come back to bite them."

- Ricky Ponting on England's series so far #Ashes pic.twitter.com/5rfVwPt6x4

— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) December 28, 2021

Leach, taken down by Australia's left-handers at Brisbane, was left out despite the Adelaide Oval's curator publicly warning them that not selecting a spinner would be a serious error. Robinson ended up bowling off-spin, while Dawid Malan unfurled his part-time leg-breaks. Leach and Wood watched on from the sidelines.

Ponting said: "All their planning, their thoughts and their structures have just been completely wrong, and it's come back to bite them.

"There's no good looking forward from Brisbane if you're going to be one or two nil down. And that's what it was: they planned for Melbourne – already being two-nil down, they've come here and been pantsed again. So, they've got some really, really deep thinking to do."

Our coverage of the Ashes is brought to you in association with Cricket 22