The Ashes: Day 1 in Adelaide

These two sides may not be the best sides in world cricket at the moment. They are however very closely matched and this is making for some incredibly exciting cricket. After the drama of the opening day in the 1st Test, surely there would not be a repeat. There wasn’t. It was much more dramatic. After Ricky Ponting had won the toss on a good batting surface and opted to bat. England were already on the back foot. A big 1st innings from Australia would put a lot of strain on England’s 4 man attack.

Unfortunately for Australia, their innings never got off the ground. A packed house at the iconic Adelaide Oval provided a brilliant atmosphere which must have set the pulse racing. It certainly had an effect on Shane Watson as he hared off for a single without consulting his opening partner, Simon Katich. A mix-up ensued, which ended with Katich being run-out for a diamond duck. The throw from Trott was calm and composed (not something that can be said for England’s celebrations after the wicket). Suddenly Australia were 0-1 and their hopes of a big first innings total were resting squarely on the shoulders of their captain, Ricky Ponting. A fired up Jimmy Anderson had other ideas however as he unleashed a perfect delivery which caught the outside edge of Ponting’s bat and was brilliantly caught by Graeme Swann at slip. 0-2, Ponting gone for a golden duck. Cue wild celebrations from both the English players and fans.

It was a truly incredible start and it got even better for England. Michael Clarke‘s 6 ball stay at the crease was completely unconvincing. He flashed at a succession of balls outside the off-stump before finally edging Anderson to second slip. Australia were 2-3 and the Test had been turned on it’s head. This had all occurred in the first 15 minutes of the game. If anyone can remember a more dramatic start to a Test, I would love to hear about it. Thousands of fans were still queuing outside the ground whilst the Australian innings was being dismantled. It was truly brilliant Test cricket and a great advert for the game.

It could have got even better for England. A couple of edges fell agonisingly close to fielders and Anderson could not quite hang on to a tough caught and bowled chance from Mike Hussey. That would have made it 11-4. Hussey and Watson just about weathered the storm and set about rebuilding the innings on a good batting track. They looked completely at ease during their partnership, showing that the pitch is very good to bat on. They capitalised on the loose offerings of Steven Finn and looked set to dig Australia out of the hole they found themselves in. Enter Jimmy Anderson. He came back into the attack straight after lunch following his brilliant first spell. He then carried on where he left off as he got a ball to move away from Watson a touch which was slashed to Kevin Pietersen at point.

This brought the under-fire Marcus North to the crease. He did not look convincing and apart from a couple of crunching drives through the off-side was very scratchy. North eventually departed for 26 from 93 balls. He got out to a tame shot, trying to guide a ball from Finn down to third man but only succeeding in edging to Prior. England now only needed one more wicket to expose Australia’s long tail. Brad Haddin joined Hussey at the crease in an ominously similar situation to the one they found themselves in at Brisbane. For a while it looked like they might repeat similar heroics as they once again showed how good the pitch actually was with a bit of application. Hussey was repelling Swann with ease, dancing down the track to almost every ball to nullify his threat. Haddin also looked at ease during his stay, picking up where he left off in Brisbane.

It was Swann who eventually broke their stubborn 51 run partnership. Hussey was the man to depart, for 93. The ball from Swann turned more than Hussey expected and he only succeeded in prodding the ball to slip, where Collingwood made no mistake. Some controversy followed as Swann removed Ryan Harris first ball. It was an LBW shout which had been given by the umpire. Harris immediately called for a referral, indicating that he had hit the ball. Looking at the hotspot cameras, there was a faint, yet relatively clear mark on the edge of the bat. This led most to believe the decision would be overturned but it was not enough to convince Billy Doctrove, who upheld the on-field umpires decision.

The remainder of the innings was rapped up pretty quickly by England, despite some lusty hitting from Brad Haddin. More confusion between the wickets led to another run-out for Australia. This time Doherty was the culprit as he was caught ball watching. The innings was concluded when Haddin top edged a pull down to Steven Finn at fine leg. This gave Stuart Broad his first wicket of the innings.

The wicket for Broad was just rewards for a very disciplined bowling performance which saw him give away only 2 runs an over. He has never seemed to have much luck with his bowling and so it proved again today. Despite his lack of wickets, he still did a very good job for England by tying down the runs. Another England seamer who had not had much luck in Brisbane, Jimmy Anderson, finally reaped the rewards for some brilliant bowling. This is definitely the best I have ever seen Anderson bowl, his control and slight movement of the ball made him a very challenging prospect and so it proved as he took 4-51. This was the least he deserved after another display which has surely silenced any doubters of his ability to bowl in Australian conditions. He is the bowler of the series so far, without a doubt (early days yet I know, but they are promising signs).

After a difficult game in Brisbane, where he struggled to contain the Australian batsmen. Graeme Swann also did a brilliant job for England today. He had complete control over his line and length (I can hardly remember him dropping a ball short). He even kept his cool when Hussey was continually advancing down the track. His determination finally rewarded him when he got the wickets of both Hussey and Harris in successive balls. This is the job that England need him to do. Tie down an end whilst the seamers are rotated at the other end. He will come into his own in the last innings of games, when he is entrusted with the job of winning the game for his team (a role which he thrives in)

The England openers survived a lively over from Ryan Harris to end the day unscathed on 1-0. Tomorrow’s play is set up to be another thrilling day of cricket. It will be interesting to see how Harris and Bollinger perform after being brought into the side. Xavier Doherty’s performance will also be watched closely after Nathan Hauritz put pressure on the selectors by taking 5 wickets in an innings for New South Wales. One thing is for sure, England have the chance to take the game by the scruff of the neck with a commanding batting performance. They might just be thinking of another 500-1.