Stuart Broad rips Aussie cricket greats over Ollie Robinson Ashes furore

England fast bowler Stuart Broad has taken aim at two legends of Australian cricket over their disparaging remarks about Ashes 'villain' Ollie Robinson. Test greats Ricky Ponting and Matthew Hayden were both critical of Robinson, who came under fire in England's first Test defeat at Edgbaston after an expletive-laden outburst at Aussie centurion Usman Khawaja.

The incident saw Robinson cop backlash from around the cricket world before he dragged Ponting into the debate, by insisting his former Aussie sides frequently gave opposition sides similar sprays. That sparked a stinging rebuke from Ponting towards Robinson, with the former captain saying the bowler needed to back up his words with performances.

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Robinson also described as a "forgettable cricketer" by fellow Aussie great, Hayden, who refused to use the 29-year-old's name in a radio interview last week. Speaking ahead of the second Test - which gets underway at Lord's on Wednesday - Broad suggested the Aussies were guilty of hypocrisy when it came to the fallout over Robinson's comments. Broad pointed to the fact Robinson had been cleared of any offence and defended his teammate after the "disparaging" remarks from Hayden.

"Ultimately, the ICC had no problem with Ollie's reaction to dismissing Khawaja in the first innings and I didn't like Matthew Hayden's disparaging comments about him," Broad wrote in his Sunday Mail column in England. "Ollie averages 21 with the ball in Test cricket over a decent amount of time and bowls in a very similar way to Glenn McGrath."

Stuart Broad sees hypocrisy in Aussie outrage

Broad also suggested angry Aussie fans have short memories, given the response to Broad's refusal to walk after edging a catch to slip at Trent Bridge in 2013. "Weren't T-shirts being sold in Australia 10 years ago about me, with swear words on?" Broad wrote.

"Now a couple of expletives the other way and everyone is piling in. Where are we going with this? Ricky Ponting had a bit of a nibble because Robbo brought his name into things during a press conference, but not because Ricky was a huge sledger.

"Ollie had a bit of a mind blank, Ricky Ponting was the most famous ex-Aussie cricketer he could think of, and that Australia team he played in was hardly full of shrinking violets, so the hoo-ha that was created surprised us." Broad's column came after a week of bullish talk from England, with multiple players and coach Brendon McCullum having claimed they felt like they won the first Test despite a two-wicket defeat.

Aussie side refuses to engage in war of words

Robinson and England coach Brendon McCullum were also among those to suggest the home side had won the psychological battle with their 'Bazball' approach in the first Test, despite the two-wicket defeat. "Obviously it’s worked for them this Test match. But we feel that with the way they’re playing at the moment, a pitch with a bit more movement would benefit us hugely," Robinson said.

"Baz (McCullum) said it after the game, ‘It feels like we’ve won, lads’. We’ve entertained the world, and we’ve put the Aussies on the back foot. For him to say that after a loss is quite significant for us.” Robinson even went as far to claim the team was looking to revolutionise the way people look at cricket, which could be remembered in 20-30 years.

Australia have so far refused to engage in a war of words with the hosts, even if batting coach Michael di Venuto took a subtle swipe. "They seem to have a lot to say at the moment," he said about England. "We can't control what they say or do. We will look after ourselves and play the way we play."

with AAP

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