Here we go

Ok...6 hours to go...tough one this. Oz at this ground have scored 428, 575, 556, 552, 439, 403, 441 in their last 7 matches and only lost 1. Bloody hell. So Freddie...win the toss and bat! I expect to see Monty in for Anderson and hope that my support of him won't be misplaced...more through the night...

Got our Bowling coach...now they want our women!

It is not enough that they stole Troy Cooley (surely that's not his real name? I reckon it's an anagram) now they want our women too.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/6169186.stm

Haven't they got their own Beer Wenches? If the 'lucky' girl who gets the job who kindly tip beer all over this guy I would be eternally grateful!

The Wizard of Oz

I love every minute of this...all the banter; the hype and the spin. And then there is Shane Warne.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/6158437.stm

Sometimes I wish some cricketers would keep their big mouths shut. Shane Warne is, in my mind, the best leg spin bowler of all time. However, he is in danger of also being the biggest bighead of all time too. I know there is a lot of hype during a series. Duncan Fletcher's comments were just. We did play the Wizard well. He didn't like it, hence his behaviour on the field. We have seen enough of Shane to know his strengths, his weaknesses and where to score runs off him. That doesn't mean to say that he won't out fox us again...he will. But what it does mean is that we are no longer scared of him. He does take wickets, he does make magic. We know this. We're not worried. His comments and unsportsmanship behaviour detract from his great talent. He is a wizard; a master at his game but when it comes to setting an example to youngsters and handling the press he is often caught with his pants down.

Aggers on Monty

After reading the comments by Agnew on a TMS blog regarding Monty at the Gabba I found myself a little frustrated.

Here's the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tms/2006/11/england_need_urgent_lift_1.shtml

To say that Monty wouldn't have made a difference is a nonsense. No one knows what difference it would have made because he didn't play. Had Monty played and come on after, say, 30 overs and found some purchase bowling over the wicket to right handers like Ponting we may well have seen a very different scorecard. This is the problem with the old established cricket "luvvies"; they base all of their opinions on conventional wisdom. Someone at some point in the distant past declared that orthodox left arm finger spinners don't take wickets at the Gabba and that's then set in stone. Thankfully, people like Vaughan don't hold with convention and see the game as something that is evolving and are willing to try different things. If we fail to accept that cricket is changing then there is no future in the game. That Gabba pitch was different from any previous pitch. In the same way that the square I played on last summer was always different; sometimes like a pudding and others a real turner. Time to get with the program Aggers.

Stats Vs Blogs

Stats are important. Most cricketers, commentators & media folk love them. Just in the build up to this series we have been bombarded with stats. Nothing wrong there. Wisden is great. I always have one to hand. It is vital to know the facts. But, over the past few days I have noticed a great deal of additional comment and views, mainly on blogs, that is also pertinent. You see, if you look down any score sheet from any test it will tell you what happened. Who was bowled and by who. How many they scored, how long it took. Facts. Clinical. What they never show is Flintoff being bowled off a no-ball on 14 and going on to make a century; a disputed LBW; a catch that didn't quite carry. A good example of facts making someone looking better than they were is Shane Warne's figures for England's 2nd Innings of the first test:

S K Warne 34 overs 7 maidens 124 runs 4 wickets. Which gave him an average of 31 at an economy rate of 3.6. Not bad. But the reality of it was that Warne struggled at times. Both KP & Colly got on top of him. He was frustrated enough to throw the ball at his old mucker KP. His speed was different from the first innings, and at times he looked less than the great bowler that he is. That is why it is vital that the public record their own views. In the future technology will be such that before a journalist writes a preview article on a forthcoming test series it may be that he not only looks at Wisden, but also at the countless blogs for a real balanced view. Who knows, there may even come a time when the Selectors canvass our opinions before picking a squad!

Hobson's Choice

It is interesting that England rarely announce a team before Australia. What they tend to do is spin. The Aussies like a bit of spin themselves. A clear message from their camp is the track at Adelaide has been prepared for their fast bowlers. There is no place for a 2nd spinner. This could be a mistake. It provides England with a real opportunity because the pressure will be firmly on the Aussie 3 way attack of McGrath, Lee & Clarke. Clarke is probably the most destructive of the three and much responsibility will fall on his broad shoulders. McGrath is obviously not 100% and England should take advantage of this by disheartening him and Lee, whilst impressively fast, cannot possibly maintain his pace for any long spells of bowling. And now in the middle of all the spin and hype the Australian media have made a fatal mistake of writing off England completely. This is good news. It shows that the old Aussie cock-sure complacency is back. Time for action.

Whilst I am big on cricket stats I am also a firm believer that every test match is different and no outcome can every be realistically predicted. Alot are comparing this series with the 2005 Ashes and saying that England were 0-1 down after the first test and came back to win. This doesn't mean that the omens are good for a repeat performance. England didn't win in 2005 because of omens. They won because they had a plan for each of the Aussie team. They worked Langer & Ponting over. They bowled short to Hayden and always had two men on the drive which distracted him. Freddie came round the wicket to Gilchrest. They allowed no room for young Clarke to score. And it is this kind of thinking, along with the Aussies complacency, that will allow England to win again.

The other piece of news that is worth noting is that Vaughn is likely to play at Melbourne on Boxing Day. Whilst we need his captaincy and he has a superb record down under, it provides a terrible dilemma if he is fit. Who do you remove? Collingwood would be the obvious choice. But MV is better at 3 than 4. That would mean pushing Bell down the order which I think would be a mistake because of the trouble he has early on in his innings. The last thing you want is Bell's first ball to be off Warne. Perhaps it might be worth putting a flexible batsman like MV lower down the order, especially has he has no match fitness as of yet. If MV is fit it will provide the Selectors (who always know best - even if they are out of sync with the rest of public opinion) with a real mind-bender. Not just who they leave out but where MV will sit in the order. Of course, in a way, this is a nice luxury choice to have. However, the reality is that it might all back fire. MV could come out and get a pair simply because he isn't match fit. And what if we win at Adelaide & Perth? Change a winning side? The English Selectors have never done that. Conventional wisdom prevents them. But take a look at Lara's West Indies during their height of success a few years ago. Lara always changed a winning side, bringing rookies and players back from injury, making use of the high morale. Perhaps it is time for a change of policy...or even a change of selectors. Personally, I'd like to see Botham & Willis in there making decisions and even Boycott. Regardless of what you think of the former, you owe him your allegiance because he remains one of the finest batsmen we ever produced.

Anyway, those decisions are a way off yet. The most important one that needs to be made is for this week. Giles or Monty? No Brainer. Bring in Monty for Giles and Mahmood for Anderson. I would suggest Collingwood should go but he is in very good nick at the moment. I still maintain that he isn't a test player. Bit like Nick Knight or Graham Hick, both excellent one day players but struggled in the longer form of the game. My good friend Richard Bailey has a decent tactical brain and he suggests this is the right team for Friday:

"Strauss

Cook

Bell

Pieterson

Flintoff

Collingwood

Jones

Mahmood

Hoggard

Harmison

Panesar

7 batsmen and 7 bowlers. That makes 14. Cool or what.

Proper batting to number seven.

Plus Mahmood for a talented slog.

Four proper fast bowlers, two spinners (one world class spinner plus KP, who can turn the ball more than Giles). And then you have Collingwood's medium pace if things get shitty.Its got to be the dream team."

I agree. Look at Collingwood down the order. This is the right place for him. He is not as good as either KP or Freddie and therefore should bat lower.

Barmy Army

I was lucky enough to get a ticket for the Saturday at the Oval against Oz in 2005. When myself and Chesters got there it was raining and no play was due before 11.30. We decided to have a wander. We didn't get far before 2 separate touts offered us £500 for our pair of tickets (which, iincidentally Chesters won after drinking some Red Stripe in a pub!) and ended up in the local pub. It was 9.45am and the bar and surrounding pavements were overflowing with the Barmy Army. It was a fantastic atomsphere both in the pub and then in the ground. Singing Jerusalem full blast at the start of play will stay with me forever and still sends shivers down my spine. These guys are a vital part of Team England. Without them and their blind enthusiasm we would be sunk. The Aussies don't get it and that says more than words can convey:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tms/2006/11/the_barmy_barmy_army.shtml

Elementry, my dear Watson

Poor old Shane. It seems that England aren't the only side affected by injuries. We have suffered a great deal in the past 12 months; Simon Jones, Giles, Vaughan, the madness of King Trescothick and of course Freddie himself.

The Aussies need Watson. He brings more to the side than Michael Clarke. And with their own injury problems, Oz are looking to strengthen their position because they fear England's bounce back. Freddie is talking it up, which is right - he should. England can bounce back and will, pitch conditions aside. RP makes some odd decisions. Some of them pay off - others don't. England have a very great opportunity of retaining the Ashes. After all, they only have to draw the series. One down and four to play...could go either way. But I remain confident that England have a squad that can compete with the best in the world and despite our failings at the Gabba we can upset RP and the rest of his baggy green reprobates.

Breaking Partnerships

The key thing is breaking those partnerships that we allowed to build, especially Langer and Hayden. Whilst it doesn't really matter which field you set to Hayden (he copes with most things except the short lifting ball); with Langer the right field will prevent him scoring and frustrate him. Block off those little legside clips out of the body with a short square leg and leg gully. Put a man on the drive. Attack him. Put men around him and force the aerial route.


With Ponting, whilst an excellent bat, he does play some unorthodox strokes and has a tendency to shuffle across the stumps. This makes him a likely candidate for LBW early on. We need a bowler that can produce decent in swinging yorkers. Freddie can do this but doesn't do it often enough for fear of conceding legside runs.


Break those top 3 up and we are laughing. We need to rotate the bowling, make surprise changes, get a slow bowler to hold an end up whilst we target the weak links. We need attacking fields that force batsmen to get under the ball. On the whole our fielding is pretty tight but it just needs to show disrespect to their batters. Grant them the respect that we did in the first test and we have nobody saving one and everyone on the rope which gives them the chances for quick singles and uppish drives.


The Aussies have a decent batting lineup but we have destroyed it before with tactical play and we can do it again.

1-0

Ok...could have been worse...not as much but it could have been...Time to move on and sort out what to do...here's a few tips:

1. Get on plane and go to Adelaide

2. Practise

3. Pick right team for this particular test

4. Develop positive mental attitude

5. Win toss

6. Win test

Not much of a formula I know but it's what needs to happen. There is no point in licking wounds or having a post mortem. However, that said, there is criticism aplenty and some of which needs addressing.

Firstly, Freddie's captaincy is obviously going to be called into question. I believe he has a good cricketing brain but like most captains it appears on occasions to affect his form. Solution? Let Strauss make the decisions on the field regarding bowling changes & tactics. We must free up Freddie to do what he is good at...which is scaring Aussies. He is a catalyst cricketer that can change matches and the Aussies fear him.

Secondly, Strauss has been found out. It is more likely to do with the size of the boundaries in Oz than poor shot selection but in both innings they set him up and got him out. This is intelligent cricket from RP. Strauss can overcome this either by dropping the shot completely or practising until he gets it right. Batsmen can change fielding positions too. They simply have to find the gaps and score there. Then RP will change the field to stop the flow of runs. Strauss can avoid the shot by ducking or moving across his stumps particularly when Clarke is bowling. Strauss can also attack in a more positive fashion. Not with flamboyant strokes but with a straight bat down the ground. Nothing hurts a bowler more.

Thirdly, we need to pick a side not to bolster the batting. The 2nd innings showed we have a perfectly decent middle order. We need a team that will attack the Aussies batting line up. 2 spinners are essential. But Giles doesn't have to be one of them. In my mind KP turns the ball much better and the Aussies haven't seen enough of him yet. Giles is a target because of both his injuries and Flintoff's choice to pick him ahead of Monty. When they attack Giles they attack Freddie. Bring in Mahmood. He has the most natural action of the whole squad and will add another unknown to the attack as will Monty.

Whilst I am disappointed that we lost, I am not too worried about our batting. To win a test match you need to take 20 wickets. At the Gabba we only took 10.

Backbone Back...

Well, what a night that was! One of the best contests I have witnessed in recent years. It had everything; Aggression, injury, determination....

I was glad that Langer reached his century. He deserved to do so. And RP looks to be in trouble with his back. Perhaps a recurrence of an old injury? Interesting that he didn't take the field. And so with a target finally set of 648 I figured we would be all done by tea.

Happily we are still hanging in there despite Freddie's best efforts. Cook showed real coolness and Collingwood, even though there is no place for him in my team, was at times sublime. He showed a selfish side though in that attempt to reach his 100. Interesting enough it was a similar act of charging Shane Warne that was the undoing of Ramps a few years ago. The selectors never forgave me and he didn't play for England again. I wonder if Collingwood will suffer the same fate.

Talking of Warne, it was nice to see him showing his true colours with KP. Only the day before in an interview he said all about sportsmanship. His action of throwing the ball at KP was reckless.

KP did well and held his nerve. He was determined to still be there at the end and with Jones eager to cement his place in the side I think we could get home. We won't win...but I suspect will will only be 150 light of the target and considering the dreadful showing of the first 3 days this is achievement indeed.

I am very tired now...more later

Criticism Enough

On reflection I didn't say enough about what was good about England (it won't take long!).

For me Ian Bell was great. If I had to compare him to an Aussie it would be Langer. Pure grit and determination. Waited for the right ball and played it well when it came. He has come along well and I think we can't drop him because of his focus. Jones did well too; he hung in there when it was most needed. Apart from that there aren't many good words.

Mahmood should have been picked over Giles and Monty should never have lost his place. Collingwood, whilst a great 1 day player, has no place in a test side - he has nothing to offer. England need to rethink and rediscover the style they had back here on the green tops....here's my 11:

1. Strauss
2. Cook
3. Bell
4. KP
5. Freddie
6. Jones
7. Mahmood
8. Anderson
9. Hoggard
10. Monty
11. Harmison

Roll on the return of MV & SJ...in the meantime you have to field the best side you have....and this is it.

Ponting's Revenge

I always knew the Aussies would bounce back from 2005...and boy have they. I am so tired having stayed the distance last night to watch the brutal destruction of England. It came as a surprise to everyone that RP choose not to enforce the follow on but looking back now it really shouldn't have been a surprise.

You see the situation...England are now 626 runs adrift. I think that RP will bat on til lunch and look for a total lead of around 720-750. This way he can try to bowl England out for less than 200 on a badly cracking pitch (more on that shortly) and win the first test by the largest margin in test history. Thus, he stamps his mark quite clearly: He is no fool; he is a fantastic bat; a formidable captain and, perhaps most importantly, he and his team have the ability to destroy England.

The truth is England were shown to be wanting. Only the stand between Bell & Jones offered the kind of resistance required for such occasions. The last time we saw that away from home was Atherton in Jo'burg all those years ago. Freddie was caught dreaming again. KP didn't impress and Giles scored more by luck than judgement. What remains true is that McGrath exploited the pitch to his own ends. He bowled onto the cracks that exposed the right handers; he bowled short to those known to be lacking the right shots and he never faded. Compare that to the tired England attack who failed to even really trouble Langer; only removed Hayden through the finest of margins (good throw and collection though) and had no answers to RP's superb strokes.

I'm not an aussie fan by far but hell they have something. Langer is excellent. The shots he turns around the corner almost out of his body; His skillful cover drives and defence of the odd 'good' ball prove that form is indeed temporary but class is forever.

RP now has the chance for real revenge. He is certainly one of the greatest living batsmen. A lesser man would have resigned after 2005. RP didn't. He is running the risk of a gamble that England 'could' bat out a draw. (They could...but won't...all they want to do is walk away and lick their wounds. I suspect Flintoff will be doing a raindance...even so we don't stand a chance against such talent).

All that remains to be said is that our bowlers lacked the gumption to exploit the pitch. The toss was important in this match...but even if we had won it I doubt that we would have declared on 602. We would have been lucky to make 450!

Freddie & the Dreamers

Well...if anything could depress an English cricket then the sight of our steady openers giving away their wickets before the close of play. Hats off to the Aussies though. 602 is a formidable total by any measure. Although, part of me, was thinking they may have gone too far in using almost 2 full days to get there. After all many now consider 400 runs in a day to be the norm. However, that said, the idea that Oz had not allowed enough time to win the match is now academic after a mistimed pull-shot and the most bizarre shot from young Cook.

McGrath seems to be back into his typical metronomic rut and Brett Lee is bowling as fast as I have ever seen him, and of course Shane Warne has reprised his flipper. The follow-on seems inevitable as does defeat. It is sad to predict but the next few sessions will see England playing for time. All they have to do is draw. But I would much prefer to see them stand up and be counted. Belly & KP could sort it out...get us going and Freddie is always going to play the captain's game. His bowling was inspired but sadly failed to inspire the rest of the team.

I guess the last 2 days have shown 2 things: Firstly, that the complacency that Oz showed upon arrival in Blighty in 2005 has gone - their determination is superb. And Secondly, that we do not have a side as strong and as tightly functioning as we did in 2005.

Amidst all this gloom 2 things made me smile: On the first day Bumble (I think) described Justin Langer as a 'Jack-in-the-Box' type of cricketer. This is true. I have long admired Langer's skill and grit. It's just a shame that he was born on the wrong side of the world. And the 2nd thing that brought a smile to my face was just after England had started batting this morning. Freddie had sloped off to the nets and upon his return the cameras caught the gob-smacked look on his face when he noticed that both Strauss & Cook were back in their hutches. Caught dreaming again....

The Ashes....still smouldering

Well, here we are then. A month or so of sleepless (and no doubt nail-bitting) nights. A slight tension in my belly...and I imagine in Belly's as he awaits the first morning, swollen wrist et all. And for all its hype, the nagging doubt that we are perhaps a little under-prepared; a little over-confident; a little short of the right people in the right departments. But those doubts aside...on paper, we have an impressive line-up. Even with the demise of Bangers surely our openers have the mettle to withstand an aging McGrath and a slightly out of sorts Brett Lee.

I have just revisited the 2005 Ashes DVDs and found myself struck with one vital difference between the two sides: determination. What I mean is this: The Aussies were determined in spurts...Lee & Gillespie grinding out runs; Ponting's century; Shane Warne's mixed bag...but there never appeared (with the exception of Lord's) a real killer instinct from the team as a whole. The was a kind of resigned fatalism about the whole touring side that they could never retain that little urn again. As for England, I would have to say that the opposite was ever-present, even in the face of McGrath's 5-0 prediction (he's very quiet this time!). And whilst we are not at home, we haven't the same team and there are doubts about the fitness of certain members of the team, one thing is certain....England hold the Ashes.

And so over the next few weeks, regardless of the pain and suffering, I will be adding to this blog my thoughts and I will welcome yours too.