Stumps: Australia 25-0. England 260.
Before the start of any overseas Ashes series, buy yourself a cat. It will give you something to kick when you wake up in the morning and see the score.
Most disappointing about our first innings total was the relative innocuousness of the Australian bowling. They are essentially the same team as in 2009, and we ought to be able to play this stuff.
Overall it was another very English day of batsmen making decent starts but no one able to knuckle down and make a big score. Bell is slightly excused for batting with the tail. Earlier, Cook had looked his most assured and fluent for years.
The key factor was of course Siddle’s hat trick – and you really couldn’t wish it on a nicer man.
Much of the analysis will most likely focus on the latest controversy surrounding Kevin Pietersen: his new moustache – an apparent tribute to Midge Ure from Ultravox.
After what happened with Harmison four years ago, everyone agreed it was crucial England made a confident start – to which Andrew Strauss responded by getting out to the third ball of the series.
Oh dear. At least there were enough signs of turn to give Swann some inspiration.
So..,thoughts, predictions?
Maxie Allen
It’s the old “let’s see once they’ve both had a bat on it” cliché, isn’t it!
Shame Warne suggested that we were only about 40 short of a par score and whilst this is of course a happy hunting ground for Australia (which is presumably why they play here first) we need to learn from their success with those full, straight deliveries (I’m looking at you, Broady…) and make the Aussies have to play.
And if we can keep in contention and not let them get 500+, we get Swann on it in the last innings…
“I’m looking at you, Broady”
I’d start by looking at Trott – I could have driven the proverbial bus though the gap between his bat and pad
True, although I meant for young Broad to *bowl* like that, rather than the rank long hops he sometimes serves up when rattled :)
Outrageous!!
Well, ‘Chris’, I hope he proves me wrong…
I’ll have you know I bowl exactly the right length. Unfortunately, the pitch is three yards too long and the batsmen are a foot too short. It’s a conspiracy.
Certainly an advantage they’re batting last…
If we’d got to 300 I think we would have felt ok about it.
On the plus side, Cook, KP, Trott, and Bell all looked good, and promise a lot of runs in the series. On the down side, Australia have had a massive confidence boost and have probably allayed many of their fears.
The pitch will require full pitched, top-of-off type bowling. Unfortunately I suspect Broad will take Ponting’s apparent weakness against the short ball to be a queue to bowl short the entire innings and get absolutely spanked on the slow, hard surface.
Hopefully we will bowl them out by tea and have the best of the batting on the third day, set Swanny up with a total to bowl against in the fourth innings.
I’d put it at 60/40 for Aussie at the moment. Anything under 320 drags it back our way.
I meant ‘cue’, obviously. Whoops.