MITCHELL JOHNSON: England bowler Matthew Potts’ time-wasting shows cricket needs a send-off rule

England’s concern for the spirit of cricket didn’t seem to last too long, did it?

A little more than a year after the lectures from Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes over Alex Carey’s stumping of Jonny Bairstow in the Ashes, all bets were off.

England’s one-day international team didn’t appear too worried about “the spirit” with their comical attempts to waste time in the hope of rain saving them from defeat in the fifth ODI in Bristol on Sunday.

England bowler Matthew Potts managed to waste three minutes by calling for a new shoe with just 14 balls needed for Australia to reach the 20-over mark of their innings – enough for it to be constituted a match and with Australia well ahead of the DLS par score.

It was actually funny stuff. It did remind me of the 2009 Test match in Cardiff. Australian captain Ricky Ponting was furious back then, as we all were, for the way the English blatantly wasting time.

“We’ve seen this movie before,” Ponting said from the commentary box this week.

“This is getting funnier by the minute. We can see that there’s nothing wrong with the boot.”

Time wasting in cricket has long been part of the game in all sorts of situations, from both the bowling and batting side.

But it was ironic to see it from a country that has positioned themselves as the moral vanguards of the sport.

We have to look at the rules and laws of the game. Players will always push the limits to the line.

Perhaps what England did was within the rules. And perhaps Australia might have tried something similar.

But if it was the other way around, I wonder how the crowd would have reacted and how the England players would have responded.

These situations are the times when the umpires really need to step up and control the game and keep the match moving forward. This is the job they are there for, right?

If we want to stop these kinds of scenarios, it’s also time to back the umpires by giving them some real teeth. The match referee dishing out fines after a match doesn’t do anything given the vast sums the world’s top cricketers are making.

Cricket needs to introduce a system where players can be sent from the field if the umpires believe they are blatantly wasting time.

Something that will have a real impact and make players think twice about doing it.

In the end, Australia managed to scrape over the 20-over mark before the downpour arrived after 20.4 overs for a deserved 3-2 series victory.

Interestingly, stand-in captain Steve Smith employed a spin-to-win strategy after the England batters’ explosive start, with the Aussie spinners bowling 32 of the last 34 overs.

The 32.2 overs of spin was the most Australia have ever bowled in a men’s one-day match, with part-timers Glenn Maxwell, Travis Head, Cooper Connolly and Matthew Short supporting Adam Zampa.

What I liked about the Australian ODI side in England is that it seems like it has become a specialised team. They have one of the most exciting batting line-ups in the world.

It really is a big-hitting though fragile middle order as it can all collapse in a heap, but as a whole the batting line-up is working and has a nice balance of experience and youth.

Australia left Pat Cummins at home and had a few injuries but were able to cover all bases which is a big positive.

This is why one-day cricket is still important. It gives opportunities to the up-and-comers who can gain a lot of experience playing this format.

Connolly didn’t get much of a go in his ODI debut, bowling four overs and not being required to bat way down at No.8.

It was still a great experience for him to play in a deciding game like that under intense pressure with the England batsmen – and crowd – coming at him.

Who knows what Connolly’s role in Australia’s white-ball teams will be going forward. It’s early days of course but I wonder if there are any similarities with him and a young Smith, coming in as a spin bowler batting at No.8. Maybe it’s a sign of things to come.

Connolly, 21, has shown glimpses of what he is capable of and has plenty of time on his side. I’ll look for him to have a good season with Western Australia and Perth Scorchers, some valuable time in the middle is key for him with bat and also with ball.