Australia coach 'surprised' by England's 'ultra-aggressive' treatment of WTC Final hero

Australia coach pointed a major concern despite the side's impressive win over England in the 1st Ashes Test.

Australia registered an impressive win in the opening match of the Ashes 2023, beating England by two wickets. Pat Cummins, the Aussie skipper, played a heroic unbeaten 44-run knock on the final day of the match, successfully steering a 281-run chase for the side. England did, however, looked the more dominant side for a majority of the match before Cummins' innings snatched the game away from the hosts at Edgbaston. Staying true to their aggressive style of play under captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, England attacked the Australian bowlers in both innings and also took a surprising decision to declare their innings on Day 1 itself.

Australia's Pat Cummins shakes hands with Josh Hazlewood after wining the first Test (Action Images via Reuters)

And while Australia's head coach Andrew McDonald stated that the side was prepared to take on an ‘ultra-aggressive’ England, the hosts' tactic against Scott Boland did take him by surprise.

"We'd seen the way they go about it, they are ultra-aggressive," McDonald told reporters as both teams took a break from training before stepping up preparations for the second Test that begins at Lord's on Wednesday.

“But I think Scott Boland, that match-up probably surprised us how aggressive they were against Scott. So that's something we can look at and find better ways through,” said the head coach.

McDonald stated, however, that it didn't force Australia to alter their plans.

"We feel as though the way we went about it was planned and we executed what we wanted.

"There was some different things thrown at us at different times that clearly surprised us, which is no doubt like any other game of cricket. And then you've got to factor in the surface.

“Day one was potentially the best day to bat, the sun was out and they put some pressure on us,” said the Aussie coach.

The second Test of the series takes place at the iconic Lord's stadium in London between June 28-July 2.