England are playing for pride
After the first two days play, England fans were hoping it wouldn't get any worse for their team in the first Ashes Test but day three was even more gut-wrenching from an England point of view.
Not only were England dismissed for 157 but Australia, who decided to bat instead of enforcing the follow-on, notched up 181-1 by the end of the day and now lead by a massive 626 runs.
PLAYER OF THE DAY
Glenn McGrath built on his impressive start on the second day to torture England’s batsmen and finish with 6-50.
He probed away, landing ball after ball on the same spot which, obligingly, contained a large and increasingly widening crack.
The ball nipped this way and that, making it very difficult for the batsmen to defend - Kevin Pietersen’s misjudgement was understandable.
He played no stroke to a delivery which cut back from outside the off stump and hit his back leg for 16 to start England’s demise.
Ian Bell batted particularly well for his 50. He battled away for nearly 4 hours, showing a measure of calm, maturity and authority as well as patience, and he will have shown the Australians just how much he has improved since the last series.
KEY MOMENT
Andrew Flintoff's dismissal for a third-ball duck ended any hopes that England might make a fight of their first innings.
He and Brett Lee are firm friends off the pitch, but there is no love lost on it, and Lee charged in at him like a man possessed.
Flintoff appeared to be waiting for the short ball, but Lee pitched up and Flintoff’s very tentative, crouched prod presented Gilchrist with an easy catch. From that moment, the writing was on the wall.
TALKING POINT
Ricky Ponting’s decision to bat again rather than enforce the follow on was clearly the subject of great debate.
The lead of 445 is now the largest margin in Test cricket in which the follow on was not enforced.
Theories abound, from the need to give his four-man attack as much rest as possible to rubbing as much salt in England’s open wound as possible.
The sad consequence of the decision was the rapid emptying of the ground. The edge had been taken - albeit temporarily - out of the contest, and it was a shame to see a Saturday full house pouring through the exits with two hours remaining.
Ponting will not mind, though. I don’t think I have ever seen a man look so utterly determined and focused on the job in hand than the Australian captain.
PROSPECTS FOR SUNDAY
Australia are set to bat on - perhaps for another hour - before the business begins.
England can, at least, set their minds on a target which, in this case, is the number of sessions they have to survive or, at least, in which to show some pride.
Frankly, after this desperate performance, that would be a welcome start.
A question for Mr Agnew.
Would you advocate the inclusion of Ashley Giles in the team for the second test?
Complain about this postcan't believe aggers on 5live this morning said that England picked the right team. how could picking gilo over monty ever be described as right?
for the next test we need monty and mahmood in for harmy and gilo and play KP at 4. KP can bowl his off spinners too especially to the left handers.
fingers crossed we can escape with a miracle draw.
Complain about this postChin up, Aggers.
You're doing an excellent job of sounding chipper, despite the apparent horror show that is unfolding before you.
That said, I hope you'll forgive me for my desire to see the trend continue for the remainder of the series. No punishment is too severe for the impertinence of winning the Ashes last year. It's time they came back home.
Cheers,
Complain about this postJeff
At this rate I think we may well see Mr. Vaughan rushed back, this is desparate. I'm not sure how they can pick themselves up from this, the team looks totally bereft of fight and passion. But I have to say hats off to the Aussies they are playing the most aggressive and destructive cricket I have ever seen (with some luck along the way). At the moment they want those Ashes back much more than England want to keep hold of them. In 2005 it was the other way round, I dearly hope they regroup for Adelaide.
Complain about this postAnd if Harmison continues to be useless a call up for young Broad??
I think that the batting of Ponting, Langer and Hayden in the second innings shows how poor our batting was. As for our bowlers is Stuart Clark really better than any of our bowlers??
Complain about this postAnd to think Shane Warne hasn't even got a wicket yet!
Don't worry.
When Jones and Giles are celebrating their unbeaten double centuries at the end of day 5 this will all just seem like a bad dream.
Wont it...
Complain about this postThis is a disaster!
Surely it is now time to update the concept of 'The Ashes' now that Australia regularly hammer England. The tiny little urn containing the cremated bails from the late 19th century no longer suffice. It should be replaced with a trophy the same size as the F.A. Cup, and it should be filled with the cremated remains of ALL the England team's equipment - bails, stumps, bats balls, helmets, pads, gloves, boxes, whites, boots, nets and anything else on which the MCC has been wasting its money.
When they 'won' the Ashes last year Freddie & The Dreamers were quick to jump on an open-top bus and tour the streets of London to a reception in Trafalgar Square, all to soak in the adulation of hundreds of thousands of fans. I wonder if, when they return, they will do the same open-top bus tour to give those same fans the opportunity to throw rotten fruit at them?
When I first saw that BBC1 would be showing highlights from the day's play late at night (11.20pm-ish) I was quite disappointed, thinking the youngsters might miss out on an early viewing. I see now, though, that the schedulers knew something I didn't.
Oh well, I suppose it's not all doom and gloom, as there are some good jokes coming out of it. For example, Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis in last night's 'The Now Show' on Radio Four (link below) explained why Australia are so much better than England at cricket: "hit something and run - it's just so well suited to the criminal mentality."
Stands to reason, doesn't it?!
Complain about this postSadly this was always a possibility due to a combination of key injuries and terrible selection. Simon Jones made a massive difference to the England attack. In combination with Hoggard, Flintoff and a Steve Harmison who at the time remembered where to aim the ball, he ensured that there was never any let up for the batsman and there was never a time when the state of the ball made batting easy. Backing up these four, Giles was dangerous because the batsmen had been under pressure for so long when he bowled at them that they would sometimes make mistakes.
Without Jones and with Harmison bowling appallingly the batsmen are never under pressure and this allows the Ozzies to dismiss Giles as well. This leaves England relying on Hoggard for the first ten overs and Flintoff thereafter. One and a half bowlers is not enough to trouble the best batting side in the world at home.
The above also highlights why leaving out Panesar was so incredibly stupid. Giles did exactly what he was brought in to do with the bat. He scored 24. But what difference does that make when the opposition have racked up over 600? How much better would it have been if Panesar had played and maybe kept Australia down to 400?
And as for Jones (G), he also did exactly what he always does for England with the bat. Score about 20. Ridiculous. Next test we need to bowl our best attack, which includes Panesar, and play our best Keeper because a good spinner and a good keeper are a very dangerous combination. I would think seriously about dropping Harmison if he does not show some signs of rediscovering his form. If he does then I would drop Anderson. Either one would be done in order to bring in Plunkett. What has been obvious here is that England need a bowler to give them some control. At least Plunkett is accurate. McGrath and Clarke have showed the value of accuracy on these pitches. I would not bring Mahmood in at this point as he would go for about 10 an over!
Complain about this postIt will take a monumental effort in the second innings to even get a modicum of respectability.
Our guys have been comprehensively taken apart by a quality team who have made the most of the pitch. Right now the difference between the two teams is so vast, it is barely conceivable that we played such a great series last year.
Now is not the time to sack the coach but afterwards we must take a serious look at this guy who has done so much oreviously, but he has disgraced himself with a series of dreadful selections. It is absolutely vital for the sake of the series that England are able to score 350 minimum in the 2nd innings.
The way that the Australian attack were able to extract sideways movement and induce indecisive shots was phenomenal bowling. It also showed just how inept our attack is at the moment.
To be honest, I can accept failure, possibly even a real hammering. What I do not find acceptable is the way that our bowlers heads went down so obviously and so early in this series. For professionl cricketers to do that is inexcusable.
Only they can turn this around. A solid batting display will help a little.
One final point is that when test matches are played so closely together during a series, it is imperative that touring teams are preprared properly, because a team underprepared and that perform so poorly first up, are likely to have lost the series before they know it.
Let's hope this side who have come on so much in the past five years, show some of this resolve and nerve we are told they have.
Come on England.
Complain about this postAustralia having demonstated superiorty with both & ball are now trying to win the battle of the mind by grinding England into the Gabba dust. They know that England knows that 445 runs ahead are enough, so what they have done is show sheer contempt to England.
Complain about this postWhat we want to see is England rise up from this arrogance show some fight, some hunger, some mental fortitude and earn back some respect. No excuses just play hard grafting cricket.
They will not win here but there are 4 more tests to play for but they can win back some respect & have some much needed match practice.
England fan pov
completely lost for words (I looked at the blank screen for five minutes before being able to write anything).
Where has the heart, aggression and fight gone? Sometimes one has to grind through these times to come out the other side (Faldo springs to mind...the bloke tries on every shot) it's hard to see our lot turning this around unless we make bowling changes and breathe life into it...out with Gilo and Anderson......in with Mahmood, Panesar (harmison can stay and suffer like the rest of us!)
Cricket fan pov
Complain about this postSome of the Aussie players are legends and their skills are to be appreciated before they retire....which will be soon hopefully!
Carnage. I pity anyone who has a ticket for the cricket at Sydney or Melbourne. Never has so much expectation been destroyed so soon. At least at Lord's in 2005, there were some signs that England could compete. Other than Flintoff's heroics I can't see much this time. Oh dear.
Complain about this postI have never been so embarrased as an england fan. I am 42 and remember watching our pathetic batting against the west indies in the 70s but this is much worse. We have no clue and Flintoff is simply not the calibre to succeed, for a start he is not bright enogh and is more suited to a football audience than Cricket.
Complain about this postMark
All credit to Ricky Ponting for batting again. This will surely grind any remaining shadow of confidence out of the English side. If only England had even a teaspoon full of that ruthless edge, not to mention ability.
The moment the demise set in was the moment an open top bus parade was organised through the streets of London at which point the big time Charlie's that the England team is largely composed of saw that as the ideal tinme to rest on their laurels. To say this contest has been men against boys would be to flatter England. It has been rather more men against jelly fish or in Steve Harmisons case Jellyhead (does he seriously think he has bowled well?)
This performance is has been coming for some time as England performances have got steadily worse as they continue to dine out on the winning Ashes performances and is typical of English teams who fail to build on success beleiving that to acheive success once is enough. Look at the Enland Rugby team, Man Utd after winning the Champions league in 2000 and dare I mention the England football team who hark back to 1966 with monotonous regularity.
The team now needs a leader in the ilk of Nasser Hussain to give a number of those individuals a good kick up the backside. The softly softly approach may win freinds and admirers but it does not breed consistant champions. Can anybody recall an Austrialian crying off or playing badly because they felt a bit sorry for themselves? I think not.
Complain about this postCan some with a sporting mentality as fragile as Harmison's really be considered a world class bowler? surely one of the components of a world class sportsman is mental strength and spirit. the likes of Mcgrath and Warne have these in abundance, Harmison clearly doesn't.
Complain about this postWhat struck me about last night was the enormous gulf in our bowling attacks. Granted, we batted very poorly but I honestly believe the Gabba pitch has had plenty in it since Day 1. Mcgrath, Lee and Clark are not superhuman, they just land the ball on the spot over after over whereas our bowlers seem to get bored doing this and try something new every other ball. It is not only predictable but invariably results in a 4 ball. They strangle us out by limiting our scoring opportunities, not by blowing us away. Only Freddy seems to know where the ball is going, I have found myself longing for an accurate England bowler over the last few days....are there really none in the country (Schrek, Lewis??). On the batting front, it was interesting to see that Kevin Pietersen was really hanging in his crease and looked far from his usual confident self, with this approach he really opens himself up for more methods of dismissal and the same goes for Flintoff. Not much to encourage us for the rest of the series I'm afraid
Complain about this postEngland should not loose heart from their batting performance . Patience is the key to playing the world greatest bowling attack . The batters should try to play within their limitations and try and spend a lot of time on the crease for which they the technique to play this attack.
Complain about this postGreat coverage. Thanks a lot. However, do you, Jonathan, have to sound so depressed and fed up when things aren't going to well? It makes for a really tough listen, saps any pleasure you might be getting from listening to a great sporting contest, and makes you look like a sore looser. To complain to the resolutely cheerful (sounding) Vic Marks that he was being miserable when you were being so hang-dog was a bit difficult to take. A propos dogs, if Boycott was one, wouldn't someone have taken him behind the shed and shot him by now?
Complain about this postI was shocked to see Athers putting four fingers into one of the cracks on the wicket at the gabba last night. a few years ago now a test was abondoned I think at sabina park in the west indies due to a dangerous pitch. Just how bad do these cracks have to be before the safety of the pitch is called into question? In my club playing days if we'd have turned up at a ground and the pitch had cracks in it like that I think we'd have all gone home. (pub).
Complain about this postWhen I am listening to the cricket on the radio, all I find is that when England are bowling, whether there is going to be another wide or 4 or 6, but when the Aussies are bowling, it feels like there is always going to be another wicket. Does this not rather represent the state of English cricket at the moment. The guys out there need to do some serious thinking before the next test. Replace Harmison with Plunkett, Giles with Monty and possibly even Collingwood with Joyce, get some fresh faces in there.
Complain about this postim embarressed to be english although ian bell played a good knock. How can it be that the aussies can suppass our total with the lose of only one wicket??? im an optimist and i think the aussies will set england 700 to win from5 and a hlaf session KP will hit 400 of 200 balls and we shall win the game with 2 balls to spare.As if.
Complain about this postCan't agree with the big time charlies jibe... the guys are underprepared for such a big game... the ICC trophy prevented a longer build up... we needed 4 or 5 decent games to give everyone a couple of games at least to acclimatise to the conditions. Touring teams in England get at lest that and many touring teams have many players who play in our county sides...
No doubt that the Aussies are better in this match but Billy Bowden has been a great asset for them in this match...if we had got 3 of the 5 potential decisions our way in their first innings 400 would have been less daunting than 600! Anyway I look forward to the decisions levelling themselves out in the second test!
We will share the series.
Complain about this postAs usual Glenn McGrath shows us how it should be done. It's not rocket science. Put the ball in the right place, and keep it there. It's no magic formula, and we've only got one bowler who can do it seemingly. I feel desperately sorry for Andrew Flintoff. He's trying to take them on single-handed practically. It's a serious worry that he's going to end up over-bowling and getting injured again.
Sadly with Harmy's radar unable to locate a barn door at present we're in a bit of a pickle.
The cynical side of me wonders whether Ricky Ponting's decision to bat rather than enforce the follow-on might have been subjected to commercial influence in avoiding having to refund the tickets for day 4, because it seems pretty unlikely that it would have got that far.
You've also got to feel sorry for England fans who have travelled all that way to see it.
Complain about this postThe question is, is it really a big suprise. What really have the English done after their ashes triumph. Nothing. One drawn series in India and nothing else of note. It's typical of England to be talking of what they did some time ago.
And Harmy, do you really think he's a world class bowler. Consistentcy is the key to being world class. A great performance once in a blue moon. Whoah that is world class. Ask... Hmmmm....maybe McGrath? And England going the same way with Sajid Mahmood. A fella going at 7 runs an over in most of his one dayers, is still consistently playing.
No wonder the Aussies are heads and shoulders above them......
Complain about this postTime and time again before the ashes series began we were assured by players and management that this England team had the mental toughness to deal with the challenge. I'm afraid to say after three days of misery England have done exactly what England touring parties are expected to do in Australia, lose and lose badly.
The only possible glimmer of hope is that by Ponting not enforcing the follow on he has given England an outside chance of batting for two days and salvaging a draw. Should that happen, and lets be honest it is very unlikely, it could be very damaging for the Australian captain.
As for Harmisson he only seems to bowl well when everything, conditions, pitch and state of the game are in his favour. If England are to stand any chance Harmisson needs to stand up and take some responsibility.
Complain about this postWhatever the reason for following on, the effect is immediately apparent in the attitude of the english players. The psychological battle is being won by australia.
England have been truly dire, I have never been so bored watching them play. There was not an iota of action and intensity in their plans not is there any sign of desire to win. They might as well ahve stayed at home and we sent out the A team instead!
I disagree with aggers regarding pieterson's wicket, it is indefensable not to play a shot to McGrath, and the shell shocked look on KP's face when he was given out just went to prove he had no clue on how to deal with Pigeon's bowling!
Freddie as a captain is stunningly bad, making very exceptionally poor decisons and practically forcing the team to be dependent on him for a match winner, when he fails as he did against Lee, the whole lot falls down. His bowling was what the whole team's bowling should have been like, incisive and probing. Why cant his captaincy be the same?
Harmison should be sent home. He obviously can't cope overseas, and he seemed to be bowling in the direction of durham on most occassions.
It was a terrible mistake not to pick Monty and Reed for this test, they needed a team that was capable of pegging australia back and by picking giles they show a lack of confidence the top and middle order (seemingly well founded), and end up with a poor lower order facing a very powerful oposition which takes them apart.
Why select gojo again?! I want england to have a wicket keeper like gilly, capable of a knock, but could catch the sun if he had to. Reed can catch and i bet the aussie 1st innings score would have been 30 - 40 runs less if reed was keeping wicket. gojo with his 19 runs was just not worth it.
Complain about this postWhat a disgrace.If this is the best English team
Complain about this postit does not say much for the ones not selected.
They bowled badly in the first innings,Batted like
prats,and have continued bowling rubbish.If thats
the best they can do come home now.Talk about getting money for nothing.
Surely it can't be true that Harmison thought his bowling was anything other than an embarrassment! How deluded can you be? I suppose the next thing will be statements from the England camp that they are ready to "bounce back". Yeah,I'll believe that when I see it.
Complain about this postThis England cricket team is supposed to be a professional outfit.They spend their lives practising their sport,preparing themselves for momentous ocassions such as this current series.We've heard the hype,but this performance must rank with the worst of them.A lot of the players look totally unprepared and to be honest completely out of their depth.The comparison I can draw is the Bangladesh series when England helped themselves and their averages.
Complain about this postWe as a cricketing nation can only hope that with our backs to the wall there is someway back from this debacle.
Unfortunately the wall seems to be faced by another wall of mammoth proportions which is the Australian mentality.ie knock 'em down and keep kicking.
If Marcus Trescothick was depressed before he left Australia this might actually cheer him up, knowing that he's escaped this major embarassment and preserved some professional integrity.
Oh dear,heres hopefully DV
Just why are England so woeful in this test ?
Having stayed up to watch the England innings, which for the sake of my beauty sleep, was mercifully short, I'm puzzled.
It seems as though there was a complete lack of preparation for the series, and the first test inparticular.
From the very first ball, it has been a mismatch of schoolboys vs world champions.
Yet, there is nothing that could not have been predicted, from the aggression and desire for revenge from the Australians, to the insipid bowling display from England. England should have been totally prepared for an onslaught, and for the cauldron-like atmosphere. It duly came, but they crumbled under the pressure.
What preparation did England undergo ? Nerves are to be expected, but they can be controlled and chanelled through preparation and conditioning.
I cannot see how England can retain the ashes from this display, they are all but 1 test down, and with the battering they have received confidence will be rock bottom. McGrath and Lee will be able to pick our batsmen off like flies, any slight total being built in subsequent tests will simply take 1 wicket for memories of the Gabba to resurface and the inevitable collapse to follow.
The one positive in all this ?
It cannot get any worse. This must be the trough, it is simply impossible to put in a more abject display. The only way is up.
Complain about this post"I don’t think I have ever seen a man look so utterly determined and focused on the job in hand than the Australian captain."
"Than"?
Still, I'm enjoying the broadcasts.
I'm not expecting this to be added to the Comments, but merely wished to make my point.
regards,
Complain about this postHarry Lake
Good job Fletcher strengthened the batting with Jones & Giles!!
Does anyone really think England have a chance of saving this....thought not. Ponting will probably declare after an hour, England will lose a couple of wickets before lunch, capitulate [again] in the afternoon and be all out before bedtime.
So many poor decisions before the series began [selection, lack of warm-up games, going home between Champions Trophy and this tour, bowlers not getting into form by bowling way too few overs in the summer] meant we went into this match on the back foot from ball one, rapidly retreating towards square leg and the boundary as the Aussies cruised home.
Complain about this postSack Fletcher now, send Harmison back home to find his bottle, pick players on form, not favouritism & past glories and let's show some guts and pride in the next Test.
After ashes win over australia, england strated treated cricking nation like India, Pakistan and Sri lanka as if they are no match for them,big talk ,big hype and as a result were beaten by them in various forms of game,reminding them that you are at top unless beaten other playing nation. Now the drubbing they are getting are well deserved. Hope players and managment understand change their tactics and train for rest of series.I hope they can improve and learn their lesson.
Complain about this postCan we underestimate the impact of Troy Cooley on the series. A man who knew our players strengths and weakness's inside out, now not only not with us but with the other side...
Complain about this postThe Aussies batted and bowled better than England.
Complain about this postI sincerely hope that England picks up in the second innings and put a couple of centuries on the scoreboard to help them psychologically in Adelaide test.
A double century from KP or Strauss wouldnt go amiss.
I don`t understand really how Ian Bell could feel upbeat about the situation.ok he was our best batsmen but the team effort has been deplorable and to be honest , embarassing. !!!
it will be all over well before the end of day four ! perhaps the biggest win ever?
for either team at any time?
Bill Beeby
Dover , Kent.
Complain about this postSecond test team:
Strauss*
Cook
Bell
Pietersen
Joyce
Collingwood
Flintoff
Read
Mahmood
Hoggard
Panesar
Even Aggers would have to approve the batting strength, and the bowling would be stronger as well.
Here we are complaining about Flintoff's workload in the first innings (as a result of the failings of others). He bowled seven more overs in nearly two days than 37 year old who hasn't played a test for a year McGrath did in two sessions. This should have been the general structure of the team from the start and anyone with half a brain could see that it was our best chance. Even if we were looking to "escape from the Gabba with a draw!" ;)
Complain about this postBearing in mind the age of his bowling attack (and the need to keep them fresh for as long as possible!) and the psychlogical damage that has to have been done to the England team by their rapid dismemberment not enforcing the follow on and then getting England to a point where they must themeselves believe they've no chance of even drawing the match I actually reckon that Ricky Ponting has made a tactical masterstroke...
IF, and this is now a big if, England do manage to get their heads up we all know what they are capable of- wreck the morale and they won't be able to fucntion effectively. Hence Ponting's decision to not enforce the follow on....
At this point....I've got to say the Ashes look like they're gong back into Australian hands!
Complain about this postTo say England have been playing poorly is probably fair. To expect any more during the first test is probably not. England are not a team known to start with the ferocity shown by the Aussies, who started off this series in a similar fashion to the last one.
The difference for me is the confidence brought on by playing in front of home spectators- the Aussies are thriving in the heat of the atmosphere, and by the look of some of the decisions are taking the umpires along for the ride.
Time will tell whether the England train can pick up any steam now thath it has spluttered and coughed its way out of the station.
I have faith in the team and am hoping the boys can pull together for the double figure sessions. Talk of whether England went too soft or prepared well enough for the conditions is misjudged as you just can't practice an Ashes series. Improvements are being made each session by some key players, the proof of the pudding will be if this will give the Aussies enough to think about.
It is all there to be done for England while Australia seem to only have one possible direction from where they currently stand- Ponting's conservative decision indicated to me that they themselves believe that.
Complain about this postI think it is too early to begin writing the obituaries of the series, but one has to be frank and honest in their assessment; a lot of hard work will be required by Freddie and his team to put some competition into the series.
One may add that it cannot get worst and England can only get better with time; time in this case has to be between now and the second test.
Complain about this postA sadistic Aussie gave me a ticket for today. Great to be there, I made sure I got my shouts out early because I correctly feared there'd be few occasions later! It's all down to pride, grit and determination from now on.
Complain about this postGuys, It's a shocker what's been going on with the cricket on the pitch for England , but equally alarming is the behaviour off the pitch. I've been to many tests in my time and the singing, flag waving etc is part of the fun. All of a sudden in Brisbane, the fun must end and in our section alone , in 1 hour, 25 were thrown out for starting mexican waves or standing up and clapping, including 2 mothers with their kids (they weren't drunk yobbos)
Whether it's The Gabba, Queensland Police, or Cricket Australia i don't know, but this Ashes game won't be remembered by those who were there for the action on the pitch.
Notice the fall in attendance for the daay (Sat)that was to break all records. Like many today, we won't be using our tickets again opn Sunday.
The blog site said many had gone home early, not true, Thrown out is closer to the mark.
Good luck in Adelaide lads.
Lets hope South Australia know how to organise a good 5 days of Cricket.
Complain about this postI am making my intentions clear that I am going to start legal proceedings against ricky ponting because not enforcing the follow on could be described as a cruel and unjust punishment under the human rights .
Complain about this postThis has gone beyond a case of the strong destroying the weak. The fact of the crowd heading home is so awful. This is the game taking a hit.
I suspect Ponting had several agendas to satisfy, and extending the game was one of them. Let us hope the Day 4 ticketholders get a great day out. Since there's little chance of rain, Australia could bat through lunch or mid afternoon, and allow England the opportunity to scrape a draw. He knows Australia have the upper hand for the series. Its a big embarrasment when one side is so bad they have to be given a chance by the opposition. But it happens.
Can anything be salvaged from this doomed Fletcher expedition? Only if the venerable leader can learn flexibility and progress from this defeat.
The following changes are recommended:
-replace Flintoff with Strauss as captain
-replace Giles with Panesar
-replace G Jones with Chris Read
-replace Anderson with somebody competent
-make Harmison 12th man
It's no panacea, but at least there will be a sign that things can be improved. As to team attitude, this England squad has to take a collective exercise to decide whether they are in Australia as tourists or to win a professional sports trophy.
Complain about this postThis is like a crash site, you dont want to look, but you cant avoid it. Switch on England.
Complain about this postWhy don't your commentators acknowledge that England is losing to a better team? This is no shame. Whitewashed by Sri Lanka earlier this summer, the outcome was and is obvious.
Until the English batsmen adopt the classic one-eyed stance like all the great batsmen of the world, instead of the square-on two- eyed position, English cricket will continue to suffer.
Complain about this postDrop Giles, his runs are not going to make the blindest bit of difference, Get Monty in to do some attacking bowling, he can also contain if needed, Get Read to provide some proper wicket-keeping, Fletcher needs to think positively after this disaster, we will never retain the ashes with a defensive mindset
Complain about this postPointing Batted on because McGrath would be tired after bowling his heart out
Complain about this postDefintely ian botham's articles had made a lot of impact. It seems that article in the news paper made Glen Mcgrath more determined to prove himself. For England it would be a big miracle otherwise it looks like the most dreaded 5-0. The australians this time are ruthless. No matey attitude.
Complain about this postBut the selection of the squad left a lot to be desire. i think the bowlers like Anderson and Hoggard had no chance on the australian wkts. The swing doesnt make a difference in australia. you need a bowler who can hit the deck very hard. Just see how many balls Mcgrath had swung. The thing is he is tall and it is not easy for a batsman to play him on the front foot and that is because he hit the deck hard. Stuart Broad was the better selection in my view. He is the sort of bowler who is in Mcgrath's mould. Also he is as much tall as Curtly Ambrose. Importantly he got the economical action and got control on his line. thats what you need in australia. i think england selectors are just wasting him in county cricket and A team's tour. The only better way he can be groomed is the test level against quality batsman.
To avoid being humiliated again, (surely the reason behind Pontings decision not to enforce the follow on) Flintoff should have taken the gloves and Jones opened the bowling with Alaistair Cook!
Harmison and Anderson and should have stayed off the field with The Hogster in the slips- Ponting could then waste as much time as he liked amassing a huge score-
Complain about this postEngland only realistic target- batting for 2 days- would not have been affected and the phsycological damage of having our "top" bowlers being thrashed again could have been avoided.
Last year seems such a long time ago.
That summer I sat and watched a England Cricket team full of aggression and desire and a team that refused to be bullied by the aussies and were willing to stand up to them eye ball to eye ball and guess what? The Aussies blinked first. Last summer I truely beleived we had turned a corner in English cricket but after the last three days it looks now like a false dawn.
This test has gone the way of the aussies and putting aside poor selection choices and poor performances what stood out more than anything was the fact that the lads seem to have lost the guts and have simply capitulated in the face of a good Aussie performance. Ponting and co want the ashes back and it shows. So England.....for the fans sake, for the pride of the country and for sake of the game in England lets at least show them we have attitude and self belief to take the fight to them. The Aussies are a good team but by not enforcing the follow on they are trying to humiliate us...don't let them do it.
Complain about this postEven if we played Bangladesh this margin of dominance would raise eyebrows. Truly the most hideously disastrous start to the series imaginable. I'm searching for something positive but there is nothing. An inmitigated disaster in every department. It least it can't get any worse from here. Can it?
Complain about this postDaniel Hodges - 10 out of 10.....
Everyone is complaining about "being prepared" and complaing about the time between tests.... doesnt each team have the same time to prepare since the last ashes???
Mmmmm
Ponting sent England back in because he believed the wicket is playing a day later than it shoud... ie tomorrow is a Day 5 wicket, and he didnt fancy batting in the 4th innings chasing a total on a goat track...
Its not about pummelling the English, that is just a wonderful bi-product.
Complain about this postTo my observation the difference is in the bowling attack. I am also concerned that Flintoff is not a natural leader and I didn't see evidence of him driving the team on like you see Vaughn do.
So let the batsmen perform. Think how embarassed Ponting would be if England bat through.
Drop Andersen and bring in Mahmood, and please give Monty a chance. On the rankings I saw on the TV he's a top 10 world class bowling performer. Crazy therefore not to play him, and his natural enthusiasm rubs off.
And the Aussie's never played him before.
But I can see heads down and really they don't need to be. Look what happened at the last ashes. Come on, let's be intimidating!
Complain about this postThe largest margin of defeat without losing by an innings is 675 runs inflicted by England on Australia in 1928, coincidentally in Brisbane (not the Gabba).
This match result could be close to that. I feel utterly deflated by this embarrasing effort.
Despite yesterday's performance, I'm still not too worried about the batting. Strauss, Bell and Pietersen are all in form and Flintoff and Collingwood remain quality.
The bowling attack, however, is impotent and lacks depth. We won't get close to Australia in this series unless this improves dramatically.
Complain about this postAustralians aren't interested in a tight series. They want to see England demoralised: a return to the normal order in the cricket world. McGrath and co, knowing their own time is limited, want to inflict a new set of scars on the young English psyche, to ensure they can watch another 20 years of dominance in their older age. Many writers are also right in referring to the jingoistic celebrations last year, as well as the references to Dads' Army, as big contributors. I wonder if the Queen of Australia is going to invite the Australian team over to her palace and give them awards?
Complain about this postI fully agree with Ricky Ponting's decision to bat again. It was a ruthless decision by Rikki Ponting and one that should be applauded.
The only way England could have been given the slightest chance of victory was by enforcing the follow on.
By batting again England have been given absolutely no chance of winning. When England do come out to bat it will be on a fourth and maybe fifth day wearing wicket with plenty of cracks.
In addition, there is a psychological aspect to this.
Ricky Ponting, from a position of strength, is publicly toying with and humiliating the English team, hoping to damage morale.
It won't surprise me if he waits till Australia are at least 700 runs ahead before declaring.
With hot, fine weather forecast, and facing a rested, fresh attack England will have absolutely no chance of surviving and it won't surpise to see a dispirited team collapse again.
Shane Warne will also love those wide cracks in the bouncy wicket!
Complain about this postAs a SL fan and a neutral fan of the Ashes there is no way panesear would have made a difference in this test match. Yes it was defensive playing giles but panesear wouldnt have saved this test match.
Complain about this postThe english fans have to face facts. The england cricket team is not good enough. Check ur frontline bowlers averages. Everyone of them have a bowling average of over 25. Aus has 3 under 22! Also your batting has been poor and should consider playing flintoff at 7.
Who is in the slightest bit surprised given Englands performances since the last Ashes series ? England have failed to contest a single session. Injuries have played a part but the biggest failings have come from the management/coaching level.
Complain about this postIt really is a no-brainer, the way to win a test match is to take 20 wickets, in order to do this you need to play your most attacking options therefore ommiting Panesar in favour of Giles really smacked of negativity - what use Gilo's 21 runs now? Read to keep to Panesar is surely our best hope for the next test if we have any serious ambition.
Complain about this postI know the performance that England have subjected us to has been appalling and at times embarrassing but we have to believe that each player has done his best. I reckon the players will be more upset than anyone at what has happened. The way this match has progressed though can't really be a surprise. Our bowling attack for example- how many competitive overs have they bowled in the last 12 months? I just don't understand the selection in the first place for such an important match but the skill of any manager is to learn from what has happened and now Duncan Fletcher needs to perform!! We need to look forward from now on. Impossible as it may seem, there is a chance of a draw in this test and though highly unlikely, just think what that would do for the rest of the series. Being realistic though England are going to start the next test one down and so we need to pick our best team and attack. That means leaving Giles and Jones out and playing Panesar (who now has more pressure than ever) and Read. Fletcher needs to sort out Harmisson because he's our main strike bowler. If he can't then there's really no point in playing him. You can't use a test match for practice.
Complain about this postWhen all is said and done it may be that Australia are just too good this time but England and particularly Duncan Fletcher need to look at what has happened and learn from it.
Ok the aussies have out played us , but what did we expect having lost the toss on that wicket, perhaps we should just have had the toss ,see who wins that and not bother with any cricket at all, as the result was already determined.
Complain about this postYou guys are woeful, I really hope you can improve to make the series interesting.
Who ever picks your team should be sacked on the spot, check to make sure he is not an undercover Australian.
Also sack half of your team as well, It could have been a closer game if your captain had some support.
Hopefully your selectors get it right for the second test and make this series interesting.
Cheers
Complain about this postnormal ashes service restored, sorry, sorry, england..........gutless
Complain about this postBy batting on so long Ponting has given England just about the only chance of saving the game. Perhaps he can be tempted to bat beyond lunch on 4th day?
Complain about this postThen it just needs 4 England players to bat properly boringly and LONG ...
Just wishful thinking... More likely to be a 500 run defeat.
England's management team are to blame for this ineffective performance:
Complain about this post1. When Trescothick went home (too big a gamble in the first place) they should have called up Rob Key - an opener with Test experience in Australia & somebody that they respect for his batting & that they cannot get under his skin - it would also leave Alistair Cook to carry on a no.3.
2. Monty Panesar should have been picked, & must be picked from now on. He carries more threat to Australia's batsmen than Giles, & can also tie them down.
3. Lack of overs for Harmison before the Test - last chance in the next Test, if the same display then drop him.
4. Sajid Mahmood should have been picked ahead of Anderson & must be picked for next Test. Again he carries more threat with his pace & possible reverse swing, & can bat a bit.
Australia just fantastic, well prepared and mentally up for it.England come on boys, it cant get worse, this test isnt over - Strauss,Cook,Freddy,Collingwood,Pieterson time to stand upoand bat out the draw, nothing is impossible remeber Bothams belief of 81..
The management got it wrong,Montys withdrawal again poor management by Fletcher ( i endorse Boycott time for Fletecher to go).Not giving Harmison the new ball poor judgement,the guy neds tp lay himself in..
Dont write us off yet...
Complain about this postStill think it was right to play giles? He made all the difference in suring up our lower order didnt he? Its not like our toothless bowling attack needed anything different is it? What an utter nonsense discision by England. Poor old freddie...how can he soar when he's surrounded by turkeys
Complain about this postWhat a ridiculous idea of Ponting not to enforce the follow on with a lead of 445.
The scenario I would like now is to see England hanging in there with a couple of wickets left at the end of tomorrow and then a freak monsoon that prevents any play on Friday. Result match drawn!
Pretty unlikely I know, but would serve him right!
Complain about this postIts interesting that Giles (and to a lesser extent Jones) have done what they were in the team to do. Score 20 and bowl tight, in Jones case he hasn't missed a catch (YET!).
While you dont expect all your top 6 batsmen to succeed you should expect 2-3 to contribute. Same for the bowlers.
All the focus on Jones and Giles is not the issue - Harmison and Anderson are one problem, the preparation and thought processes of Strauss, Collingwood, Pietersen are the other. Runs made in Sydney and Adelaide are no preparation for batting in Brisbane on a hard bouncy track.
Variety in the attack is needed - as soon as the ball didnt swing Hoggard and Anderson were reduced to support roles, as soon as Harmison lost his radar they needed Mahmood or Plunkett or Broad to provide another pace option since Giles and Hoggard couldve tied up an end and compensated for a few four balls from the less experienced seamers.
Panesar in the team was just obvious though. Bring him in for Anderson in Adelaide. Then choose between Giles, Anderson and Mahmood depending on conditions in Perth and Melbourne.
Complain about this postWas 11:20 chosen as the time for the highlights because it is way beyond the watershed and we don't want any kids watching this brutal horror show!
Ok Giles got 25 so his selection is fully justified then Fletcher.
Complain about this postInsufficient preparation, over-hyped players, the wrong team, losing the toss, the heat and the Aussies more up for winning than England were for drawing; change the team before a debacle becomes a catastrophe - Read, Mahmood and Panesar straight in for starters...indeed, Agnew has gone down in my eyes after saying that this was the right team. What is he now, mouthpiece for the England coach - come off it, boyo!
Complain about this postI couldn't agree more with Aggers. England have got to start showing some real pride. They haven't looked like the Ashes winning side of 2005 for quite a while now and its all very well and good trotting out injury excuses, but the simple fact is that, to date, we are being made to look like little boys playing a man's game.
The biggest disappointment (apart from the woeful batting in the first innings) has been the bowling attack. We seem at an utter loss to be able to put the ball in the right place (with the noble exception of one A Flintoff). It doesn't matter how good the Aussie batters are, if we'd bowl properly they wouldn't score so many.
Tony Grieg hit the nail on the head yesterday when he said the England set up were mad to let Troy Cooley go!
I would like nothing better than to see this England side pull things around and retain the Ashes, but on the evidence so far we're a long way from doing that
Complain about this postDoes anyone really believe that the England team aren't trying and are not bothered by this!? This series was always going to be a massivly different to last year and if we are to HOLD ON to the Ashes with the team as it is (injury and illness wise) it would be a fantastic achievement. We only just won it last time, at home, with a stronger line-up. Not picking Panesar was a big mistake as it handed the aussies even more of the iniative but things aren't irreversable. Test series are not won or lost in 3 days.
Complain about this postFreddie and team are getting massacred. It doesn’t help having the best bowler and keeper not playing too.
The English are good at inventing sport, but not good at playing or picking the right coach.
5-0 for Australia.
Complain about this postLets put it in perspective - yes we have played poorly, and the Aussies have played well.
To me, whoever won the toss were firm-favourites to win the game anyway!
For Adelaide - firstly WIN the bloody toss!! Then:
We need Harmy back with some confidence, we need Strauss as captain ( to take the strain off Freddie ) and we need Panesar out in the middle.
On the positive side, we are already expected to lose 5 - 0, and THIS could work in our favour.
We are NOT the rubbish that is being suggested here. We are far better than what we are showing and I still feel that this contest will be a tight one!
Complain about this postCall my a cynic but living in Brisbane I understand that it has been a long time since we saw the 5th day of a test match.
Therefore I think the decision to bat by Ricky Ponting was pressured by Cricket Australia to ensure day 5 of the match and the income that would be generated from it.
At 40 000 pe day that is a lot of income for Cricket Australia.
I must also say, almost reluctantly, that I look forward to listening and reading your comments as I beleive you are one of the more astute judges in world cricket.
Unfortunatly, most Australian cricket commentators think the cricketing borders of excellence do not pass any further north than Brisbane.
Keep up the good work
Paul
Complain about this postBrisbane
Having seen the decline of steve harmison, and the england team in general, i can't help but think back to previous news, where i read that flintoff and harmison were best friends. Is freddie's captaincy meaning less time to chat and encourage harmy? personally, i'm not sure, but i think its going to take a miracle in man-management to get harmy to bowl chin music like he used to.
Complain about this postCould be time to test read and panesar's resolve in an ashes test. Come 2009, monty should be in peak form and have plenty of experience for another go at the aussies. And if our bowlers aren't going to get the ball in the right place now, may i suggest a phone call to jon lewis?
Probably couldn't havent been a worse start for England but there are still 4 tests after this one and if we go into them believing we have lost then they might aswell just come home. At the moment England are just outplayed but there are still plenty of players in this side which can at least challenge the Aussies. What I find really frustrating is that we won the ashes in 2005 by being positive and playing attacking cricket, so why go into this series being defensive? Why difference does an extra 20 runs from Giles do us, Panesar probably wouldn't have 10 wickets in the first innings but at least its a sign of intent, that we want to compete and try and win rather than just say at the start we'd be pleased with a draw. I think the big difference between this series and the last ashes is the bowling attacks and in particular, Troy Cooley. It cant be a coincidence that when he was in charge Harmy was one of the best in the world, now hes harmless. Oh well, hopefully we cant get a draw and then go on to bigger and better things- come on england!
Complain about this postI doubt England will survive more than 2 sessions. There is so obviously a lack of moral fibrre in this squad. The rot set in with Trescothwick and you can see Harmison joining him back in England soon. They are obviously mentally ill-equipped to deal with the going when it gets rough, and some of the 'fighting' talk in the interview is risible. If just a small percentage of that talk could be converted into action we moight stand a chance, but I" think not.
Complain about this postThe Aussies showed us the way in thier second innings there is nothing to be afraid of in this pitch. And as for Monty, he should definately play in the next test but was right to be omitted here. If shane warne didn't take a wicket ,Monty wouldn't have either!
Complain about this postWhy is everyone saying Australia would have been bowled out for 400 if Monty was playing? MAybe he would have bowled better but saving 200 runs is very unlikely. And what difference would it have made anyway. It still would have left a 350 deficit at the end of the first innings.
Complain about this postIs it the fault of the players?
After staying up until five last night, being tortured by the lack of postive things to think about in respect of the match, it seems to me that the problem stems from how the team are being managed.
This is a talented squad out there, and the scoreline betrays their potential.
With the exception of performances from Bell and Flintoff, the players haven't yet delivered or "Come to the party", as the team currently keep promising- I do hope this is a euphimism, and does not involve alcohol and late nights on tour!
Management decisions which which have been strongly criticised by many cricket fans are;
1) The choice of Flintoff as captain. Although a superb player, one man can't win a series for you. His leadership qualities are not in question, but are we asking too much of him?
2) A high injury ratio. Key players being absent at our hour of need. Surely something can be done to reduce this?
3) Team selection from the available squad. We want 'wicket takers' and 'run makers' in the team at the exclusion of ALL others. Clearly, by reading the comments on this website many people believe we are not playing our strongest 11.
For example one of our mediocre bowlers should make way for Pasenar. Collingwood, should make way for just about anyone, perhaps an elderly relative, or perhaps a specialist cricketer who can bat or bowl??!!
How do we make the management team take on board these comments? If these kinds of questions persist through the series, we need to think about who's calling the shots. As cricket fans we actually care, I wonder if Flecther and the selectors care as much as we do?
To reatin the Ashes we have to think like an Australian, we need dose of single-minded ruthlessness. Sport rises above all. Nothing matters except the result. It's okay to offend some people if it means you win. Drop the dead wood.
I'm not convinced that the management team have got the hard edge they needs. Flecther should be planning for susccess, rewarded for it if delivered and the knowledge that he will be fired if his team underperfoms for avoidable reasons. That is the nature of the real world in which everyone else lives. Why can't they? Same goes for the selectors, and they always should be made to feel that their futures are uncertain if they fail. I have to ask myself how long has David Graveney been around??
Fletcher and the selectors should be playing for their future and continued employment.
England players should be playing for pride, glory and passion. It is an honour to play for your country. Make us believe that you think so too!
Complain about this postThis is not village cricket (no, really, it's not) and the captain and coach can't just pick their mates. Put Strauss in charge, get Monty in. I have enourmous respect for Giles as a fighter but his selection was always a stop gap until someone could be found to replace Tufnell. Come to think of it Phil is out there and I'd rather have him than Giles.
Complain about this postTotally outplayed in every department. I am an hardened cricket fan, but even I am falling asleep after an hour or so, because I know we are totally being destroyed, and in those deathly hours of the morning, you need some reason to keep your mind awake. Being put the sword like lambs to the slaughter by the aussies, is not the reason I was looking for,
Complain about this postBloody Hell !!! What has happened to all the support from home(England)? I know things are a bit tough at the moment,but it won't be like this all the time.There is still plenty of cricket to be played it's only the end of day three of the first test.
I am from Western Australia and support the aussie's to the max.
I love listening to the cricket on the ABC radio as I am driving around the bush in a log truck.
Keep up the good work Aggers it's great to hear your voice from the comentary box
regards
Graeme
ps I think that Dirk Flinthart is on the right track as to why the aussies are so fired up.
Complain about this postI like his tip:
Here's a tip: never, ever, EVER kick an Australian until you're quite certain he's dead. (Steve Irwin is probably fair game by now...)
This is not village cricket (no, really, it's not) and the captain and coach can't just pick their mates. Put Strauss in charge, get Monty in. I have enourmous respect for Giles as a fighter but his selection was always a stop gap until someone could be found to replace Tufnell. Come to think of it Phil is out there and I'd rather have him than Giles.
Complain about this postAnderson - if it doesnt swing, bowl straight and quick. Go and have a chat with boycott.
Collingwood- you have been picked for a bit of northern grit start showing some.
Giles- you are a lovely chap by we need a turban behind a SPINNING ball!
Tresco- everyone loves you... come back!
Vaughn- we need a opening partner for Strauss. does it really still hurt ? you big girl.
Harmy - go into the nets, put a little red square on the floor and bowl at it for a day. Eat raw steak and then get one of you team mates(wearing a Ricky pointing face mask) and flick you repeatedly "down under" GERRRR!
That should do it.
Complain about this post5-0 in favour of Australia.
Complain about this postAggers is not actually correct in stating that "The lead of 445 is now the largest margin in Test cricket in which the follow on was not enforced."
In the 4th and final test of the 1929/30 West Indies vs England series, England made 849, bowled the Windies out for 286 (a lead of 563) and did not enforce the follow on.
The game was supposedly a timeless one, but it ended in a draw after nine days as England had to catch the boat home.
Complain about this postAll this nonsense about playing Read and Panesar is getting on my nerves - Do you seriously think that Panesar was going to rip the Australian team apart and that we'd be gunning for the win rather than facing one of the biggest losses in the history of test cricket?
I rate Warne far higher than Monty yet I didn't see him ripping through England's top order. Sure it might have been a more aggressive tactic, he might have got an extra wicket or two. Then again he might have been smashed around the park and gotten out for a duck.
Giles was a defensive inclusion, but given the state of the England team I still agree with it. After all, at least if the batsman can play a few days out in a test match we might at least stand half a chance of a draw. As it stands we cannot bat or bowl, and inclusion of Monty or not, I can't see us being in any better position now than we already are.
Jones didn't get a big score which is a shame, but then again he did no worse than the rest of our batting lineup bar Bell and Giles. Half of our batsman gave their wicket away and the other half were simply outplayed by an Australian team that look far fresher and up for it than us.
Perhaps we need to strengthen our batting and replace the ineffective Harmison for a start. Yes that is a defensive move, but I doubt that after such a convincing performance the Aussies will roll over in the second test. I think after this test we need to be looking for a draw to slow their momentum and basically regroup, because this performance was nothing but a shambles. I think that the England supporters should be reimbursed - this isn't a test match, it's an annihilation.
Complain about this postfinance only reason for australia to bat otherwise match over on third day as england bowled out twice and refund for all those with tckets for fourth day
Complain about this postThat was a disgrace. How can one international team score more with 3 batsman than the other managed with one team, especially after the hammering they gave us in their first innings too? We need to make changes for the next test, Harminson has to go - he can't be kept in just because of who he is:
Team:
Strauss (c)
Cook
Bell
Pietersen
Collingwood (last chance)
Flintoff
Jones
Mahmood/Broad
Hoggard
Andersen
Panesar
After going 1-0 down, we have to attack with panesar, no question. I know Mahmood isn't particularly accurate, but it has to worth a chance. Also, Strauss should be captain, flintoff should be opening the bowling, he won't do that as captain. He has enough to do as it is anyway.
Ben
Complain about this postIt seems to me that Ponting's decision to bat again has only increased England's chances of salvaging a draw - is this not a risk, albeit a small one? I'd be interested to hear Aggers' (or anyone else's) view on this.
Complain about this postWell done Charles Kane, the demise did set in after the open top bus ride, knighthoods and obe's handed out [for what?] ego's inflated etc, on the other hand ozzies have been planning this series for 12 months and have only lost one test match since then, a few have mentioned Billy Bowden [complaining about the biased umpiring when your 600+ runs down, pathetic] we down under remember a certain B.Bowden giving our tail ender out caught off glove [non batting] in second test last year to give England victory by 1 run when we know he wasn't out, so lets not blame the umpire, face facts, your countries obsession with soccer/football is killing the next generation of test players. The equation is simple in summer we play cricket, winter oz rules football, Kiwi's play cricket in summer and rugby union in winter [that's why they are world champions] in England you play/think/dream soccer 24/7 12 months a year. The only good thing that came out of last years Ashes series was seeing young kids with bat and cricket ball playing in the parks once again, that's were the next Freddie will come from [well and the south african cricket academy] Nothing is won/lost yet, 4 tests to go good luck.
Complain about this postWhere has Stuart Clark come from ? Man of the series in South Africa. I'm glad the aussie selectors have showed faith in him. Maybe he is better than Hoggard and Anderson. Personally I wouldn't write Harmison of yet. Hi to Paul from Hull HU5 4QT
Complain about this postThe Ashes Series is unfair. How can you expect one player - Flintoff - to take on 11 strong Aussies and beat them.
Complain about this postI wonder why even experts are wondering on Ponting's decision not to force follow-on. A quick check of Ponting's captaincy record will make it clear that he usually never forces follow on. Plus he is in run and ICC test players ranking race with Pakistan's Mohd Yousaf. I bet he will not declare before his 100 atleast.
Complain about this postOz is trying to humiliate England. That's fair on them. But its arrogance and it may backfire.
Cricket can change very quickly not to take anything for granted: pitches, players, form, confidence, luck etc. However fight and effort are the missing ingredients that could make so much difference to England.
Oz is obviously a better team. However the better team does not always win. England has to fight tougher to counter their inferior ability, and then they still have a chance in this series. IT DOES'NT MATTER WHO ENGLAND PICK BASED ON ABILITY BUT IT DOES BASED ON THEIR WILLINGNESS TO COMPETE.
This is probably what is annoying most of the posters. England's complete lack of passion and confidence is soul destroying.
Complain about this postVery interested in the posts concerning the type of crowd management that we are seeing at the Gabba. I was working over in Oz while the previous ashes was on and was lucky enough to go to numerous test matches at various grounds within my year there. On each of these days i was totally amazed by the excessive heavy handed nature of the security firms.
At one stage during the world series game at the SCG, people were getting dragged out for the most stupid of things. A friend of mine was carted off for singing a song with the a very minor and inoffensive swear word in it. I saw people being kicked out for stacking cups up to high. All inflatable's were being confiscated and even serious reprimands were handed out to people trying to start mexican waves.
Needless to say i'm not surprised by the complaints being voiced by the Barmy Army at the Gabba. It is so frustrating that the country with the best cricket team in the world (and lets not be fooled, they simply are) have the most draconian laws imaginable in managing the crowd at a test match. Nothing i have seen at any of these matches warranted being kicked out, the banter sometimes went a bit overboard
but nothing that people would find offensive.
I just wish that Cricket Australia would sort this out and let people enjoy themselves. I was also wondering if you could get a proper beer at the grounds. When i was over there they started only selling light beer which is about 2%. The banner at the ground read 'Boony wouldn't drink light so why should we'. Obviously this banner lasted approx 30 secs before being confiscated. What was funny was the fact that most of the guys went onto the very harsh red wine on sale. A sight not often seen at a sporting event.
Come on Ozzies, stand up for what's right for once in your life!! Can you not remember the noise coming from the English grounds in the last ashes, and most of these grounds capacities are half of what you see is Oz. Losing the ashes is going to be hard to take but if you can't go to a ashes test match and have a bit of honest adult fun,simply, what is the point??
Complain about this postNot to enforce follow-on .....is it arrogance or what on part of Mr. Ponting. Australia had a lead of 445, not sure how much he wants....800 or 900....this is definetely not cricket. Am praying for some help from weather god and offcourse won't mind a double hundred from Mr. Bell.
Complain about this postA couple of points:
I don't think England's batsmen did a huge amount wrong - only Strauss really got himself out, the rest were to one extent or another the victim of very good Australian bowling and a cracked pitch. Australia's batsmen have not been affected by this to any great degree since England's bowlers, Flintoff apart, seem to be unable to bowl line and length. This is probably largely down to lack of match practice, owing to the over-loaded international schedule. Not a lot England can do about that.
England are a batsman light. Australia's number 7 has a test average of around 50. England's number 6 has a test average of around 30. The whole Panesar/Giles debate really hinges around Fletcher's insistence that Flintoff can bat at 6 and that he needs 5 bowlers. To be honest, if none of them are bowling straight it doesn't matter whether you have 4, 5 or 11. The point is that if an extra batsman played, there would be no need to pick Giles ahead of Panesar, since Jones would be batting at 8. Why configure your team to have 5 bowlers but as a result not be able to pick your 5 best (i.e. most attacking) bowlers? (The argument for 6 batsmen is weakened by Trescothick going home, but the principle remains.) There is the question of whether Flintoff is fit enough to play in a 4-man attack, but there we have the point about picking semi-fit players again - and does he actually merit his place as a no 6 batsman who bowls a bit? Probably not at the moment - he looks increasingly like an excellent opening fast bowler and attacking no 7 or 8.
This doesn't address all of England's problems - essentially they need to get their bowling radars working above all else - but it seems to be a point that nobody's picked Fletcher up on. Fletcher hangs on to the idea that England won the Ashes last year by having 5 bowlers. I would argue that they won the Ashes last year by always having a bowler at each end who was causing problems i.e. bowling straight and thus keeping the Australian batsmen under pressure. That's still achievable with 4 bowlers (Australia manage it) - especially if they're your 4 best bowlers as opposed to 5 who are picked as a compromise between batting and bowling. It would also give England a better chance of keeping up with an Australian batting line-up who look in intimidatingly good form.
Complain about this postWHY WHY WHY RICKY!!!!
Whilst I understand Ricky Ponting wanting to give his bowlers a rest I would have thought, even with only a four man attack, bowling a team out for such a small total would have made the decision to enforce the follow on a simple one to make. It probably won't make much difference as I expect to see the English batsmen capitulate again in the second innings. I entirely agree with Aggers that the only one who gets any credit is Ian Bell. He has come on leaps and bounds dealing with the Aussies. I was sceptical about how he would fare down under but I was impressed no end by the battling qualities shown in an extremely tough situation. Although Pietersen was unlucky it proves what confidence does to a team as the time since the wonderful day at the Oval has hardly been plain sailing. We just have to hope that the batsmen show some fight in the second innings or this could really get ugly for the remaining tests. Also just wanted to thank Aggers, Blowers and the boys for the wonderful coverage.
Complain about this postI honestly feel that Ponting's decision not to take the follow-on is an utterly ridiculous decision, and has the capability, no matter how unlikely it may currently seem, to completely blow up in his face.
Subjectively, I look at it like this:
* Australia declare at lunch.
* England have a good session before tea, and only lose one wicket, two at a push.
* Final session, we manage to again, only lose one wicket.
That leaves the final day - 3 sessions, which England have to bat the game out, and 7 wickets in hand.
It looks completely absurd, but there is a chance this could happen, and if it does, it will be the biggest victory ever seen in English cricket, and perhaps even world cricket.
But, test matches which are so one sided are unusual. England are due a bit of luck, even if it comes in a very small dose.
14/1 odds on the draw - I've put a fiver on.
Complain about this postC'mon guys lets be serious. I grew in Uk and emigrated to Aus. Still support England but they are an absolute disgrace and deserve to be thrashed. Some the comments are little better, with the absurd excuses. - "It was the toss!!" C'mon. after England were bowled out for 150, Australia surpassed that in their second innings for 1 wicket. For all the media talk about a gritty performance from Bell, c'mon be serious. Most of the Aussie bowlers nearly outscored him!
Flintoff is good, Botham was good, thats nearly it fo9r the last 25 years. (Not really but you get the point). These guys had an Australian spirit and could have been honourary Aussies. Look at the English football team. What has happened to england that their confidence, guts, self-belief, and fight has been so neutered? Help me understand, please somebody...??? If WWII were fought today, we would be under German rule quicker than the French. Its not just about sport, this is a national emasculation. The sportsmen, (with the incredibly rare exception) and coach and half-baked commentator are just expressions and representation of the national malaise.
Complain about this postYou're correct about Bell, Aggers. He did as well as he could in that situation. A vast improvement on last year when he let fear dictate how he played.
Complain about this postOther than that it has been a pretty woeful performance. I know we are only one test in but Harmison should be dropped as he has been poor. Apart from fleeting good spells against Pakistan at Old Trafford and in the Ashes at Lords, he has been average at best for the past two years. Why not give Mahmood a go?
i sent an e-mail yesterday and it wasnt put up on the website....cant take any more pain huh?
Complain about this postgive up now on this particular test fellas...you cant possibly win. the best you can do is save some face.
the selectors for england are the best weapons australia have got...while they keep nominating has-beens and 2nd-rate players australia will dominate easily.
englands win in the last ashes series has got to be seen in its true light...an aberration... a series that australia lost more then a series that england won.
so to all the pasty-faced sorry looking lads over here from old blighty...enjoy the beer,ogle the girls but dont expect to win a single match..we wont lose to poms who dont seem to put up a fight.
aussie aussie aussie oi oi oi
Aggers,
Its a total disaster. My worst fears (pre-tour) are coming true, I believe only the weather will save a 5-0 series win for Oz. Our strike bowler looks tired and uninterested, Gilo looks pedestrian and lets face it if KP and Freddie don't come off, then we are done for. Strauss should be embarrasssed by his first innings village green type mis-fire.
As a Patriot of the highest order, I am sorry to say that the arrogance of the Convicts, right down to Barmy Army segregation is all too much for the Tourists.
Complain about this postI am sure as a person who has played cricket to Minor County level that all the boys are feeling gutted and yet determined about the events in Brisbane. What I cannot believe is the way that an Australian attack can make a ball swing and move on what is meant to be a road of a pitch and our bowlers cant ... the techniques of making a ball swing or deviate are the same be you an Australian or an Englishman.... there is no doubt we have been played off the park but the psychological scars could be too much to overcome in the immediate future ..
As a fellow cricketer overjoyed at last summers performances I would suggest that what I have watched for the last 3 days is anything but Professional... and whilst you need to remain positive what the hell was Andrew Strauss doing does he relise he was the catalyst for all that happened .....
Complain about this postHey Mr.Agnew,
It is a downcast buried test, aussies are gonna win....but so did they at lords 05.....i think england will come back strongly and hit ponting where it hurts the most........
I HATE PONTING AND THE AUSSIES...........GO ENGLAND!!!........
GO FREDDIE ....GET HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
COME HARMY.........GET EMMMM!!!!!!
GET YOUR ASS OFF THE COUCH AND GO PLAY FOR ENGLAND TRESCO!!!!!!!!!!
I LIVE FARAWAY WISH I WAS BORN IN ENGLAND TO KICK THOSE AUSSIES !!!!!!!!!!1
Complain about this postGood work Mr.Agnew....i have been reading your columns for a long time you are simply the best....
Jonathan
England have more than just their pride to play for. I don't beleive they can save the 1st Test from here (it would be nice to wrong on this) but whether the game ends on the fourth day tomorrow or late on the fifth day will have a big bearing on the players confidence going into the 2nd Test on Friday. If England are going to lose, let's hope they can at least manage to go down fighting.
Ponting's decision not to enforce the follow-on, will help England in one way. The bowlers seem short of bowling and Hoggard, Freddie and Giles are benefitting from having another bowl even the opportunity seems wasted on Harmison and Anderson.
Complain about this postAt this time of year in Australia, school leavers – known as schoolies celebrate their coming of age with a series of parties.
Many take the journey up the from Sydney to the Gold Coast beaches near Brisbane.
As I walked to the bus stop this morning, I saw lots of activity at the car hire place just outside my hotel.
A number of schoolies were cramming the boots of their newly-hired hatchbacks with eskies filled to the brim with beer – ready to head to the beach.
I can think of some other people who could do with a trip to the beach right now.
When Ricky Ponting cruelly opted against enforcing the follow-on at the Gabba, bringing England’s bowlers out to the middle again, maybe Andrew Flintoff could have forfeited the match there and then.
It looks to me that the whole team need to get their mind on something else – and a trip to the Gold Coast might be just the thing.
Complain about this postAfter all, did the Pakistan side not get over their defeat in the first Test against England in 2001 by retiring to Blackpool Pleasure Beach?
Days later they hammered Alec Stewart’s side at Old Trafford to level the series.
Saturday’s play at the Gabba lacked bite, both sets of fans knowing the match had become too one-sided.
On the way to the ground, most of the chatter on the bus came from the Brazilian catering staff. It made a prescient change from the playful banter of Thursday.
Travelling England fans know there will be better days than the last three they have seen.
Just ask 38-year-old engineer Nick Taffinder, from Leeds, who struck gold on his only other previous visit to watch England play abroad.
In January 2003 he watched Andy Caddick blitz Steve Waugh’s men.
“I was lucky really,” he told me.
“With England it’s like we’ll win one in five if we’re lucky.
“Obviously we’ve been doing quite well recently but unfortunately it’s been a poor show here really.”
His advice for watching England abroad – pack in some sight-seeing as well.
“It’s a long way to come just for cricket and if you don’t see some of Australia as well then you’ve probably missed out.”
So that’s a date then: the Gold Coast it is, with the schoolies, the England cricket team, its fans and anyone else who wants a break from the cricket.
Shameful.
What is is about English sportsman? The footballers were convinced they were going to win the world cup and the cricketers thought they would retain the ashes.
I am sick to death of hearing, "We will battle hard, dig deep, we can come back" and other pointless platitudes. Play with some heart like Fred, or make way for others that will.
I am also sick to death of managers/coaches who insist playing players that have been injured and not played for months/years or are totally out of form. Wayne Rooney and David Beckham for Ashley Giles and Steve Harminson anyone?
For Queen and Country try to bat out the best part of two days against a bunch of near OAP's will you? That means a straight bat, Mr Strauss.
Complain about this postI can't understand why unlike the last ashes battle England haven't worked out a bowling strategy for each of the Aussie batsman.They
Complain about this postobviously haven't done their homework.Field
placings can have a more dramatic effect to a
batsman than good bowling delivery.Hasn't the
English team analalyzed the Aussie batsmens
stengths and weaknesses ?
At the moment England look like Andrew Flintoff and ten others, one or two of whom such as Ian Bell are capable of applying themselves. This is so bad it's unreal. It's like back to the bad old days of the 80s and 90s. I think though that Ponting is an idiot for not enforcing the follow-on, it just doesn't make sense.
Complain about this postI have to agree with this comment:
"England can, at least, set their minds on a target which, in this case, is the number of sessions they have to survive or, at least, in which to show some pride.
Frankly, after this desperate performance, that would be a welcome start."
It's time that England played with some heart. It's either that or get the women's team in. They'd be able to do better.
And Aggers, it really would be nice to know what you think of the decision to include Giles over Monty now.
Complain about this postThe second innings England bowling looks horrible, they dont even look like beating the bat of Australian batsman let alone take a wicket!
To think on that same wicket England batsman were struggling against the Aussie bowlers while English bowlers (with the exception of Flintoff) look mediocre at best and even club cricketers would have done a better job. The selectors need to look hard and long at picking the right bowling attack for the second test, otherwise Aussies would be laughing all the way to another 600 plus total.
Complain about this postWhy wasn't Ashley Giles Jonathan Agnew's player of the day? He knocked up a useful 20-odd and bowled a few (albeit expensive) overs to fill in whilst the pacemen were resting. These are the exact reasons for which Aggers backed Ashley Giles's selection.
Mr Agnew, it is time to face facts: this game was lost before it started due to negative tactics and poor management.
1. Jimmy Anderson has had no substantial cricket in the last year and doesn't have the consistency of Stuart Clark (let alone Glen McGrath). Mahmood should have played instead - we know he'll be expensive, but his pace and height make him a more likely wicket taker.
2. Ashley Giles is not a good enough bowler to play test cricket. Monty Panesar is.
3. The decision to bat Kevin Pieterson at five is astounding. Paul Collingwood is one of the hardest working blokes in World cricket, but he has absolutely maximised his talent. There is no way he is a test number four, and if Trescothick was there, he wouldn't even be playing. Hiding your best batsman at five says you're scared - the aggressive 'we mean business' tactic would have been to bring KP in at three.
I honestly thought Geoff Boycott was being a bit hasty in calling for Fletcher to go. But after seeing the ridiculous mess he has made at the start of such a crucial series, I'm starting to agree. Duncan Fletcher is a very good coach to have won an ashes series. However, to be great coach, you have to build on weaknesses even in victory and recognise that a team must evolve. Going back to players like Giles and G Jones shows Fletcher to be inflexible and unwilling to move forward.
Complain about this postAggers, you're ever the optimist, England are definately NOT playing for pride-tho they might be praying for some. They are playing because they have no choice but to play. The ozzies put them in so they could have their noses well and truly rubbed in the dirt. This is a campaign about the end of empire as so many english contests in footie, cricket and rugby have been over the last 30 years. I recommend you read some of CLR James's essays on cricket to provide context to this campaign. The former colonies are now the home of English belligerence and they are so good at it! I wish the cricketing establishment - and I inclue you in that aggers - England is now simply an off shore european island with a remarkable role in history. Its time we started building a more honourable place for ourselves in the world.
Complain about this postThe aussies look fresh and determined to destroy the English.Ponting will declare after Langer's hundred and then it will be the Warne show.Team selection is difficult for Fletch,anyway you choose it's a long tail.
Complain about this postWhat amazes me about this game is the head-in-the-sand psycholgy of the England team, talking about how they are going to fight as hard as they can etc.
Someone - and that ought to be Fletcher - should pull the bowlers to one side (excluding Flintoff) and tell them to get back to basics. Try (for once in the last year) to put the ball in the correct place and let the pitch do the work. That is their job. That is what they (supposedly) practice all day. It's time to end the excuses and start delivering (pun intended).
And lastly, what a clever decision from Ponting to put the psychological pressure on England with what I expect to be a declaration just before lunch tomorrow (Sunday) leaving England with five sessions to score at around 140 a session to win.
With 550/600 the only conceivable total possible (I use conceivable in a very conceptual sense!) this must make the last two days seem very long to the English batsmen, amongst whom Bell stands out as a real inspiration for his technique and application.
So, a terrific no-risk strategy by Ponting, designed to inflict maximum mental damage. As you point out, a man on a mission.
Complain about this postthis is my takee on the follow on
CASH !!
the Australian players geet a cut of ticket receipts
the first 4 days are sold out, but day 5 is not yet
so to keep the match going to day 5 and increase gate receipts and hence their pay, they keep Englands secodn dig from starting as long as possible
and if by doing this there are added bonses
eg
rest for bowlers
increase humiliation on Harmison and co
further showing the ineptitute of Giles with the ball
further wearing out the pitch
than so be it
Complain about this postIt seems the old english disease has returned - ie the inability to do what mcgrath and clark did ie the bowlers toconsistently put the ball in the right area. No pressure is built up for the australians as they know that a good ball will likely be followed by 5 duff ones. It has nothing to do with experience - Anderson has more than clark.
Complain about this postBeing a fatalist take any 3 key players and have 4 more coming back from injury out of any team in any sport and they are going to struggle
Actually, it's probably for the best that Panesar didn't get picked. At least he's not going to be scarred mentally by the shambles taking place in the middle. And now he gets to come in as our saviour, that extra jolt of confidence should make him even harder to play against. Let's bear in mind that batting for 2 days (more likely a day and a half) is by no means impossible for England, having picked a side with depth to the batting. They simply need to get past the nerves, get their heads up and play each ball on its merits, not on the reputation of the bowler. Gerbil-face Ponting may yet live to regret his arrogance.
Complain about this postThankyou for your excellent commentry yesterday when Bell and others faced Lee and McGrath at the start of the third day. I could visualise each ball and its consequences. Unfortunately, after an hour or so we were given extended reminiscences about previous tours etc, with only passing references to the game in progress.I accept that perhaps the edge had gone for the commentators, but I would still like to understand the details of play.I fell asleep then, possibly a good job in view of events.
Mike
Complain about this postI think Pontings decision to bat again shows me two things: one - he knows his old boy attack would not be up to the job of one day in the field potentially followed by another whole day in the field and two, believe it or not, he is actually scared the England batters might have put on a big score and then he would be faced with a tricky last innings. (Remember Bell, Cook, Strauss, Pieterson and even Collingwood have all made big scores over the last 12-15 months so it is not unrealistic to expect they could do that again).
Complain about this postIf England realise this they do have the chance yet to bat themselves to safety but can we rely on one or two guys whose temperament might not just be up to it...lets wait and see...I for one would not be surprised to yet see us save the game...
Complain about this postAlastair Cook should not have been asked to open, he's not a specialist (international match) opener, it's not a one day match, it's not a match where you can experiment ! If you have picked up a player as a replacement of Trescothick then you have to pick up someone who can really do the job, if you think Ed Joyce would be a tourist only, then don't send him.
It's hard to say if Monty would have done something miracle, but I think Giles tried his best with bat and ball, so he shouldn't be criticized much. However England may try Monty in the next test anyway.
Australia playing at home, so no wonder they are doing well, but I think England still have the ability to come back and do well in the rest of the matches.
True, England have completely appauling but talk of bringing in Liam Plunkett for Harmison I find incredible. Surely anyone who knows anything about cricket will agree that Plunkett will get absolutely murdered. He simply isn't good enough to play test cricket, let alone in the ashes in Australia. The only reason he is in the squad is because he can bat, apparently, therefore meeting Fletcher's ridiculous obsession with bowlers who can bat a bit.
Mahmood, Broad, whoever- just not Plunkett. Also, I hope Fletcher now realises that Geriant Jones will NOT win you a test match with the bat. He is easily the most ordinary of England's batting and why Read isn't playing is beyond me. scoring 20 after 20 after 20 is not the sign of a good batsmen. Fletcher needs to hold his hands up, stop destroying the confidence of Panesar and Read and start answering questions.
Complain about this postJohnathan
Why is everybody so surprised about England being rubbish at sport. It seems fairly simple to me. If you under invest for years and build supermarkets on playing grounds you really can't expect much. In Oz they probably have an artificial pitch for every 100 citizens while i wouldn't know where to find one in London.
It is nothing about not having the heart, or not showing enough grit. Its simply that we haven't got as good a players. Unfortunately the English government doesn't believe sport is that important while the Ozzies base there whole national identity on it.
Maybe the olympics may change things in this country but i very much doubt it.
Complain about this postafter watching the last 2 nights i decided to proceed to my local for a few ales and a chat with my mates.
Complain about this postafter a fair few pints and 3 hrs of were going to get hammerd id had enuf and went home.
just in time 4 day 3. sadly i fell asleep on the sofa only 2 wake up and find we are 9 down.
for a moment i thought the beer demons
had got in 2 my head. then our good old mate gilo was stood at the crease. with the u guessed it 20 odd runs 2 his name.
i had some how recoverd from my hang over sat there and watched us shot out 4 a massive 157.
then to make me cry ricardo and freinds decided
2 bat and have more fun at our superb bowling unit. 2 make things even more depressing score card showed bell top scored followed by mr ashley gilles then the prolific mr extras. roll on xmas day turkey and stuffing. ps as for the dads army brigade may b there on viagra.
It is official - I hate cricket...
Complain about this postI lost sleep for England - phooeey what a waste...
Now I will have to endure SA destroying India tomorrow...
I think I will start backing Pakistan, now...
- You know, the kiss of death...
Too disappointed to write anything intelligible...
- A royally disgusted Indian Anglophile...
I'm being positive. At least that insipid display made the decision not to force myself to stay awake watching it any longer pretty easy. A bad day for Nescafe and English cricket then. I wont even bother tonight.
Complain about this postdo you think england will ever have a sustained, world beating, world champion team in anything, ever? nearly all englishmen i meet deal with sporting losses with a shrug of their shoulders and a comment such as ' oh were crap anyway, i knew we would lose' . i think its a problem with your national psyche. good luck in fixing it.
Complain about this postps- in 1966, in the semi final against russia, your home town referees made crucial errors, without those blatant errors you would not have won the world cup, thankfully that was the last world cup that used home referees.
good luck england - your going to need it
or was that ireland
or south africa, how many imports do you need?
Could somebody answer the question of what exactly has Geraint Jones done so wrong this test to drop him in the next test. He did everything he had to do with his keeping and kept very well. He did get out for only 19 but this was to an excellent ball which quite a few other batsmen (Chris Read included) would have struggled to keep out. I just wish people would accept that at times it is just a good ball which takes a wicket rather than poor batting rather than jumping on an anti-Jones bandwagon just because SHOCK HORROR he got out to a very good ball.
(I do also accept that Read was very unlucky to be dropped for this test in the first place after he performed very well in the Summer)
Complain about this postWith the game over in so little time , and England have to try and look for positives and the only one big positive is Ponting's decision to bat again - that does confirm Botham's view that they are Dad's Army and needed the rest. Take heart from this and move on as there are still 4 more tests to play and we can get them - time is still on our side whichever way you look - youth as well as 4 more tests for the dads army!
Complain about this postMy thought about R Pontings decision not to enforce the follow on was that cricket australia need the revenue from the gate and television so wanded a forth days, and hopefully a fifths days play.
England shoould take this opportunity to get some batting practice and try to occuoy the crease for as
long as possible.
"Fill up the wall with our englidh dead"
Complain about this postMy concern is that the English batsmen seem to have their feet stuck in cement,barely does the front foot move out of the crease ,which then brings LBW and Caught behind into play.
Australian batting on the other hand appears effortless with fantastic foot movement ,so its no suprise that they rack up the runs.
I also believe England do not have the bowling variation to trouble the Australians on flat tracks.
All four seam bowlers are right handed and our spinner doesnt spin the ball.
Hopefully we can find a left handed quicky and a good wrist spinner the next time we tour here.
It would be a gamble to bring Michael Vaughn back but he is a better captain than Freddie and he likes to bat on flat tracks.
Like the majority i would have Monty in ,its strange that we always say the spinner has to bat when we have Hoggard Anderson and Harmison ,none of whom set the world alight with the bat.
Our team have to realise that they have only four bowlers and the longer they stay at the crease the more tiring it will become for them.
Oh yes and get those feet moving.
Complain about this postRain being out of the question, I am praying for a nice controversial umpiring decision. Then England could do a Pakistan and throw their toys out of the pram. Forfeiting the game would be better than this.
One difference of course, Pakistan had more than a snowball's chance in hell of winning their game.
Complain about this postWell England has not done any worse than any other team touring Australia. The fact is no team has been able to really challenge the Aussies in their back yard for many years.
England may be #2 in Tests, but they are a distant #2 with the rest. The Aussies are in a league of thier own.
Complain about this postSURELY AUSTRALIA WILL WIN ASHES, LAST TIME ENGLAND WON IN ENGLAND BECAUSE OF THOSE TWO MATCHES MAGRATH WAS NOT FIT TO PLAY.
Complain about this postNOW ITS LOOK LIKE AUSTRALIA WILL EASILY WIN.
SUNIL
KUWAIT
"Reed can catch and i bet the aussie 1st innings score would have been 30 - 40 runs less if reed was keeping wicket"
Could you tell me which Test Match you were watching because it clearly is NOT the one which I watched every ball of! I would love to know who this REED character is too as I looked at the touring party and could not see any trace of him.
Complain about this postWhere is this crack in the pitch that people are talking about, and why is it that only Glen McGrath can find it? Seems to me that Steve Harmison is struggling to find his way to the ground! If he is not interested he should go to the airport and fly home.
And what is this about playing for pride? I am beginning to wonder if we have any. What Australia have done to us makes me bloody angry and should make England angry. They should get off their knees and fight! In some ways I dont blame Australia. This is a fight, and if you have your opponent down then make the most of it. We should be as professional and ruthless as them.
Please though, can we have an end to England players saying what they are going to do? It is the same in rugby - just get on and do it. It is even more galling when they rarely turn their words into actions.
Complain about this postOh how we English love to build ourselves up to smash ourselves back down... In the last Ashes series with a fully fit and massively in form team (not to mention home advantage) we only just managed to beat the Cricketing monster that is Australia.
They are an outstanding team and have got off to a flying start. Lets get behid our boys and send the spirit of the Barmy Army down under to inspire them to greatness.
Relax, enjoy it and remember, Australia are at times unbeatable in this game. Three days of one Test does not even come close to wrenching the Ashes from our grip.
'Sledging' our guys before the outcome of the first test has been decided and calling for Knee Jerk changes to the team is the preserve of the tabloid Sportswriters... lets enjoy it and give the team the support they are going to need!
Complain about this postI can't see much mystery behind Ponting 's decision not to enforce the follow on. For most test countries pay-day arrives when the England team arrive to play. Matches which finish inside 3 days cost the home association a fortune (the likely result if the follow-on had been enforced).
I'm sure Cricket Australia had a quite word in Ponting's ear and explained to him just how important it is to them for the match to go into a 5th day if possible.
Expect the declaration sometime between lunch (rather optimistic view, expecting England to survive more than 2 sessions) and tea (realistic view that England can survive more than one session) on the 4th day.
While we're at it maybe Buchanan should tell Ponting's bowlers to take it easy on Geraint Jones and let him get a few runs just to encourage Fletcher to stick with his butter-fingered "wicketkeeper". Mind you when England's main strike bowler is better at finding his captain at 2nd slip than the edge of the bat it's a bit of a moot point.
Complain about this postPhilip Darmon @ 134. Have you been smoking something? Home town referees? Semifinal against Russia? We are talking about the Football World Cup are we?
Complain about this postI know we lost the toss on a superb pitch and it's often an uphill struggle from there. But I can't help drawing comparisons from the first test last year where we lost badly - BUT showed some real fight - where has all that aggession gone, Freddie aside the bowling has gone totally soft. I wonder what message was felt by OUR players in not picking Panesar & Read ?? "Sorry guys you are not the team that won last time" .....
Complain about this postHow can people that Jones should not be playing based on his performance in this match...Lets get some facts straight...Out of the 783 runs conceded by England in this match so far, he has conceded two solitary byes...Out of the 157 runs scored by England, he scored 19 of them - admittedly not a great return- but the 3rd highest score by an England player, and higher than anyone bar Bell in the top six . Comments suggesting that England would have conceded 30/40 less runs had Read been playing are just plain wrong. Maybe its about time people were more constructive
Complain about this postSo, they've backed us into a corner. Time to show what the team are made of, patience, defensive play or as long as possible. No need to even try to get runs, don't run at all, why risk it, just solid defensive play. If they can pull out a draw, against these odds, surely the aussies will turn on Ponting, who, while being a great batsmen is not a particularly good decision maker. Come on England, show some spirit.
Complain about this postI dont feel sorry for england. just shows me that england is flintoff and flintoff is england. the best way to approach this situation would be to give jacques rudolph and ashwell prince a call. they played out 4 sessions for SA when they were 5 wickets down in perth. If they do lose england must simply think brisbane was a bad dream and start all over again. This is becuase sydney and adelaide will be much more favourable to english batting and aggressive batsmen like pietersen will do well. They must play both giles and panesar, even though giles can be blamed for this test, he really cant bowl alone. harmison should be given a terror talk and threatened with being dropped, and should just pitch the ball in the same areas like mcgrath irrespective of wether ponting tonks him for a ball or not. he might get tonked once, twice , thrice... but i've seen bowlers like nel and jermaine lawson expose his weakness in front of the stumps, since he's human after all. the australian order is relatively brittle without the hussey factor and they must ruff him up and come around the wicket to him. consistency can wear anyone down. the question is wether flintoff and co. have the mental strength. perth and adelaide have become much flatter over the past few years and guys like bell will do well there. The message to england is try your best at all costs and try to be positive, because next time when you tour aussie the core of the aussie team will be gone and ponting will have lost this red hot form. I say this because the youngsters like between 18-22 right now do not look promising at all. Their quality is more like early 2000 west indians.
Complain about this postHaving watched the first three (gut-wrenchingly painful) days of this test match, it is clear that England have three major problems:
1. Australia have more talented players
2. Those players are applying their talent far better than their English counterparts
3. Australia look more determined than ever to exact humiliating revenge upon England for what they see as an aberration last summer.
That the Aussies are more talented is beyond doubt. Of our players, only Flintoff would get in their side. What has disappointed me is the second two points: application and mental strength. From the word go England looked unfocused, downbeat and dejected; the bowlers (Aside from our magnificent captain) were not bowling basic good line and lengths, and the batsmen were too easily undone by the Australian attack. Strauss's wicket was unforgiveable; Pieterson narrowly avoided an even more embarrassing exit.
What is wrong with England? Where is the passion, confidence, drive and aggression of 14 months ago? It seems to me to be present nowadays in just one member of the team, and to point out who would be as pointless as asserting who is going to win this test match...
Complain about this postMore of the same from quite a lot of the posters on here:
dad's army are scared to bowl;
they are scared of our batsmen-afterall most have made big score over the last 12 months;
lets bat for as long as possible and this will drain them of energy for the 2nd test and we will win;
we came from behind last year so we will do it again.
Do the people who post this, stop and think of the other reasons for the mess you are in and will continue to be in for the rest of the series? Or are you new to cricket and don't really have a clue?
Maybe batting again and making it look so easy is going to leave scars that you are going to carry for the whole series;
Your batsmen while individually getting scores on occasions are not really up to the task at hand-apart from Strauss, Freddy and KP;
This is not england 2005 anymore and we rarely make the same mistakes twice;
The problem is you overhype everything and still believe you have a divine right to keep on winning after you finally achieve something good.
Now your press is giving bell some big praise but for what? Yes he scored 50, but it was shaky at first, and once he got the 50 he got out. Now all of a sudden he has the Australian's number.
So keep all your tired stereotypes going, as I am sure it makes you feel better, but you all know your problems deep down.
Complain about this postWhat were England thinking about? With the first innings score by Australia surely they knew that there was no hope of winning this test. At least they should have protected their wickets and played for a draw. Can none of our players put up the shutters. Bring back Trevor Bailey.
Complain about this postyep. it seems as though all the pre-ashes hype surrounding this tour is well and truly over, and so are our hopes of retainiing them i would say judging by our dismissal performance over the last 3 days. be prepared to expect much more of the same by way of the australians over the next few months as Engalnd fight to salvage some pride. who ever said english cricket was dead and buried was certainly right. still atleast we had 14 months to brag and say we were right up there with australia. only time will tell one would say and thats certainly true of now. hate to be a pessimist but i can see our backsides being whooped 5-0. selectors cant even make the right decisions. australian commentator made a very good point yesterday saying u need ur specialist to win matches and thats certainly true of monty panesar. even though the pitch isnt doing much yet, hes one of those ballers who can create a wicket out of nothing even when theres seems to be no chance of the wicket turning. also i would have played saj mahmood infornt of james anderson but there u go i dont pick the teams. we've got along way to go and i suppose these two players will be given a go at some time but it will probably be to little to late. u cant expect monty and saj to come in when were 2-0 down and win matches for us. they should be playing from the start to give us a solid platform. i think enough has been said on harmisson with geofrey boycotts comment comparing him to his favourite team newcastle summing it up perefectly. in ian bell i think weve got a cracker , a real gem. the only person who has the temperament to go out and bat for long periods. i can see him doing really well on this tour. anyway the only thing im glad about is the fact that i was around to see england win the ashes because i cant see it happening again, not in my life time anyway.
Complain about this postIf you analyse how the English batsman got out. You would see a lot of them were stuck behind the crease. You need to bat well outside the crease to upset the length of mcgrath and clark. It will also take out LBW's.
England have been a given a lifeline with the fact that ponting has decided to bat on. England will need to show the intransigence that they showed in sri lanka 3 years ago. England saved two tests matches in that series through desperate grit and determination.
For god sake don;t bring back mahmood. If he was playing he would have conceded 300 runs
Complain about this postIsnt it surprising that though Aussies have all the firepower in the world to defeat all the teams in Australia the opposing sides top players always end up on the wrong side of the 50-50 decisions or even 40-60 (Out/ Not out) situations. I am making this statement with Pieterson (given lbw when hit outside the line) and Flintoff (on a No ball) in mind. Name any series in Australia I can name dodgy decisions against the opposing teams topmost batsmen.
Complain about this post"downunder", you seem to be confused. New Zealand are not the world champions of rugby and haven't been for nearly 20 years. You should remember a team in White winning that trophy in 2003??
On to more pertinent matters...all this talk of dropping Harmison is misplaced. The best cricket teams of the last 20 years (ie West Indies and Australia) have stuck with world class players through periods of weaker performances. Harmison can be world class and his bowling style is suited to Australian conditions. To drop him at this stage would be just plain stupidity. If England had world class players waiting in the wings, I'd understand, but sadly thats just not the case. England need wicket-takers.
On the other hand, Anderson, Giles and Collingwood are not world-class. These are the bigger questions. In the case of the former two, there are bowlers in the squad who are either better or just better-suited to Australian conditions. I can't understand how anyone who has watched this test would want to drop Harmison but keep Anderson. For batsmen, its hard to be constructive on what to change.
Lets face it, this series is going to be a struggle. Last year, England's best 11 players just beat Aus in our own conditions. Now with several players missing, in Australian conditions, with the abuse flowing from foul local mouths, the boys need our support. So lets stop criticising and get behind our boys
COME ON ENGLAND. Make us proud.
Complain about this post"That summer I sat and watched a England Cricket team full of aggression and desire and a team that refused to be bullied by the aussies and were willing to stand up to them eye ball to eye ball and guess what? The Aussies blinked first." 52
Spot on. I witnessed that too. Thats the way to beat us. In Australia we call it 'mongrel'. Due to our heritage it's a part of us, which incidentally we got from you ....at least from the proletariat among you (who you look down on & scorn), not the Parkinson, Richard & Judy guest club. Simon Jones (& especially him), Flintoff, Pieterson have got it. Botham in the past. Vaughan can harness it in his team. Flintoff will go soft with the captaincy, because diplomacy (& the chummy tv interviews) turns many a man into a mouse. You guys can do it with the right ingredients.
Complain about this postEngland are awful. Underprepared with no sign of the steely determination evident throughout the aussie team. I dont feel we have the class to compete I cant see anyone making 190 odd or taking wickets with accurate bowling.
Complain about this postpoor shot selection lack of concentration and the ability to grind it out and occupy the crease not a distant memory .We play one day cricket all the time even in test matches.
We miss Vaughn I dont rate Flintoff as a captain .He is of course pure class as a player.
We dont have a potent pace attack and we have a spinner playing who bowls predictable finger spin which holds little fear for the oppossision.
In aus conditions our team is way below par
I hope im wrong but i cant see us winning or even drawing a match if the past few days is anything to go by mediocre with Bell and flintoff
our only hope
batting out the draw is still possible.
Complain about this postkeep in mind though... bat for an hour before lunch, leaves 160 overs. aus first innings lasted 150. even england would fancy their current attack knocking over a team inside 160 overs, 650 behind.
Are you guys watching the same game? England have been brilliant - classic rope-a-dope tactics. Watch tomorrow when the Aussies swagger out to bowl, only to meet the flashing blades of Messrs Cook, Collingwood et al. I doubt they'll score at more than 6-7 runs per over for the first couple of sessions, so we'll probably need the fifth day to finish them off, but the stage is set for Gilo's maiden test ton. With Harmison & Strauss clearly out of sorts, and with Gilo's background as a seamer in youth cricket, Fletch would be wise to turn to him to open both the batting and the bowling in Adelaide. Flintoff is clearly bereft of ideas, so my tip is Gilo for skipper in the 2nd test too. Call me an idiot tomorrow if I turn out to be wrong, but believe me with Gilo in this kind of form the Ashes are as good as won!
Complain about this postCraig is absolutely right in his comment that England need to play their best team, including the best wicket keeper/ best spinner combination as well as playing pace bowlers who can find some consistent accuracy. I doubt however whether the present coach will learn any thing from the current debacle. As Boycott so rightly commented " he never listens to anything from anybody".
Complain about this postFirst of all, there can't be much wrong with a pitch where one team has scored 800 runs in the equivalent of a single innings, even if the opposition bowling wasn't very testing.
Second, the make up of our attack isn't suited to Australian conditions, Anderson and Hoggard are swing bowlers bowling with a Kookaburra ball that is infamous for doing nothing through the air after the first 10 overs. Thats why Jon Lewis never had a prayer of being chosen for this series and why taking a flyer on Stuart Broad who is a bang it in type of bowler might have been a better idea.
Finally, its really clutching at straws to suggest that umpiring decisions have had any effect on this game, e.g. if you're not playing a shot like Pietersen it doesn't matter whether the ball pitches in line or not. England have been utterly outplayed and will only get back in the series if they can apply themselves in the second innings and make something approaching 400 or so to give them something to build on for the other matches.
Complain about this postThe sole reason Ponting didnt ask for the follow on was as Aggers says to rub salt in the wound. The Aussies are notorious bad losers (and they call us wingeing poms). I just pray that all this will backfire on Ponting and his ageing players and just like last year after Lords England come back and play with fire and pride and retain those ashes.
This test is lost, the next 2 days are meaningless, use it as batting and bowling practice then regroup ready for the next test, win that and its game on again, lose and its a big ask.
I hope Freddie and the boys do it and wipe that smile off Ponting and McGraths faces.
Come on ENGLAND
Complain about this postThe only positive for England so far is that, by taking the bizarre and unnecessary decision to make England bat again, Ponting has shown that he remains embittered and emotionally scarred by the loss of the Ashes last year. He has prioritised a needless attempt to humiliate England further above achieving what should have been a fairly routine 4-day victory by an innings. If England can find some 2nd-innings resolve to grasp a draw, and / or the weather intervenes, then Ponting's decision-making will suddenly look very flawed indeed.
Complain about this postWhere England are concerned Monty and Mahmood must come in for Anderson and Giles in the 2nd test, and Harmison should be given one more test to prove he cares as much as the rest of us - otherwise he might as well come home for Christmas, as you rather suspect that he wants to.
As for the authorities banning the England trumpeter from the ground - how very childish and churlish. Was there ever a nation with a greater collective chip on the shoulder than the Aussies? What on earth are they afraid of?
How much were we paying Troy Cooley?
How much are Australia paying him?
If everyone on this forum chipped in their beer money for the next fortnight do you think we could buy him back?
Joking apart we should just pay the guy whatever he wants. The cost to the ECB in lost revenue when the new fans of English cricket dessert the game will make his salary look very small....
Complain about this postNow England needs to replace Hoggard with a bowler who can bat a bit at number 9 and give support to Giles who is running out of support on the other end.
The English selectors have the calendar wrong. 2006 came after 2005. But it seems the team is based on 2005 performance ignoring some of the good things that happened towards the end of this last summer. The first mistake was picking Flintoff over Strauss. And then leaving out Monty, how do you justify that after the series he had. Did he really fail in any single match? And when you are asking batting support from your bowlers, how do you justify Anderson over Mehmood specially when the former is coming out of an injury. It would still have been tough for England but at least you would have given your best shot.
Complain about this postAn absolute embarrassment there are no excuses only belly put himself on the line. KP got a unlucky decision but the aussies are making the pitch look docile. Come on boys show some fight.
Complain about this postan utterly inept display by both bowlers & batsmen no spirit no fight.good job they threw the barmy army trumpeter out of the ground he'd have been playing 'send in the clowns' every time an english batsman came to the crease!
Complain about this postIt's not a case of playing for pride, the Aussies are applying a previously proven tactic of keeping a side in the field for long enough to wear them down so that their batting suffers. The England batsmen have been in the field for ~200 overs already, I wouldn't be surprised to see Aus bat until lunch to really finish it off.
If you just look at previous results (and you know that Buchanan has) you'll see that on a belter of a pitch and good weather (esp. if it's hot) the best strategy is to win the toss and bat for the best part of two days. If you do that then the side batting second will usually significantly under-perform due to fatigue and often don't make the follow-on target. Now if you make them follow-on they usually bat much better (SL this summer, Aus last year, India 2001 for example) and now it's the side that batted first that's running out of steam. So now if the target is passed it's they who have to bat while fatigued and relatively modest targets can be difficult (Aus last year: by the time England batted for the second time they been fielding for over 170 overs, India 2001). In the past when there was a rest day after three days play this was less of a factor. Since the events of 2001 Australia has become less likely to enforce the follow-on under these circumstances. Instead they bat again to build the fatigue on the fielding side, runs don't matter it's keeping the other side in the field that counts plus resting the bowlers. The value of this strategy is enhanced when you have back-to-back Tests since it increases the amount of time spent in the field by your opposition and probably reduces the time in the field by your team with little recovery time before the next Test. I'd not be surprised to see Aus bat until lunch tomorrow to really tire England out and then bowl them out in 70 overs, leaving England having fielded over 210 overs to Australia's ~120.
Whichever side won the toss would have done the same in the first innings (same strategy as England used last year bat past 400, bowl them out for a significant lead, less effective with the weather breaks though). If the pitch breaks up and Warne can exploit it that's a bonus but it's not an essential part of the strategy. It's a very sound strategy particularly when playing at home in settled weather, it might upset the opposition but as long as they keep winning the tosses to keep the pressure on that won't bother the Aussies!
Cynical, yes, but that's where the boards' greed has brought us, compressed schedules, no rest days (a rest day would go a long way to negate the strategy)
Complain about this postThe dispiriting feature of this English team - indeed every modern English team - is that they do not hate losing enough. It was a great achievement to win the Ashes in the Summer of 2005. But the intensity of display of self-indulgent celebration after that victory reinforced my belief that once an English team has reached the pinnacle, it really has no interest in staying there. However humiliating subsequent defeats, it finds solace in the knowledge that once-upon-a-time, it was a world-beater, until the composition of the team changes so completely that reaching the pinnacle once again becomes a fresh challenge. The Australians have an entirely different approach. They want to win again and again and again like a Duracell battery.
Complain about this postA shot to the head at point blank range...I believe the phenomenon is know as a: coup dé McGrath.
P.S. Langer, Hayden & Ponting haven't had too much difficulty with the cracks on day 3, eh?
Complain about this postI have seen amazing thinhgs happening in the world of cricket and it is a very unpredictable game and it is not always that the best team on paper wins. There is not denying the fact that English team are much weaker than the Aussies on paper and havent been able to produce results which were expected of them. I agree with most of the comments and although I am not a cricket genius I believe that the one thing which can halep England win this series is positive approach.
Complain about this post1- Drop Giles as he is not the so called king of spin...one cant be king of spin be taking 200 odd test wickets and no variety..he is not even a big spinner of the bal.......the problem is that he was the only on England had......now this has changed and there is Monty...go for him...and I agree with one of the comments that what difference are 20 runs going to make when Aussies have already 600+ on the board
2- Same is true with Read and G. Jones. I do not agree that G. J is a better batsman than Read either.
3- If Collingwood is not going to take any wickets or score any runs he should be left to do what he does the best.....write columns in BBC.....I cant understand why players like him and G. J write reviews when they are not good enough to deliver...they are surely not world class
4- England can only survive if their trump players click and go for a kill....rather than aloowing the Aussies to shoot and hoping that they miss
5- Liam Plunkett, Cook, Monty, Read and if Harmison doest deliver than Mehmood should be included in the squad in place of Collingwood, Giles, G.J
I wish England can turn this around........I would hate to see them lose but it seems...for now..that...its on the cards
It is amazing the way england are playing. Where is the fight? Can't they satnd up and show some pride? It does not matter how they lose. They need to bat, bowl and field with some attitude.
It was disturbing to see English batters walk to the dressing room with their faces to the ground. Look up, be proud, and tell the Ausies you will be back!!! Tell them the issue is not yet settled!! English supporters need to see some some more venom from England even when they lose.
This Austrlain team does not respect wimpy losers. England have got to fight blow for blow, bouncer for bouncer to earn respect from the Aussies. They need to show McGrath that they can send down a few bumpy ones.
If they can't do this, then they are a disappointment to all cricket loving people. We deserve a good fight from Flintoff and his boys and we know they can give the Aussies one if they chose, which is what is so frustrating!!
As an English fan i feel punished by the English team and no the Aussies. We deserve better that this.
Now, we want to see some fight. We want to hear some tought talk, and we need to see a contest out there whether we win or not!!!
thanks
Complain about this postFred Rweru
USA.
Dad's Army can not play Test-Cricket. They get far too tired after 50-60 overs of one-day-cricket (spread over 2 days).
Complain about this postIf we could make them field for more than 60 overs they would start to falter. However, that would require Strauss and Cook to remain not out for atleast 40-45 overs, considerring our tail starts at number 4 (Collingwood).
Unfortunately, we no longer have players like Vaughan, Thorpe and Atherton, who had the technique to survive a few sessions.
England are not exactly famous for winning the toss either and until we get to bat first in the Tests that follow, Grand-dad's Army will run away with the Ashes to show their grandchildren.
I would HATE anyone to think I'm just a whinging pom but I think the Australians have been PRACTICING !!! Is that low or what?
Complain about this postWell......3 nights of no sleep and doom and gloom is not helping.
However, although it is easy and fair to say England have batted and bowled very poorly, the wickets of Pietersen and Flintoff were key to whether England could get 300-350 or even 400 and at least have a chance.
Pietersen's wicket was shown to be an LBW outside the line and would have missed the wicket as well, not shot played. However, I can understand why given out as on first viewing looked to be hitting.
Secondly, why oh why is the 3rd umpire not used for no-balls.....Flintoff was caught behind of one and as the second of the two key wickets, it is hard to accept.
With Lee bowling at 94 mph.......I think it is only fair that the batsman has every chance to keep the ball out......not only with the bat!!
I am starting my prayers soon and hope if we do lose......that it is dwon to all 10 batsmen being correctly out!!
Complain about this postAggers has hit the nail very firmly on the head in describing the outstanding Ricky Ponting as being '...utterly determined and focused on the job in hand'.
Complain about this postContract that with the wishy-washy, almost casual approach shown by all concerned within the England set-up and you have the current mind-blowingly embarrassing position i.e. men against boys. When we will learn about the need for A+ preparation and decisive team selection?
You just have to look at the bottleless decisions in prefering Jones and Giles ahead of the infinetly more able Read (Especially) and Panesar.
If the Aussies needed any confirmation about our conservative and lacklustre approach, then they needed to have looked no further.
There can surely be no way back from this dreadful start to the series. The writing is on the wall and it's green and gold and ten feet high.
THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR LACK OF PREPARATION. THAT IS THE TROUBLE WITH ALL ASPECTS OF BRTISH SPORTS INCLUDING CRICKET.
RIDE HIGH ON THE HOG AND THEN WHEN YOU FAIL THERE WILL BE APOLOGETICS WHO WILL COVER UP FOR YOU. WHETHER IT IS PAULA RADCLIFEE, TIM WHATS HIS NAME OR CRICKET. THE STORY IS THE SAME.
I WAS REALLY HOPING THAT ENGLAND WOULD AT LEAST DRAW THIS MATCH BUT NOW WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO ACCEPT DEFEAT.
THE MEDIA HAVE A LOT TO BLAME FOR. DONT IDOLISE THEM UNTIL THEY PRODUCE RESULTS.
Complain about this postYes,we are in trouble.Yes,we have played badly.Yes,i believe Australia have batted again to wound England's Pride as much as possible.Now is the time to wipe the slate clean.Forget the first 3 days,the test is lost.Its whether we go down by 500+ runs,or fight every inch of the way ang get to within 150 of them.Frankly the score will be 1-0,whichever one of the above is achieved.Go out tomorrow,take a good look at Andrew Flintoff in the Dressing Room before getting out ther and gain as much pride and fight as is possible,just do not let the Australians get it their own way,Show Spirit and Guile,take it into the last session on the 5th day and that will feel like a Victory.We might still turn this series around.
Complain about this postI can asure all that Ponting's decision to bat again is nothing to do with money, but all to do with squeezing out every bit of confidence of england to kill of any ideas of being able to win this series.
Perhaps you brits underestimate the humiliation felt by cricket followers all over australia last time round, and even more so in the team, and most of all in Ponting. Money does nor motivate them but winning does. Last series was depressing for me but a flagship for cricket. This time round I don't want a flagship: I want complete victory, and that is the attitude you are up against in the team. Embarrassingly, the gabba officials are being wowsers and I apologize fo that.
Having said that, I gotta say your captain is a sensation and the most complete player in the world, and Bell showed guts, too. I hope you guys get hammered! But I'll buy you a beer or two after.
Complain about this postQuestion to fletcher and aggers: Have giles won the match with his 23 now? Please answer me you two. The pitch has got loads of cracks in it yet giles can't turn the ball. He had the same run rate conceded in an over with an occasional bowler which is pietersen. I am expecting your answer aggers and fletcher.
The australian second innings' score is well funny(181-1). The only wicket to fall was to a run out. I expect flintoff to suffer burn out in the series if they don't bring back monty because england rely on him too much. Andrew Strauss should have been made captain and monty should have been selected for the gabba.
Complain about this postThere's an awful lot of delusional England fans out there who think Monty is the answer to all...
He can't bat or field and I don't think the Aussies will be quaking in their boots facing him.
Ashley, for me, is the right choice. He can hold up an end, get an odd wicket and who was second highest score in the 1st lamentable innings?
What is the problem is the pacemen; Freddy aside.
Plus, the batsmen. What was Strauss thinking of?
Complain about this postWe're defending the Ashes - a bit of patience while batting and certainly the battery of England coaches out there need to get their fingers out...
No aggression in the team selection. No aggression in the bowling. No aggression in the batting. No intensity in the field. Until this changes England have no chance.
Complain about this postEveryone seems to be forgetting that even though we beat them in 2005 this is still the best test team in the world. the build up to this series couldnt have been any different. Injury after injury for England and a poor run of adequate results whilst Australia crushed through their games and won in the champions trophy. Glenn Mcgrath is one of the best bowlers in the world and so is warne and lee. And as for clark he bowled beautifully against south africa taking lots of wickets. Their batsmen make big scores with Ponting being number one in the world by miles. They are by far a better team than England and if we dont know that then we are obviously blinkered by our love of England. as for the game it is the fight that we should be worried about not the lack of talent. We dont seem to be fighting like we did in 2005 and yes i do think that gilo's inclusion was wrong. Otherwise we need to get off their backs and just enjoy australia. We seem to have forgotten that before 2005 it was 18 years since we had won the ashes. All the moaning from athers and nasser is helping no one. Plus when did they ever stick it to the aussies. get behind the boys and lets hope we can fight for the next 2 days and restore some pride
Complain about this postThere is no point bleating on about team selection - it is a mates only club. Giles for Panesar, Jones for Read, vaughan for ...?? and although harmison should be dropped he will not be. The only reason his figures look vaguely ok are because he bowls too wide to go for runs. Fletcher has reached the end of his usefulness to England and should be moved on especially with the World Cup coming and his one day selection being a lotto draw.
Complain about this postEngland have a job at hand. It would be interesting to see how many Australian wickets they can knock off in the first session. I am not seeing a sense of urgency and keenness from the present English side compared to what it was last year. They did perform badly in the first match of the Ashes last year, and most people, including the chief sledger McGrath expected it to be an absolute whitewash. The difference between now and what happened last year (apart from warnie) is McGrath. England can only hope for an injured McGrath, make sure that the kukooburra's are lying around in the steamrollers path.
Complain about this postWe did not seem as passionate and pumped up for this test as the Aussies. They have bullied us, and instead of aggression back, a lot of our players seem resigned to losing. The 2nd innings needs to be treated as a Statement by our players. Sure we are going to lose the test, but let's make the Aussies fight and work for it, and at least post a respectable score, and build up some pride again. Still we have the rest of the tour, and if England use this test as a "clear out" of rustyness or tensions, then we still have a very good chance of getting something out of this tour. If we don't, then.....
Complain about this postHi fellow Bloggers - and especially the genuine Bulldogs amongst you.
I am following your messages in cricket-starved Florida.
I have 2 points to make, guys.
Firstly, I think much of this negative blogging (truthful, or otherwise) is bad for the team's morale and conversely good for the Aussies.
Many of the comments focus on an attacking, agressive attitude on the pitch. Let's display some of the same in our blogs - it can still be polite. Our team has had more than enough critcism (most of it justified) so far - let's try to turn off the cold tap and on with the hot. What is done, is done. Let's confront what we have in front of us and use all our wits, strength, guts and courage to show our worthy opponents they do not have a monopoly of those characteristics.
Secondly, I am pondering on Ponting's decision to bat again. I cannot decide, ( all cynicism supressed for the moment) if he is responsible for grossly poor sportsmanship or vice versa. If he is as ruthless as the press would have us believe, why did he not put us back in and finish the game quickly and clinically? I have read all the comments about his tiring bowlers and the gate receipts, but was he holding out a slim chance for England to make a game of it by forcing a draw? It will be less of a task to bat for 5 sessions than to have tried to hold out for 8. Run count does not matter now.
If, on the other hand, he is hoping to humiliate the team as much as he can, - he might just have pulled the biggest mistake of his career. Just supposing our batsmen stay there for 5 sessions and force the draw, Mr. P will have managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of an overwhelming victory. Let's stay poilte here, but it takes a special type of person to do that so convincingly!
So - England DEFEND, DEFEND, DEFEND - there is more than one way to beat an enemy, and stubborn, unyielding resistance is very tiring and frustrating on opponents.
We do not need any flambouyant play now just fierce concentration, control and patience. 0 for no wicket would be an acceptable score, under these circumstances.
Both sides can play at mind games, Ricky.
Good luck England
Complain about this postAs an England fan, I feel utterly embarrassed, frustrated and demoralised. What a pathetic performance from the team - totally lacking in determination, skill and confidence. It's as if we're keen to show everyone how cricket should not be played. I absolutely sympathise with the legion of fans that have travelled halfway across the globe to support the team.
Duncan Fletcher and Freddie must take a long hard look at themselves and their thoughtless selection policy which undoubtedly has led us to this quagmire. You can't expect players like Anderson, Harmison and Giles - all of whom haven't played much cricket let alone Test cricket against strong opposition in the past year to suddenly show up and produce the goods in conditions which are alien to them and against the world's best team? Granted, the likes of Freddie (and McGrath) haven't had much practice recently and yet performed well, but they are the exception rather than the norm.
I cannot agree with Agger's assertion that 'the right team was picked'. What a load of nonsense. If the right team was picked, what does that say about the state of English cricket, considering the absolute disgrace of a performance we have witnesssed thus far?
As one of the posters stated, it cannot get worse than this. For all of our supporters' sake, let's hope (and pray) that for the rest of the series, the RIGHT players will be selected and that we will at least put up a decent fight of it all.
Complain about this postcould history repeat itself,Lords last year,we all know what happened after that test
Complain about this postWhat an absolute shambles. Quite frankly it makes me ashamed to be English. Fire the lot of them, starting with Harmison.
Complain about this postthe problem seems to be that england lack pace in their bowling attack and on fast bounce pitch they face in Australia can not see them getting the 20 wickets required to win test matches. you cannot go to Australia with out top class pace attack flint off cannot do the job by himself you need bowler to bowl in tandem. so far the batting is no better as a English supporter i forecast a long summer with not much joy. but will still support them hoping for a miracle.
Complain about this postWhat a splendid opportuity for England's reinforced batting line-up to justify their selection, having done little to do so thus far.
Whilst I would love to see them hold on for five sessions - lots of St George & Jerusalem etc - that would increase the likelihood of the same team selection for Adelaide, which in the long term could be more of a disaster than going down one-nill.
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