"He was on the golf course yesterday" - Former cricketers lambast England for having only one net session during entire IND vs ENG 2025 series

Former cricketers Ravi Shastri and Kevin Pietersen lambasted England over reports that they had only one net session since arriving in India. The reactions came on air during the third ODI against India on Wednesday (Feb. 12) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad as the tourists were on their way to another defeat.

Having suffered a 4-1 defeat in the T20I leg, the 50-over series was an opportunity for England to gain some momentum ahead of Champions Trophy 2025. Instead, India outplayed them across facets in all three ODIs, causing England to suffer a series whitewash.

Ex-England captain Pietersen observed that Tom Banton, who had arrived from Dubai ahead of the third ODI, hadn't practiced and spent time playing golf. He elaborated, as quoted by India Today:

"The 2-hour flight from Dubai across here. He (Tom Banton) was on the golf course yesterday. He wasn't batting, and where have the issues come? The start, 1 for 60, 2 for 80. And then, what happens? None of them can play spin. And how do you improve playing spin?"

Before that, Shastri stressed that the visitors must be prepared to do the hard yards if they want to be better, claiming:

"From what I've heard, England have had just one net session this entire trip, if not any. If you're not prepared to do the hard yards, you're not going to improve."

The Englishmen struggled with similar problems in all three ODIs, especially on the batting front, unable to find momentum in the middle overs and players throwing away wickets after promising starts. The bowlers equally struggled despite chopping and changing the line-up for all three games.

---

"Our approach is the right one" - Jos Buttler defends England's gameplay despite series sweep

Jos Buttler. (Image Credits: Getty)

At the post-match presentation, visiting skipper Jos Buttler lamented their failure to keep threatening India consistently and observed how familiar a story it has been for them. Buttler stated:

"Similar to the whole tour, we threatened in stages but were outplayed by a fantastic team. Our approach is the right one, it's just that we haven't executed well. We need to find ways to play that style better."

"They put a really good score on the board. Shubman played a great innings, we were going to have to play really well to chase that down. We got off to a great start again but it's a familiar story for us. We need to find a way to extend that, and bat for longer."

The Englishmen's Champions Trophy campaign kicks off on February 22 against Australia in Lahore.