Aussies catch another break just now.
Why Flintoff just dropped his appeal I’ll never know.
Doubt the aussies would be as relaxed.
Good night and God bless.
160 all out.
Fat lady clears her throat.
[quote=“treaty_exile”]Aussies catch another break just now.
Why Flintoff just dropped his appeal I’ll never know.
Doubt the aussies would be as relaxed.[/quote]
Bowden won’t give any LBW appeal if there’s even the slightest hint that it’s sliding down the leg side.
But it doesn’t really matter - Flintoff’s just cleaned up Hilfenhaus. 73/0 to 160 all out, that’s carnage. Great display by Stuart Broad.
[quote=“Bandage”]Bowden won’t give any LBW appeal if there’s even the slightest hint that it’s sliding down the leg side.
But it doesn’t really matter - Flintoff’s just cleaned up Hilfenhaus. 73/0 to 160 all out, that’s carnage. Great display by Stuart Broad.[/quote]
why didn’t england go for the follow on bandage ?
You need a lead of 200 to have the option of enforcing the follow on.
You only have the option of enforcing the follow-on if the opposition trail by more than 200 runs after the first innings and Australia got up to 160 in the end to only trail by 172 so E+W didn’t have the choice.
ah right, I thought you just to be ahead to force it, tis a pity because ponting and the aussies are badly rattled
It suits England and Wales to bat again. The pitch is deteriorating pretty badly and the bounce is getting really inconsistent and it’s a spinning wicket too. As it deteriorates further, it will get more and more difficult to bat on and Australia will now be batting last in these challenging conditions. It will be a big ask to chase anything over 300 on this pitch batting last.
Follow on is not always enforced as a matter of course anyway.
For argument sake lets asuume England had a lead of 210-220 here. The likelihood is Strauss wouldnt have enforced the follow on anyway.
Its a deteriorating increasingly spin friendly pitch which is only going to get worse to bat on as the match progresses. As theres over 3 days play left, with a good weather forecast, more than enough time to bowl Australia out even after batting a second time.
North’s a part time spinner but he’s just got Cook with one that spun considerably. Cook could probably do with going away and working on his technique for a while - I’d look at Joe Denly or someone to open this winter with Strauss. England and Wales lead by 203 runs now - Ponting will surely regret not picking a specialist spinner the way the wicket is turning here.
And to think certain contributors from Down Under were crowing about Ponting being flawless in the captaincy stakes all series!
Bell gone now too. 34/2. England need to be very careful here and bat diligently, something theyve failed to do all series.
I see the whingeing is starting all ready Down Under. Peter Roebuck formerly of Somerset & England but now playing to the Pom bashing gallery Down Under having a right moan.
Peter Roebuck - Sydney Morning Herald
AUSTRALIA are in terrible trouble. After making a solid start they lost a rash of wickets as the hosts found their length on deteriorating deck.
Returning from a rain break, Stuart Broad and Andrew Flintoff formed a formidable combination as their team moved inexorably into a powerful position. Bowling straight and to a full length, the tall pacemen made occupation of the crease difficult. Accordingly the flow of runs trickled almost to a halt. In a trice Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting were gone as the visitors came face to face with impending disaster. Worse followed as Michael Hussey and Michael Clarke utterly failed to resist the mood. England have one hand on the Ashes.
Australias batsmen were clearly alarmed by the track and bowling. Repeatedly Watson moved across his crease and played across straight deliveries and eventually he paid the penalty. Throughout his brief innings, the Australian captain looked on edge. He has the mien of a man sensing that the forces arrayed against him were well nigh irresistible. Perhaps he felt, too, that the fates were conspiring against him. Hussey soon followed as the ball swung back to beat a belated forward prod. Husseys inability to settle a the crease has become a major concern. Clarke lamely pushed to short cover. Australia will be hard pressed to recover from that devastating passage of play.
Hereabouts Broad was a bowler ablaze. Tall, aggressive and able to move the ball both ways, hed have been a handful on any pitch. But he was ideally suited to this dubious surface. Already the pitch was playing tricks. It was a rotten toss to lose. But the Australians had given too many runs away with inaccurate bowling and umpteen extras. Runs are precious on pitches of this sort. Englands attack was better suited to the surface. It has not merely been matter of the toss and selection.
Although they are loath to admit it, England ordered and prepared a dodgy deck. As it turned out the talk about producing a typical Oval pitch was all smokes and mirrors. England provided a track as dry as a camels tongue and as eager to spin as Gandhi. Graham Swann turned the ball sharply on the second morning. An interesting few days awaits as resolute batsmen contend with fast bowlers bent on exploiting uneven bounce and modest spinners trying to make the ball bite.
Far from playing hard and true, the strip was thirsty from the opening hour. Evidently the curator overdid it. Still, Australia had in their party the best performing tweaker in the series. Obviously England were intent on avoiding a high-scoring draw. In that case the Ashes could not be regained. Although rigged, the pitch was just about tolerable. Helped by a fast outfield and umpteen sundries caused by poor footwork behind the sticks, an unsung England batting order reached 332. That makes it harder to grizzle. How different it might have been had a draw been enough for England.
Englands strategy was ruthless. Only the unwillingness to admit it stuck in the craw. Holier-than-thou posturing has little appeal. Nothing was more calculated to confuse the touring think tank than the appearance of a dusty deck. After all the Australians had just won a match in two and a bit days with a four-pronged pace attack. And it was the same with the previous two triumphs in Africa. Unsurprisingly they were reluctant to change anything. Traditionally The Oval favours tall fast bowlers and genuine spinners. Remaining loyal to their successful quartet, the Australians omitted their versions.
Hereafter they may need to rethink their bowling strategy by choosing horses for courses. Previously they were able to play the same blokes in all conditions. Great bowlers travel well. The current crop have varied skills. A ruthless approach may be required, with bowlers coming and going regardless. Hitherto Ponting has baulked at this policy. Captains like continuity because it fosters spirit. Only in Leeds and Cardiff, though, did the visiting captain have the right attack at his disposal.
Here Ponting was burdened with four pacers and a part-time spinner. Marcus North did well but hes not used to bowling with three men huddled around the bat. Clarke might get some work in the second dig. England will know that a team can be bowled out in a day on this Oval pitch. Its just a matter of getting on a roll. After all its hard to start an innings against the turning ball with men under the nose and on the hip. Moreover the stakes will be high.
Smashing catch by Katich at short leg to get Bell.
Johnson gets Collingwood, fending a bouncer to forward short leg. Lead is 211 at the moment.
This run rate is reminding me of Adelaide 2006. Mind you its a dog of a pitch compared to the pitch they contived to lose on in Adelaide.
Collingwood gone now. 39/3. Lead of 211.
Shit batting by Collingwood there - never got in a position to deal with the ball at all. England and Wales need to revisit their batting line up after this series, irrespective of whether they win it or not.
[quote=“Manuel Zelaya”]This run rate is reminding me of Adelaide 2006. Mind you its a dog of a pitch compared to the pitch they contived to lose on in Adelaide.
Collingwood gone now. 39/3. Lead of 211.[/quote]
can’t afford to lose too many more tomight. Amazing whinge about the pitch, what did they expect? Their own fault for not picking Hauritz.
Beggars belief that England could win the Ashes with one century all series, with Cook, Bopara (f0r 4 tests), Collingwood being so utterly sh*t at 2, 3 & 4 and Pietersen crocked. Be a lot of soul searching in Australia if they lost this series to the worst English batting line up I can ever remember.
Getting to stumps now with Strauss still there is key. Bit of rain overnight could change that wicket around a bit, get rid of the dust and suddenly make 300 a chaseable target for Australia.
A no ball apparently
I don’t think Australia can have been too surprised by the pitch. The decision wasn’t so much to go without a spinner as just an assessment that Hauritz isn’t miles ahead of North, Katich and Clarke.
Strauss is the key wicket obviously now. If he went tonight it would make a big difference.
Just watching the Ashes highlights. Alec Stewart obviously knows The Oval better than most and he reckons it’s a formality for England and Wales to win this now. He can’t see Australia getting close to 230, which is the current lead, given the way the pitch is deteriorating.
As an aside, Trott has looked the part so far. A good presence at the crease and very assured and composed. All in all, an extraordinary day of test cricket with 15 wickets falling.