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England opener Zak Crawley will have to bat away plenty of criticism fired his way ahead of the second Ashes Test in Brisbane.
Crawley, who has now played 60 Tests for an average of 30.96, made zero twice in the first Test of the series in Perth, contributing to England's thrashing down under after they had initially put themselves in a commanding position.
He was given a mark of zero out of 10 by Daily Mail Sport's cricket correspondent Lawrence Booth in his match ratings. Booth wrote: 'Crawley should have no more than one Test to save his career. Many believe he’s lucky to have got this far.'
In the first innings, Crawley edged his sixth ball behind at the end of the first over of the game. In the second innings, he was caught and bowled by Mitchell Starc - the man who also got him in the first innings.
It has left him open to criticism, with fans questioning his spot before the series already.
One fan posted on social media of the Kent man: 'How is Zak Crawley still an England opener is beyond me [sic]. Constantly gives his wicket away with poor shots.'
Zak Crawley has faced criticism from pundits and fans following his poor showing in the first Ashes Test
Crawley got a pair in the game and became the first England opener to be dismissed for zero twice this century
Another wrote: 'There is a hell of a player in Zak Crawley and when he's good he's unbelievable. But whoever you support, England blindly sticking with him for 60 tests because he'll "suit Australian conditions" and then him getting a pair in the first Test is equal parts mental and hilarious.'
A third posted: 'Zak Crawley is so funny because you could literally have had any person in the country opening the batting for England and we wouldn't have been in a worse position, what a comical figure.'
Crawley became the first England opener to score a duck in both innings of a Test match in 26 years in Perth - the first since Michael Atherton in Johannesburg in 1999.
Atherton, who is now a pundit with Sky Sports, said on the broadcaster's YouTube channel: 'Crawley is under pressure, but I don't think they will change. [Jacob] Bethell could open.
'They are so invested in Crawley that I don't see them making what would be seen as a panic change after one game.'
Former England opener Geoffrey Boycott, meanwhile, who has been critical of his former side's approach of late, wrote in the Telegraph: 'Zak Crawley got out to two shockers. A first-innings waft and a second-innings firm-push caught-and-bowled.'
Fox reporter Nick Savage, meanwhile, revealed that Crawley has been dismissed for single figures in 41 per cent of his Test innings.
Still, the 27-year-old was England's top run scorer in the last Ashes series, and is regularly praised for his cathartic innings when he is in form.
Fans flooded to social media to question Crawley's spot in the team after the game
He is on the hunt for that form, though, and England will be keen for him to find it sooner rather than later as they look to bounce back quickly from their humbling defeat.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain said of Crawley: 'I don't see them making many changes. Crawley bagged a pair, and they have built Crawley up, and they’ve backed Crawley and let him be for this Ashes series.
'They believe that Crawley would go well in Australia because of the type of player he is, but two and two — he's got two ducks — so he's going to have to really dig deep and work it out. You cant be driving at Mitchell Starc in the first over of an Ashes Test, because that will cause you problems.'
The second Test starts on December 4 at The Gabba in Brisbane.
