Key takeaways from Brett Lee's podcast with Andrew Symonds

Among things discussed in the podcast, the first was regarding Joe Root's stepping down as England Captain. Calling it a wise and progressive decision, the anchors expressed their hopes to see Root enjoy his cricket as a player and score hundreds more regularly, without any pressure of captaincy. 

They likened him to Indian legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar, who played tremendously well, particularly after stepping aside from leadership and focussing on his batting.

The discussion then turned towards Australian cricket, and the capabilities of Jhye Richardson, as a frontline bowler for Australia.

What came about in consensus was the opinion that Richardson is among the top five in Australia at the moment and has the potential to challenge the big three, that is, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, for a place in the eleven.

The anchors found Richardson's pace and aggression quite similar to that of South African fast-bowling legend Dale Steyn. However, his injury could cost him dearly in his career, and he could lose his place to other bowlers such as Scott Boland, who could be knocking on the selectors' doors in the near future, felt the anchors. 

The next topic of discussion was Josh Inglis, the new wicketkeeper-batter from Western Australia, who did exceedingly well for the Perth Scorchers in the BBL and for Australia in his debut series against Sri Lanka earlier this year.

With his impressive big-hitting abilities, he is being considered a great inclusion to the white ball side and a neck to neck competitor to Alex Carey for that wicketkeeper's slot, not only in white-ball cricket but also in Test cricket. 

Coming to the Ashes 2021-22, apart from the fact that the series was disappointing, the anchors were impressed by Scott Boland's bowling spell in the Boxing Day Test, where he scalped a ridiculous 6 for 7. His grit, determination and journey from being an indigenous player to coming all the way to representing Australia at the highest level were thoroughly lauded. 

They also added that the English batters made him and his bowling look like that of the Great Dennis Lillee, who is widely regarded as the best fast bowler Australia ever produced.

What also made a splash in the anchors' minds was the very first ball of the Aussie summer, when Mitchell Starc literally uprooted the stumps and sent England opening batter Rory Burns back to the pavilion. 

The fact that Starc executed that delivery and its subsequent spells later in the series during a time his place in the side was under heavy scrutiny, and the press had almost written him off was what left the anchors in awe.