Darren Lehmann: “It was an outstanding Test series. I’m not sure where that comes from, from Moeen, but that’s his opinion”
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
England all-rounder Moeen Ali recently expressed his concerns about the future of Test cricket, but does Australia head coach Darren Lehmann share the same view?
Moeen said that the recent Ashes series against Australia was “disappointing” due to the number of people that attended the five Tests.
However, Lehmann pointed out that the crowd sizes were brilliant. In fact, a record attendance was recorded during the day-night Test in Adelaide and on Boxing Day in Melbourne, where 88,172 people packed the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
When asked if he agrees with Moeen’s thoughts on the longest format, Lehmann told cricket.com.au: “No, I don’t. I thought the Ashes crowds were fantastic, our crowds were great.
“I think they broke all records, whether they were at the ground or watching, streaming or listening on the radio.
“It was an outstanding Test series. I’m not sure where that comes from, from Moeen, but that’s his opinion.
“From my point of view as a cricket fan, I loved it. It was great. I thought it was intense cricket. The games could have gone either way.
“Four-nil wasn’t probably a fair reflection of how England played. I thought they played quite well.
“For me, I think Test cricket is alive, and we only had to see the way people turned up to the whole game throughout the summer.”
Meanwhile, Lehmann admitted that he is looking forward to the four-Test series against South Africa, which begins on March 1 in Durban.
Lehmann added that he expects “good” pitches to be prepared throughout the series, but added that he won’t be surprised if “they spice them up” to increase their chances of winning.
“If they spice them up, then great, game on,” he said. “I’m not too worried about whichever way they go with the wickets, that’s up to them.
“From our point of view, we’re going to have to play well against a quality bowling attack and they’re going to have to play well against ours.”