Geoffrey Boycott slams English batters after Oval loss, says 'They are not good enough'

Former England cricketer Geoffrey Boycott has slammed English batters for failing to withstand pressure against Indian quicks in the fourth Test match at The Oval. Boycott, in his column for The Telegraph, said English batters need to stand in front of a mirror and be honest with themselves regarding what is going on in their minds before they come out to bat. Boycott said English batters need to learn how to handle pressure in tough situations as they usually collapse when put under tight spots. 

'Not smart batting' says Boycott

Boycott said most England fans don't have confidence in the team when the Joe Root-led side is batting because they don't know how they will perform. He said nobody was expecting England to chase down the target of 291 runs on Day 5 of the fourth Test match but a draw was not a far-fetched idea and England batters should have been able to achieve it. However, the English players batted poorly on what was relatively a flatter pitch as they were bowled out by Indian pacers cheaply for 210 runs. Boycott said it was not smart batting from England batters, who he feels got out off deliveries that had nothing to do with the pitch. 

Boycott, who played for England between 1964 to 1982, said it is not the bowling attack that is letting the team down, the problem is with the batting. Boycott said unless the team plays well when put out to bat, England will keep suffering collapses even if the bowling unit performs well. Boycott said England can't be a one-man team with Joe Root scoring all the runs in the batting unit, adding "to be a top side other batters will have to step up and contribute to the team's total". 

India won the fourth Test match by a whopping 157 runs as Indian bowlers wreaked havoc on a relatively flat pitch to crush England's inexperienced batting line-up. India will go into the fifth Test match with a 2-1 lead in the series. From England's perspective, the series can only be drawn even if they win the fifth Test match in Manchester, while India will look to win the match and take the Pataudi Trophy home. The fifth Test match starts on Friday, September 10 at the Old Trafford ground. 

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