Sydney, Jan 4 Former England captain Michael Atherton believes the ongoing Ashes series has become "one-dimensional" due to the lack of spin bowling caused by pitches being more in favour of fast bowlers.
England did not select a specialist spinner for any of the five matches, with off-spinner Shoaib Bashir overlooked, while Will Jacks bowled occasional off-spin but was not considered a frontline option.
Australia, meanwhile, named Nathan Lyon for the first and third Tests but omitted the veteran off-spinner from the day-night fixture in Brisbane before losing him to a hamstring injury sustained during their series-clinching victory in Adelaide. The hosts opted against replacing Lyon with fellow off-spinner Todd Murphy in both Melbourne and Sydney Tests.
"It means the cricket we have seen in this series has been a bit one-dimensional. Looking at the pitch (on day one in Sydney), you wouldn't say it offered enough for five seamers but that is not to say it is going to turn on the last day either. We will have to wait and see.
"(Not picking a spinner) may be a reflection on Murphy - if Lyon had been fit, I imagine he might have played. Murphy is not a bad bowler but he is no Lyon. Pitches have become more uniform and less varied, partly because of the drop-ins at the multi-sport grounds like Brisbane and Adelaide.
"Sydney used to be the outlier in terms of spin and if that's gone the way of the other grounds in terms of more grass left on there is a lack of variety and that is not necessarily a good thing for the game. What you want to see in a five-Test series is the whole range of skills," said Atherton on Sky Sports’ Cricket Podcast.
Ex-England captain Nasser Hussain expressed a different perspective. "I think you have to be careful. The forecast is to be hot and you have to pick a side for the last day as well as the first day. However, I think both captains feel that with the heat the cracks will open up and that's when you want your seamers."
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