ENG vs IND 2025: 'Zak Crawley is the luckiest cricketer' - Michael Vaughan after England's Edgbaston defeat

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has described opener Zak Crawley as the "luckiest cricketer" he has ever seen. Vaughan highlighted noticeable differences in Crawley’s stance and positioning between the first and second Tests of the ongoing series against India. He stated Crawley appeared more upright in his stance and kept his feet inside the off stump during the first Test at Leeds, but made changes heading into the second Test in Birmingham.

Crawley managed just 88 runs across four innings, with a lone half-century to his name. Vaughan questioned the rationale behind such adjustments, hinting that the inconsistency in technique might be affecting his output at the top of the order.

“In my time watching, playing for and covering England, he is the player luckiest to have won as many caps as he has. He has to count himself fortunate to have played 56 games, whilst scoring just five hundreds, and averaging 31,” Vaughan wrote in his Daily Telegraph column.

“I would love to know why this week, with Bumrah not playing, he suddenly moved two inches outside off stump in his stance. If you do that, you should know that anything outside your eye-line can be left well alone. Instead, he got out in both innings driving with half a bat, with his left foot staying down the middle of the stumps,” Vaughan wrote.

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Vaughan also pointed out that Crawley appears to be concerned about the straight ball, particularly those targeting the stumps, which often leaves him vulnerable to lbw dismissals. The former skipper emphasised on the need for consistency from an opener and urged Crawley to contribute more meaningfully at the top of the order.

“That is a mindset issue; he is so concerned about the straight ball, and being lbw or bowled, that he has got out chasing wide balls in his last three innings. It’s bizarre because in Leeds, Crawley had shown what he can do, and that he can be disciplined … Crawley is so exasperating because he has the game. He plays some glorious shots, and at times makes batting look easy. But he has to score more runs at the top of the order. It cannot be that his job is to produce a wow-factor moment once a series,” Vaughan wrote.

England's performance worries me: Vaughan

Vaughan also conceded his concerns about the overall performance of the England team, noting a sharp contrast between their displays in the first and second Tests. He acknowledged that while England showcased skill and excellence in the opening match, things completely backfired for the hosts in the second Test at Edgbaston.

“If we are honest, England has been absolutely hammered this week … It was a performance that worried me greatly. I fear they used the first match as absolute evidence of how to play Test cricket. They showed great skills in that win, but there was also a lot of fortune involved. They turned up here and thought they should do everything the same way, and it has backfired,” he concluded.