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The Ashes 2009
- Thread starter chandikagunawardhana
- Start date
End of day 2
England 332 & 58/3 (28 overs)
Australia 160
England lead by 230 runs with 7 wickets remaining
England 332 & 58/3 (28 overs)
Australia 160
England lead by 230 runs with 7 wickets remaining
Strauss on song, Ponting not
Strauss in tune
Andrew Strauss's captaincy has been criticised during the series for being defensive and too slow to make changes. He couldn't be accused of that today. After the lunch/rain break he could have played safe and kept on Graeme Swann, who created danger before the interval with his offspin. Strauss preferred Stuart Broad and was rewarded with five wickets in 47 deliveries from the allrounder. Later in the session Strauss replaced James Anderson with Swann and watched him take two wickets in five balls - and four for the innings - as the tourists fell over for 160.
Ponting fails
The most crucial wicket was that of Ricky Ponting, a batsman who is usually at his best in the biggest contests. He never looked right today and was edgy and jerky in his movements. Broad sent a ball angling in, Ponting shifted back to play it, but it ran into his angled bat and on to the stumps. England couldn't believe their good fortune, and an over later Michael Hussey basically padded up to continue his slump.
Fred's farewell
It's been a tough two days for Andrew Flintoff, who was out for 7 on the opening afternoon and then went wicket-less in his first two spells. His knee remains a worry and he's desperate to make an impact in his final Test. Strauss brought Flintoff on with the final pair in and in his fifth over he yorked Ben Hilfenhaus, sending the already excited locals to their feet again.
Come in spinner. Oh, we didn't pick one
The pitch has offered significant turn and late in the day Marcus North was called for the 11th over of the innings. In his second he removed Alastair Cook with a ball that spun sharply on the way to Michael Clarke at slip. If this is what a part-time offie can do, what might the specialist Nathan Hauritz have done? He wasn't picked and the Australians are left to wonder.
The record stops
Anderson's lbw to Ben Hilfenhaus ended his streak of not being dismissed for zero. He had maintained the record through 54 Test innings, but that's where it stopped as he played back and was hit on the back leg in his 55th. There wasn't any doubt over the decision, but turtles have left the ground faster than the disappointed Anderson.
Fourth time lucky
While Anderson was given straight away, Shane Watson survived three huge appeals before England finally won an lbw decision against him. Anderson had the first shout with one coming back and in the next over Flintoff roared twice to similar deliveries. The opening two balls were heading slightly over the stumps, but the third was crashing into them. Not according to Asad Rauf. Finally, with Watson on 34, England broke through when Broad arrived and Billy Bowden raised his finger.
Nicked off
It was Australia's turn to feel aggrieved a few wickets later with Marcus North's lbw and Stuart Clark's caught. North was playing forward to Swann when he got an inside edge that wasn't spotted by Rauf. North was decent enough to smile, both at the appeal and the decision, rather than swear. Clark wasn't as good humoured, walking off with a lot of muttering in Rauf's direction after he was hit on the pad flap and taken at short leg. Cook, the catcher, was probably closer to the ball when it hit the batsman than the bat.
Strauss in tune
Andrew Strauss's captaincy has been criticised during the series for being defensive and too slow to make changes. He couldn't be accused of that today. After the lunch/rain break he could have played safe and kept on Graeme Swann, who created danger before the interval with his offspin. Strauss preferred Stuart Broad and was rewarded with five wickets in 47 deliveries from the allrounder. Later in the session Strauss replaced James Anderson with Swann and watched him take two wickets in five balls - and four for the innings - as the tourists fell over for 160.
Ponting fails
The most crucial wicket was that of Ricky Ponting, a batsman who is usually at his best in the biggest contests. He never looked right today and was edgy and jerky in his movements. Broad sent a ball angling in, Ponting shifted back to play it, but it ran into his angled bat and on to the stumps. England couldn't believe their good fortune, and an over later Michael Hussey basically padded up to continue his slump.
Fred's farewell
It's been a tough two days for Andrew Flintoff, who was out for 7 on the opening afternoon and then went wicket-less in his first two spells. His knee remains a worry and he's desperate to make an impact in his final Test. Strauss brought Flintoff on with the final pair in and in his fifth over he yorked Ben Hilfenhaus, sending the already excited locals to their feet again.
Come in spinner. Oh, we didn't pick one
The pitch has offered significant turn and late in the day Marcus North was called for the 11th over of the innings. In his second he removed Alastair Cook with a ball that spun sharply on the way to Michael Clarke at slip. If this is what a part-time offie can do, what might the specialist Nathan Hauritz have done? He wasn't picked and the Australians are left to wonder.
The record stops
Anderson's lbw to Ben Hilfenhaus ended his streak of not being dismissed for zero. He had maintained the record through 54 Test innings, but that's where it stopped as he played back and was hit on the back leg in his 55th. There wasn't any doubt over the decision, but turtles have left the ground faster than the disappointed Anderson.
Fourth time lucky
While Anderson was given straight away, Shane Watson survived three huge appeals before England finally won an lbw decision against him. Anderson had the first shout with one coming back and in the next over Flintoff roared twice to similar deliveries. The opening two balls were heading slightly over the stumps, but the third was crashing into them. Not according to Asad Rauf. Finally, with Watson on 34, England broke through when Broad arrived and Billy Bowden raised his finger.
Nicked off
It was Australia's turn to feel aggrieved a few wickets later with Marcus North's lbw and Stuart Clark's caught. North was playing forward to Swann when he got an inside edge that wasn't spotted by Rauf. North was decent enough to smile, both at the appeal and the decision, rather than swear. Clark wasn't as good humoured, walking off with a lot of muttering in Rauf's direction after he was hit on the pad flap and taken at short leg. Cook, the catcher, was probably closer to the ball when it hit the batsman than the bat.
Pitch causes a dust storm
There's nothing quite like a pitch imbroglio to stir the passions, and even more so when that strip is playing host to an Ashes decider. Truth be told, Australia's dramatic second innings stagger was more attributable to England's disciplined bowling performance than a dodgy deck, but with tensions high and an urn on the line, the parched Oval wicket emerged as a major discussion point after the second day's play.
Michael Holding, Shane Warne, Scyld Berry and Peter Roebuck all waded into the pitch debate on Friday, variously describing the surface as over-baked, disappointing and even unethical. After stumps on the first day, Ian Bell commented that the surface played like a day three strip; a view shared by Stuart Broad who, on Friday, felt the footmarks, dust and general scarring were more akin to a fourth day wicket.
At best, The Oval staff erred in their predictions of a traditional, pacey pitch and at worst they were deceptive. A hot, dry week in London leading up to the Ashes decider no doubt contributed to the bone-dry centre strip, but whether groundstaff harboured an underlying desire to produce a result wicket, as has been alleged in some quarters, is unclear.
To the credit of the Australians, no attempt was made to use the abrasive wicket as an excuse for Friday's meek capitulation at the hands of Broad and Graeme Swann. Simon Katich, comfortably Australia's best batsman with a dogged 50, directed praise towards England's attack, rather than vitriol towards The Oval's groundstaff, when assessing the second day's play.
"I guess there will be a fair bit said about that, but the bottom line is England bowled well today and unfortunately we couldn't stop the momentum," Katich said. "A fair bit of credit deserves to go to Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann. The rest of the guys bowled well, but they obviously got the rewards. They deserve a bit of credit rather than talking about the wicket.
"There weren't a lot of balls that disturbed the surface. There were a few, you could see them on the slow-mos, but I think the bottom line is England got the momentum and after the initial partnership we had we just couldn't string another one together and stop that momentum. It only takes one partnership to stop that and unfortunately that was just the way the day panned out. I think the English bowlers deserve some credit. Both teams are playing on the same wicket."
There is little doubt that The Oval wicket deceived both the Australian and English camps prior to the fifth Test. The Australians would dearly love to be throwing the ball Nathan Hauritz's way from Saturday morning, while England would presumably have switched Steve Harmison for Monty Panesar if given another chance.
But to blame the pitch for Australia's woes is to miss the point. The tourists surrendered much of their Headingley advantage with an indisciplined first innings bowling performance at The Oval that yielded 38 extras and 44 boundaries. England, by contrast, never allowed the Australian batsmen a moment of respite on Friday, as reflected in the seven extras and 25 boundaries they conceded.
"What we found as a batting unit was you never felt particularly in on the wicket, it was quite hard to drive on and the ball popped on the odd occasion," said Broad, England's five-wicket hero. "Today it probably played a bit like a fourth day wicket but no ball particularly misbehaved. You can't look at the wicket and blame the wicket
"We found it quite hard to score on, to drive on. It was important to bring the stumps into play because it's not easy to leave on length like a normal Oval wicket. It's a bit more up and down. My plan was to really bring the stumps into play, and look for bowleds, lbws and caught at slips because it's quite a slow wicket."
There's nothing quite like a pitch imbroglio to stir the passions, and even more so when that strip is playing host to an Ashes decider. Truth be told, Australia's dramatic second innings stagger was more attributable to England's disciplined bowling performance than a dodgy deck, but with tensions high and an urn on the line, the parched Oval wicket emerged as a major discussion point after the second day's play.
Michael Holding, Shane Warne, Scyld Berry and Peter Roebuck all waded into the pitch debate on Friday, variously describing the surface as over-baked, disappointing and even unethical. After stumps on the first day, Ian Bell commented that the surface played like a day three strip; a view shared by Stuart Broad who, on Friday, felt the footmarks, dust and general scarring were more akin to a fourth day wicket.
At best, The Oval staff erred in their predictions of a traditional, pacey pitch and at worst they were deceptive. A hot, dry week in London leading up to the Ashes decider no doubt contributed to the bone-dry centre strip, but whether groundstaff harboured an underlying desire to produce a result wicket, as has been alleged in some quarters, is unclear.
To the credit of the Australians, no attempt was made to use the abrasive wicket as an excuse for Friday's meek capitulation at the hands of Broad and Graeme Swann. Simon Katich, comfortably Australia's best batsman with a dogged 50, directed praise towards England's attack, rather than vitriol towards The Oval's groundstaff, when assessing the second day's play.
"I guess there will be a fair bit said about that, but the bottom line is England bowled well today and unfortunately we couldn't stop the momentum," Katich said. "A fair bit of credit deserves to go to Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann. The rest of the guys bowled well, but they obviously got the rewards. They deserve a bit of credit rather than talking about the wicket.
"There weren't a lot of balls that disturbed the surface. There were a few, you could see them on the slow-mos, but I think the bottom line is England got the momentum and after the initial partnership we had we just couldn't string another one together and stop that momentum. It only takes one partnership to stop that and unfortunately that was just the way the day panned out. I think the English bowlers deserve some credit. Both teams are playing on the same wicket."
There is little doubt that The Oval wicket deceived both the Australian and English camps prior to the fifth Test. The Australians would dearly love to be throwing the ball Nathan Hauritz's way from Saturday morning, while England would presumably have switched Steve Harmison for Monty Panesar if given another chance.
But to blame the pitch for Australia's woes is to miss the point. The tourists surrendered much of their Headingley advantage with an indisciplined first innings bowling performance at The Oval that yielded 38 extras and 44 boundaries. England, by contrast, never allowed the Australian batsmen a moment of respite on Friday, as reflected in the seven extras and 25 boundaries they conceded.
"What we found as a batting unit was you never felt particularly in on the wicket, it was quite hard to drive on and the ball popped on the odd occasion," said Broad, England's five-wicket hero. "Today it probably played a bit like a fourth day wicket but no ball particularly misbehaved. You can't look at the wicket and blame the wicket
"We found it quite hard to score on, to drive on. It was important to bring the stumps into play because it's not easy to leave on length like a normal Oval wicket. It's a bit more up and down. My plan was to really bring the stumps into play, and look for bowleds, lbws and caught at slips because it's quite a slow wicket."
Australia's heads left spinning
In theory, Australia are far from beaten in this Test match. They are Australia, after all, the many-headed hydra of international sport, the team that produces new heroes as old ones fall by the wayside, and whose infectious self-belief has kept England in thrall to their superiority for the best part of two decades. But if the demeanour of Simon Katich was anything to go by at the close, there's no point in holding out for any miracles. Australia believe they are beaten in this Test match, and some time in the next three days, they expect to hand over the Ashes.
In theory, Australia's renaissance began in the closing overs of the second day, when they hauled themselves back into contention with three cheap English wickets in the space of 30 balls. But when this notion was put to Katich, he patted it back with more insouciance than he had managed throughout his battling first-innings half-century.
"We've still got a fair bit of work to do, but obviously we've got to keep fighting hard," said Katich, with far less feeling than might appear on paper. "Today didn't go to plan, but cricket's a funny game. We've just got to make sure we hang in there, and try to restrict England to as little as possible so that, second-time around, we can hopefully make amends for today."
It was clear that Katich was speaking more in hope than expectation, for Australia's day had been as deflating as anything they have suffered on a chaotically up-and-down tour. The evisceration of their batting - for the third first innings out of five in this series - has left them with no place to hide on a bone-dry surface that, in Katich's estimation, is already playing like a fourth-day wicket. With the weather set fair and England 230 runs to the good with seven second-innings wickets in hand, Australia realistically face negotiating days six and seven if they are to emerge with the result that saves their series.
On the evidence of the second day, that promises to be a tough task indeed. Having neglected to include their specialist spinner in Nathan Hauritz, the turn, bounce and potential of Katich's own part-time wrist-spin merely intensified his growing sense of foreboding. "I thought we were spinning the ball a fair bit, Northy [Marcus North] and I," he said. "We were getting our wrist position just right and it was spinning a bit. I think you expect the wickets over here to turn, because I know in the last series they spun from day one."
Unfortunately for Australia, Graeme Swann is lurking and licking his lips after his second telling four-wicket haul of the series, and to judge by the spitting turn he has so far extracted, he has the stage from which to boss the closing stages of this contest. "We know it's going to be tough work," said Katich. "Whenever you bat last in a Test match you understand that. You can always assume the wicket will get worse, but who knows what's around the corner?"
Swann has endured a puzzling summer - his personal confidence has not visibly diminished in the slightest, although up until today, he had claimed a mere six wickets in four Tests - four of them in support of Andrew Flintoff at Lord's, and one of them arguably the finest ball he will ever bowl, to gate Ricky Ponting in the second innings at Edgbaston. For the remaining 87.5 overs of his series, however, he has been as close to anonymous as any bowler on either side - one other wicket at a cost of 322 runs.
But when Stuart Broad referred to Swann as a "world-class spinner" it was both in acknowledgement of what he is capable of when he gets his pace and flight spot-on, and also in expectation of what he can pull off when his turn to bowl comes again. He was, after all, exceptional in his 14 overs today. Every ball was a hand-grenade, and some of the deliveries that spat past the left-handers' edges made Shane Warne in the Sky commentary box purse his lips in recognition (and, no doubt, envy).
It is somewhat ironic that England's Ashes hopes are once again invested in the superiority of their spin attack, because - with due acknowledgement to Monty Panesar's rearguard in Cardiff - as an outfit they were soundly duped ahead of the first Test, when they picked both their spinners on a pitch that was predicted to be a Bunsen, and watched them amass a match total of one wicket for 246 runs. Hauritz, Australia's forgotten stalwart, managed six times that number in fewer overs.
But as the final furlong approaches, it's the slow lane that could be the fast track to success, as Broad pointed out while looking on the bright side of England's three late dismissals. "The way those wickets fell, Cooky got a ball that really turned and bounced, so it gives us encouragement as a bowling unit as well. We've got to take the positives of being 200 ahead, because tomorrow is the biggest day in this Test match and we can really set up this series."
"We know it's going to be hard work but that's the beauty of Test cricket," said Katich. "You don't expect it any other way and there's an Ashes up for grabs. It's easy to mope around and feel sorry for yourselves but hopefully we can pull off something special. Three wickets is better than none and we'll all go again in the morning, and restrict England as little as possible."
In theory, Australia are far from beaten in this Test match. They are Australia, after all, the many-headed hydra of international sport, the team that produces new heroes as old ones fall by the wayside, and whose infectious self-belief has kept England in thrall to their superiority for the best part of two decades. But if the demeanour of Simon Katich was anything to go by at the close, there's no point in holding out for any miracles. Australia believe they are beaten in this Test match, and some time in the next three days, they expect to hand over the Ashes.
In theory, Australia's renaissance began in the closing overs of the second day, when they hauled themselves back into contention with three cheap English wickets in the space of 30 balls. But when this notion was put to Katich, he patted it back with more insouciance than he had managed throughout his battling first-innings half-century.
"We've still got a fair bit of work to do, but obviously we've got to keep fighting hard," said Katich, with far less feeling than might appear on paper. "Today didn't go to plan, but cricket's a funny game. We've just got to make sure we hang in there, and try to restrict England to as little as possible so that, second-time around, we can hopefully make amends for today."
It was clear that Katich was speaking more in hope than expectation, for Australia's day had been as deflating as anything they have suffered on a chaotically up-and-down tour. The evisceration of their batting - for the third first innings out of five in this series - has left them with no place to hide on a bone-dry surface that, in Katich's estimation, is already playing like a fourth-day wicket. With the weather set fair and England 230 runs to the good with seven second-innings wickets in hand, Australia realistically face negotiating days six and seven if they are to emerge with the result that saves their series.
On the evidence of the second day, that promises to be a tough task indeed. Having neglected to include their specialist spinner in Nathan Hauritz, the turn, bounce and potential of Katich's own part-time wrist-spin merely intensified his growing sense of foreboding. "I thought we were spinning the ball a fair bit, Northy [Marcus North] and I," he said. "We were getting our wrist position just right and it was spinning a bit. I think you expect the wickets over here to turn, because I know in the last series they spun from day one."
Unfortunately for Australia, Graeme Swann is lurking and licking his lips after his second telling four-wicket haul of the series, and to judge by the spitting turn he has so far extracted, he has the stage from which to boss the closing stages of this contest. "We know it's going to be tough work," said Katich. "Whenever you bat last in a Test match you understand that. You can always assume the wicket will get worse, but who knows what's around the corner?"
Swann has endured a puzzling summer - his personal confidence has not visibly diminished in the slightest, although up until today, he had claimed a mere six wickets in four Tests - four of them in support of Andrew Flintoff at Lord's, and one of them arguably the finest ball he will ever bowl, to gate Ricky Ponting in the second innings at Edgbaston. For the remaining 87.5 overs of his series, however, he has been as close to anonymous as any bowler on either side - one other wicket at a cost of 322 runs.
But when Stuart Broad referred to Swann as a "world-class spinner" it was both in acknowledgement of what he is capable of when he gets his pace and flight spot-on, and also in expectation of what he can pull off when his turn to bowl comes again. He was, after all, exceptional in his 14 overs today. Every ball was a hand-grenade, and some of the deliveries that spat past the left-handers' edges made Shane Warne in the Sky commentary box purse his lips in recognition (and, no doubt, envy).
It is somewhat ironic that England's Ashes hopes are once again invested in the superiority of their spin attack, because - with due acknowledgement to Monty Panesar's rearguard in Cardiff - as an outfit they were soundly duped ahead of the first Test, when they picked both their spinners on a pitch that was predicted to be a Bunsen, and watched them amass a match total of one wicket for 246 runs. Hauritz, Australia's forgotten stalwart, managed six times that number in fewer overs.
But as the final furlong approaches, it's the slow lane that could be the fast track to success, as Broad pointed out while looking on the bright side of England's three late dismissals. "The way those wickets fell, Cooky got a ball that really turned and bounced, so it gives us encouragement as a bowling unit as well. We've got to take the positives of being 200 ahead, because tomorrow is the biggest day in this Test match and we can really set up this series."
"We know it's going to be hard work but that's the beauty of Test cricket," said Katich. "You don't expect it any other way and there's an Ashes up for grabs. It's easy to mope around and feel sorry for yourselves but hopefully we can pull off something special. Three wickets is better than none and we'll all go again in the morning, and restrict England as little as possible."
England 332 & 373/9d
Australia 160 & 15/0 (4 overs)
Australia require another 532 runs with 10 wickets remaining
Day 3 - Session 3
England 332 & 373/9d
Australia 160 & 15/0 (4 overs)
Australia require another 532 runs with 10 wickets remaining
Day 3 - Session 3
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