Darren Lehmann labels Australia's defeat to England a 'minor hiccup'
Tuesday 14 July 2015 16:15, UK
Australia coach Darren Lehmann has labelled Saturday's defeat to England a "minor hiccup".
Australia lost the opening Investec Ashes Test by 169 runs with more than a day to spare as England took a 1-0 series lead in Cardiff.
Lehmann tried to downplay the significance of the defeat, despite the fact Australia have not won an Ashes series after losing the first Test since 1997.
"They (England) were better. Full stop. Better in all three disciplines - they caught everything," he said.
"It's a minor hiccup and now we've got to get back to it in four days’ time and play better than we have and show the discipline you require to make big runs on these type of wickets and bat a lot longer.
"There was some good bowling from England, there's no doubt about that, full credit to them. But our batters could probably stay in a little bit longer with shot selection I'd say. But having said that, they're quality players and they'll come back well."
The second Ashes Test begins at Lord’s on Thursday, with just four days separating the two opening games. Lehmann expects the short period of rest to work in his side's favour.
"From our point of view it's more of a case of a good, short turnaround for us,” he said.
"I think that's an excellent opportunity for us to get back in to it and learn from our mistakes and play better next Test match around. Yes they're one-up, but it's a long series as we know."
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