Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
AUSTRALIA v ENGLAND THE LYON & LAMBS
Aussie spinner-sledger rips into England and promises more nightmares
AUSSIE spinner Nathan Lyon took pre-ashes sledging to a new level as he let rip at England with unvarnished delight.
Mitchell Johnson was the star turn and Lyon’s glee at those bragging rights remains undimmed as he was asked who he thought was most unsettled by the pace of his team-mate Down Under in the 2013 5-0 whitewash.
“One to eleven,” said the 30-year-old. “I was at leg slip and I nearly had to push a couple of the guys back towards the stumps. It was good fun.
“Being part of that squad was unbelievable, it’s one of my fondest series. Seeing Mitchell scare all the Poms was an unbelievable feeling. Knowing they are broken. Leading into Perth we knew they were broken.
“We knew Matt Prior wanted to fly home before the game started and he was one of the senior players. He was scared. It’s four years ago. I think he’s all right now.” Prior played in Perth and put on 76 with a century-scoring Ben Stokes as part of a pretty impressive 79-Test career.
“That’s absolutely laughable,” said Prior in response. “If that was the case and I was scared why didn’t I go home then? I have no idea where this has come from.”
Lyon also took aim at old pal Joe Root. “I played with Joe for Prospect Cricket Club in Adelaide and I’m good mates with Joe, so I know him pretty well,” he added. “I know Root got dropped last time he was here, so it’d be good to get him dropped again. I don’t want Joe to go out and say ‘Mate, there you go, here’s a hundred today’. I want to take his wicket, to put him under pressure. Test match cricket is about being resilient.”