Vaughan starts pre-Ashes mind games, reveals how ball-tampering saga will benefit England

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan reckons that dragging the infamous ball-tampering scandal unnecessarily has shown that there are cracks in the Australian team and at the same time also opened up on how England can use it to their advantage in the Ashes series later this year.

It has been over three years since the infamous ball-tampering incident in Cape Town that shook Cricket Australia along with all the fans around the globe. The event that took place in March 2018 is once again becoming the focal point of discussion after Cameron Bancroft recently suggested that bowlers in the Australian camp were aware of the Sandpaper Gate proceedings. 

'There are cracks in the Australia team that England could exploit': Michael Vaughan

"Dragging up the ball-tampering scandal has shown there are cracks in the Australia team that England could exploit if they start the Ashes series well later this year. David Warner, Steve Smith and the bowlers are under scrutiny again, and it would only take a poor Australia performance in the first Ashes Test for the pressure to mount. The captain, Tim Paine, is under the microscope after defeat by India, and while some think this could galvanise Australia, rarely are such public problems good for a team's unity. "Joe Root will be enjoying this and thinking it could help. He knows an argument or two in the opposing team is always good. But fundamentally, England still have to play great cricket to win in Australia. They should not become distracted by Australia's problems. Enjoy it in private, but rise above it in public," Vaughan wrote in his column for The Telegraph as reported by The Sydney Morning Herald. 

The cricketer-turned-cricket pundit also wants the English team to focus on their own game and come out strongly against a quality Australian outfit. 

"England have enough to worry about in their own backyard, by making sure they arrive with a settled batting unit, a fit bowling attack, and a team who can ultimately win in those conditions. There are cracks in the England team as well, and I see two sides who are quite similar. Both are quite vulnerable and that should make for a fascinating contest," he wrote. 

Ashes 2021/22 schedule finalised

The arch-rivals will kickstart their traditional cricketing rivalry at the 'Gabba' Brisbane from December 8-12 whereas, the second Test match at the Adelaide Oval from December 16-20 will be a Day-Night affair. The iconic Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests will be played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (December 26-30) and Sydney Cricket Ground (January 5-9) respectively, with the final Test scheduled for Perth’s Optus Stadium (January 14-18), as per the ECB release.

Meanwhile, it will be for the first time in 26 years that the final Ashes Test will not be staged in Sydney.

The Aussies successfully retained the urn after drawing the five-match away Test series against England 2-2 in 2019. At the same time, Australia ended up avoiding a defeat on English soil for the first time since 2001.

(With ANI Inputs)