So what changes for Lords? (either side)
(Harmisson in for Panesar or Swann?)
(Lee / Clark in for ??)
And what of England's batting - does it need a change of personal, or just a change of heart (as in getting some)?
England vs Australia - First Test - Day 5
Aus 6 dec / 674, England 435 and 9 / 252 : Match Drawn! Bugger!
Australia average 112 per wicket lost, England 36. Can't we bring in some sort of count back system or something....;-)
For English fans at least, that draw will be another one of those 'where were you when..." moments. Panesaar and Andersen hung on. Australia tried, well, they didn't try that much did they, but at big moments I guess you've got to entrust things to the guys that were picked to do exactly that job which Ponting did. He played the percentages with regards to choice of bowlers but it didn't come off this time. (Katich only 3 overs though? Hmmm?)
Anyway, as has happened plenty of other times in Test Cricket, one side dominated four fifths of th match entirely, but England did enough. Everyone will remember the dieing 10 overs and Monty hung on for dear life and squeezed out enough runs and minutes to frustrate Australia. As with all these draws there was clearly one side elated and one side very very disappointed. Australia certainly dominated enough of the game to have won, but having said that, England battled just enough (or a few of their batsmen did anyway) to deny Australia of their just rewards. That's cricket. There were plenty of other times when Australia could've won it, not just those last 10 overs. I said the game slipped away from Australia on the second morning when the English tail added all those runs. It's probably unfair to say that cost us the game after everything else that transpired - you can't win every minute of the game, but in hind sight, that's what it would've taken to get over the line in this one.
How much solice can Australia take from a "morale victory" - (awful word that) - well not much! We don't have a column for morale vistories in the score line, so as the dust settles, Australia now need to front up and be prepared to do it all again this Thursday. Frustrating, sure, but that's what they're paid for right?! Good batting form is gold in a series like this and Australia certainly have that. England, not so much - but things can change as we saw last time around.
Harmisson will probably play. Flintoff will be better for the match time, although fronting up again in a few days will obviously test him. England haven't won at Lords since 1934 and if that changes this week, Australia will be one sad and sorry lot.
Better get some sleep for the next few nights so we can do it all again next Thursday.
Gotta love the Ashes!
England vs Australia - First Test - Day 4
Australia smash England! Some mental scars left over from the Adelaide Test have possibly been re-opened today. England had scored 435 in first innings, yet have wound up batting last, facing a 239 run deficit on a deteriorating pitch - amazing physical and mental domination by the Aussies. I for one had given up hope of win early on Day 2 when the English tail wagged. Guess that's why I'm not out there, that and the minor issue of cricket ability! Ah well.
All the talk going into the match was about the weekness of Hughes and how England can exploit it now and make the rest of the series so difficult for him, and also on the strengh of their spinners and the lack of Australian spinners.
Now let's think about that for a second - suddenly it's England's opener, Cook who is, yet again against Ausralia, struggling with his game and must be having questions asked, and as for the spinners, well, England 1 for 246 vs Hauritz 3 for 95. on a turning pitch! Now that's a dynamic duo for ya!
Understatement of the series so far, as SBS crossed to Rodney Hogg for his comments and assessment before play on Day 2, he stated that "don't underrate some of those scores by Englad yesterday [Day 1 - referring to Pietersen and Collingwood], there won't be any centuries scored here in this match"....hmmmm
England vs Australia - First Test - Day 3
Well statistically speaking, if we are going to claim Australia won the first session on day 1 by claiming 3 wickets for 90 odd, then you have to give the points to England for the first session of Day 3 because they took 3 wickets, Australia scored 99. So maybe, statistically, they won that session but I actually doubt it. Australia had to push on for runs and when you're 1 for 250 at the outset i think you'd sacrifice 3 wickets to get them.
3 wickets in the first session of the first day when you've won the toss, is far worse.
The rest of the day, clearly Australia's.
So where to from here?
Weather permitting, Australia can win this match by batting on today and hoping for a cameo from Hadden or Johnson, supported by North going on to get a ton. This could present England with a 180-ish deficit which maybe, they aren't capable of.
Alternatively, England can win, by wrapping this up quickly. Facing a deficit more like 50 or 60 then batting agressively, to build a lead of 180 themselves and having a crack at Australia for 2 and half sessions on the last day. That will take some good aggressive batting and gutsy declaration which, in their current state of mind, I doubt we'll see.
So, weather permitting this match wll still be very interesting. England though, have to get their collective heads together. They seem very defeatest at the moment. Freddie won't like that much, but he'll need to inspire a few mates to pull them out of this. While he's there though, there is most definetly hope.
England vs Australia - First Test - Day 2
Who would've thought it possible, as the England tail wagged to enormous affect in the first hour of play, that it would be possible for reports to declare, Australia hold the advantage at the end of Day 2?
Certainly not me! I copped a little bit of criticism on Twitter for lamenting how the game had slipped from Australia's reach as the English tail swatted, edged, reversed swept and also classically cover drove, 99 runs in 16 overs to post a 400+ total.
When Hughes opened with intent and fended off any nonsense about short pitched rubbish with a Hughes-branded 30 odd in quick time, the tone was set for an Australian response.
Now on this "Hughes is suspect to the short ball" garbage, honestly, do you think a short aggressive opening batsman hasn't faced a few bumpers in his time. If that was all it took to get rid of him, do you think he'd have made it this far? And by the way, South Africa have 3 or 4 decent quicks of their own remember and let's think back to how that turned out.
When a guy like Freddie Flintoff bowls 4 straight thunderbolts at your neck, pretty much any batsman anywhere is going to look a little uncomfortable. And seriously, the Pommie press will try to make something of the fact that a shortish ball had Hughes caught behind the wicket again, but seriously, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that consistent, fast pitched, short of length bowling, right in that "corridor of uncertainty" to an aggressive batsman will bring about his downfall now and again. Seriously, isn't that pretty much what you would teach any young fast bowler to bowl, to anyone??
Unfortunately for Hughes, he was out cheaply a couple of times in a warm up match on a slightly lively wicket so now he's going to have to face a whole bunch of short stuff, from bowlers perhaps a little more wound up than usual because they think they're in with a chance, for a few more Tests, before they realise he's just scored another three hundreds and they better think of something else. The same is probably in store for Bopara - are the Poms saying the same about him? One thinks they soon will be.
Anyway, I thought his 30 odd, was a great statement, (as much as a score of 30 can be) especially as most of it came just before lunch when England thought they would get a wicket or two and should roles have been reversed, probably would've seen a score of 0 for 8 going into the break.
Then Ricky Ponting strode to the crease. Now when Ricky starts an innings, we're all a tad nervous. A push here, a prod there, but suffice to say, if he hasn't been caught in the gully or the slips before he gets a chance to play that glorious pull shot that hits the mid-wicket fence just as the bowler gets into his follow through, we all know things will be okay. Last night it came when his score was on around about 15. I went off to bed comfortable in the fact it wasn't going to be a cake walk for England.
Waking up a few hours later, I joked to myself, that "a perfect start to the day would be to hear we hadn't lost a wicket. That would mean hundreds to Kattich and Ponting." Yeh right - on this pitch, where those that should know better assured us we wouldn't see a century this match. Well guess again "experts" - two of the best!
Anyway, having said all that let's not get carried away. You still don't lose a match on a pitch that will take plenty of turn, when you bat first, make 400+ and have two spinners in your side....do you? Many probably thought you don't lose making 550 and declaring in the first innings either?
Next up for the Aussies is to turn this total into a 400+ score of their own - while it "should" happen it hasn't yet. Then, this only means they're a step closer to a draw. Even if they make 450, taking us to late on Day 3, England could post a run chase of 200+ and in the fourth innings that could be very tricky. Then again, it could rain, or late on Day 3 England could lose 3 wickets in the last half hour, or....now this is why we love Test cricket right!
England vs Australia - First Test - Day 1
In contract to the fiery adrenalin packed rush that was the first day at Lords 4 years ago, the first day of this Ashes series, on an odd shaped little ground in Wales was quite sedate.
Mitchell Johnson trundled in at what looked like half pace and tossed down a few gentle overs, to light applause from a polite crowd.
There was no chanting, no Barmy Army, no Harmisson bouncers and little inspiration. Until that is, Mike Hussey chimed in with a blinder in the gully to get the Aussie's started and Peter Siddle pulled the finger out and started bouncing Bopara.
I think it was a great toss for Ricky Ponting to lose yesterday. Starting the tour, together, as a team in the field, let's nerves settle and everyone get rolling together. It also blunts the impact of a fired up England opening bowler with the crowd behind him, and the damage that can do.
Of course thats only a tiny part of the whole deal, but I wasn't sad to see the Aussies take the field at all.
At lunch, I was actually pretty happy, although still willing KP to missing one of those full pitched deliveries and lose his off stump.
So dirnks in that middle session was enough for me...sleep beckoned and England were fighting back.
It turns out they fought back well. 7 for 336 puts them in a position (bowling last) from which they "shouldn't" lose the match. I said awhile back, in a rant about falt wickets and millions of runs being scored, that a good day of Test Cricket should see 7 or 8 wickets, 300-ish runs with some reward for both batman and bowler. On those criteria, we've just seen a great day's cricket. Honours at this stage slightlky with England you'd think. The Aussie top order will have to be the ones to do something about that.
We (Aussies at least) can all remember the last time we turned up to the cricket expecting three quick wickets and then some run making...
No more sleeps...
How time flies ...it certainly doesn't feel like a whole four years have past since I was last preparing to sit up into the wee small hours of the night, glued to the Ashes telecast, running back to the study, hoping my dial up internet connection hadn't dropped out so I could make yet another comment on Will's blog.
With only hours to go, this time around, it will be the notebook on the coffee table, wireless connection to the broadband modem in the study, TweetDesk, Facebook and as many blogs as care to find, all open at once. A wide screen plasma has replaced the 20 year old TV and an Espresso Coffee machine replaced the "kettle" and Nescafe Gold Blend...that reminds me, better call in at "Gloria Jeans" on the way home tonight...all out of beans!
Traditional lead up games!
In contrast to 2005 we are seeing some legitimate (first class) tour matches as lead ins to the first Ashes Test - for both squads.
Fantastic to see Lee and Hussey strike form too, Hussey with 150, Lee with 5 wickets and reverse swing galore.
I see Harmisson troubled Hughes in that first innings with some accurate short pitches stuff. He immediately piped up in the press boasting of weaknesses he's spotted. Well I remember - as I sit here watching his first over in the second innings go for 9 thanks to consecutive, that a few South Africans, of significantly better fast bowling calibre than "Harmy", thought the same thing a few months back. I can only hope that trend continues...
Not even NSW can help Watson stay fit
Shane Watson must have his wires crossed somewhere...he doesn't need the help of the NSW selection favouritism to get picked, he's already the golden boy, he just needs to stay fit!
Maybe now that he's a New South Welshman, they'll pick him even when he's on crutches, and well into his 40s at that!!!
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