Lyon put himself in spin

ENGLAND captain Joe Root has fired back in response to Nathan Lyon, calling the pre-Ashes niggle irrelevant and suggesting the Aussie placed undue pressure on himself.

Lyon ignited a war of words with Matt Prior when he claimed the former England wicketkeeper wanted to leave Australia mid-series four years ago because he was scared of Mitchell Johnson.

Lyon also outlined Australia’s desire to end careers and attempted to turn up the heat on Root, highlighting the fact he was dropped in 2013-14 amid Australia’s match towards a 5-0 series win. “That’s not how I’d want my players to go about things,” Root said, confirming Jake Ball was in.

Paceman Jimmy Anderson suggested his squad has shared a laugh about Lyon’s barbs.

“I wonder whether he’s lost a bet or something, to come out with the stuff that he’s been coming out with,” noted stirrer Anderson told the BBC.

Root also poured sardonic scorn on Lyon.

“I played club cricket with him in Prospect (South Australia) and, at the time, we weren’t sure who was the first spinner,” Root quipped.