The day did not start the way England wanted however, when Andrew Strauss decided to leave a straight ball from Doug Bollinger. It was a flabbergasting decision from the England skipper. The ball was straight and was always heading for off stump. You would have hoped he had learned his lesson from the Gabba when he was perilously close to being LBW first ball after a similarly incomprehensible leave. This wicket left England 3-1 and in danger of collapsing in a similar way to the Australians.
Thankfully for England however the two men at the crease were Cook and Trott, the men who shared an unbroken stand of 329 together at the Gabba. After some early scares for Trott, including a run out chance and a dropped catch from Mike Hussey in the gully. The pair picked up where they left off at the Gabba. They made the Australian's look like net bowlers. Trott was imperious on his legs, mercilessly clipping anything on the stumps to the leg-side boundary. Cook was more circumspect, yet did not once look like getting out. He left the ball well outside off-stump and when the bowlers dropped short, he was onto it in a flash.
This series looks like it could be Cook's watershed, the springboard from which he will finally fulfill his undoubted talent. Up until now, he has never been very consistent. He would usually have a lean patch which would be followed by a big score. He has never really racked up a big total of runs in a series (something that will definitely be changing in this series). He looks a completely different player to the one that struggled through the Pakistan series this summer. Normally he is very scratchy and gives the feeling that he could get out at any moment. When he is batting currently, he looks completely at ease and it would be a total shock if he managed to get himself out (he has now been batting for over 17 hours since the start of his Brisbane innings and few would bet against him adding to that tally tomorrow). I would be very surprised if he does not reach his second consecutive double century, such is the ease with which he is batting.
Cook was blessed with terrific support today. Firstly with Trott, then Pietersen. Trott continued on in exactly the same fashion as at Brisbane and it came as quite a shock when he was finally dismissed (despite the chances he had offered early on). I must admit, I had doubts over KP coming into this series. They were magnified when Doherty was picked, such was Pietersen's apparent weakness against left-arm spin. Thankfully, Pietersen has expelled these doubts with a truly commanding innings. The like of which has not been seen from Pietersen's bat in some time. Apart from an early scare against Doherty (a thick outside edge which just looped wide of point) he looked in complete control against the left-armer. It was a typical Pietersen of old innings. He took the attack to the bowlers, never let them settle and made them dance to his tune. It was very refreshing to seem him bat in this way once again.
Australia's two new bowlers, Bollinger and Harris, had mixed fortunes. Bollinger removed Strauss at the start of the day but this was more due to Strauss' poor judgement rather than brilliant bowling. For the rest of the day he was largely ineffective whilst going at 5 runs an over (Mitchell Johnson-esque you can hear people saying). In Bollinger's defence, he should have had Trott caught in the gully when he was on 10. This would have dramatically changed the course of the game. Pietersen would have been exposed to the new ball and Australia would have been on a roll. However it was not to be and ultimately Bollinger did not perform to expectations. The same cannot be said for Ryan Harris as he pounded in over after over with real purpose. He was easily the quickest bowler of the match and regularly made the England batsmen play and miss. His dismissal of Trott was the least he deserved, especially since he had just been dropped by Haddin a few balls previously.
Xavier Doherty again struggled. He went at nearly 5 an over and did not pose any threat. He could not even trouble Pietersen (supposedly a left-arm spinners bunny). At one point he was cut for 3 fours in a row by Cook (a shot Cook played superbly throughout his innings). At this point you could see the frustration on his face as he realised there was nothing he could do to stop the England juggernaut.
Despite the changes to Australia's attack, they once again looked toothless in the face of some good batting from England. Will the selectors look to change the side again? I suppose it will depend on how the rest of this match progresses but Bollinger will have to improve quickly and Doherty will also be feeling the heat. Especially since Nathan Hauritz has recently found form.
This game seems within England's grasp, I would imagine that England will look to bat all day tomorrow (perhaps leaving Australia a short period before stumps). They will probably aim for a lead of around 400 before pushing for the win. Judging by today's performance I can't see how Australia are going to get back into this game, especially because of the dominance Cook and Pietersen had over the Aussies.
It seems my pre-series prediction that England's batting was too weak to reclaim the Ashes has to be re-assessed (mainly thanks to Alastair Cook's incredible form, I am even contemplating betting on him scoring 1000 runs for the series!). England are in the ascendency and it will take something remarkable from Australia to spark a turnaround. But it is the Ashes, we all know anything can happen. Brace yourselves for another great day tomorrow!
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