The Ashes, 2009

[ZenGum]

In 1877 a bunch of upstarts from the antipodes sailed back to Mother England, and played cricket. Various games were won and lost until a decisive match occurred in 1882, when England, chasing a modest total of 85 in the fourth innings, collapsed and were all out just seven runs short. Some questioned their lack of "pluck", and shortly afterwards the following obituary notice appeared in the Sporting Times.

In Affectionate Remembrance
of
ENGLISH CRICKET,
which died at the Oval
on
29th AUGUST, 1882,
Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing
friends and acquaintances
----
R.I.P.
----
N.B.—The body will be cremated and the
ashes taken to Australia.

The England Australia rivalry has continued unabated, with England trying to "regain the ashes". There are various small trophies which have been used from time to time, but the main one is a tiny urn held in the Marylebone Cricket Club. It is about 6 inches high.



Note that all this took place before the six colonies of Australia united into a single Commonwealth. We had a national cricket team before we had a national constitution, government, or leader. We didn't need to go to war to declare independence; we just beat the Poms at sport.

Ever since, the rivalry has grown steadily. Tours were undertaken, series contested, men injured, blood spilled, flags burned, questions asked in The House, and ambassadors summoned. (Yes, really, during the notorious 1932-3 "Bodyline" series).

Of late, Australia has held the upper hand, as this graphic from Wikipedia shows:


Soon, battle is to be joined again. The squad was announced six weeks ago. They arrived in England almost a month ago. They played in some 20-over games (one "over" = six "balls" = six pitches). They have played warm up games against county sides and the England Second XI. Meanwhile, the England team are warming up with their own internal matches.

Here is the tour itinerary:

Australia in England 2009
June

24-27 v Sussex, Hove

July

1-4 v England Lions, Worcester

8-12 1st Test, Cardiff

16-20 2nd Test, Lord's

24-26 v Northants, Northampton

30-3 Aug 3rd Test, Edgbaston

August

7-11 4th Test, Headingley

15-16 v Kent, Canterbury

20-24 5th Test, The Oval

28 ODI v Scotland, Edinburgh

30 Twenty20 international, Old Trafford

September

1 Twenty20 international, Old Trafford (d/n)

4 1st ODI, The Oval

6 2nd ODI, Lord's

9 3rd ODI, Rose Bowl (d/n)

12 4th ODI, Lord's

15 5th ODI, Trent Bridge (d/n)

17 6th ODI, Trent Bridge (d/n)

20 7th ODI, Riverside

Yes, an ashes tour takes three months.

We take our sport seriously.

The ODIs are "One Day Internationals", where each side gets 50 overs, but the real deal is the test matches, five bouts, each five days long, two innings per side, with all the strategy and gamesmanship you can imagine.

Despite Australia's recent dominance, this series is open for the winning. After the last 5-0 thrashing Australia handed out, came the retirement of almost half of the team, including several all-time greats: Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Adam Gilchrist, Damien Marten, Matthew Hayden. Most of the team are young and have only a little international experience. The team have just come through very difficult tours against South Africa and India, and have barely clung to their world number one rating.

England, by contrast, are building up with a solid win over the West Indies, and should be feeling confident on their home wickets.

SO! Stay tuned, cellar dwellars, for I will make occasional posts to tell you all how things are going. I'll try to explain the game as we go.

The first test starts in a day or two, depending on your timezone.

[Pie]

The silver bail, the golden bail, the steel pillar and the perspex pillar....
Key to time, anyone? ...Marvin?

[Beest]

I'm sure I'll be able to catch the highlights and insightful commentary on ESPN.

(We used to Live within earshot of Edgbaston)

[Pie]

...crickets...

[Sundae]

I was listening to Five Live in the shower - BBC live news/ phone in/ sports channel that I daren't change the dial to, in case Dad never finds it again. They kept going back to Cardiff for updates. I couldn't work out whether we were doing well or not!

I love the idea of cricket, of course - you know how very English I am. But the reality baffles me. Like the shipping forecast, I just take pleasure in the very phrases.

[ZenGum]

England won the toss and chose to bat first.
Australia took an early wicket (Cook, for 10) and followed up with two more in the morning session, to go to lunch slightly in front with England at 3 for 97.
After lunch, England's batting stalwarts, Pietersen and Collingwood, built a slow but steady partnership and took the score on to 228, before being dismissed close together after tea.
Prior and Flintoff built a new, faster-scoring partnership, and took the score from (five for) 241 to 327 before both were bowled by Siddle with the second new ball.
Anderson and Broad saw out the remaining play for a handful of runs.
Day one saw honours roughly even with England on 7 for 336. They should be able to press on to 350 or 370 or so tomorrow, which is a thoroughly respectable score - not enormous, but Australia will have to beat it by a solid margin because they will be batting fourth, and the pitch is expected to become more difficult as time goes on. Further, the pitch is already providing some grip and turn for the spin bowlers, and England is stronger in that department that Australia, and the pitch will only get better for them in this regard.

[ZenGum]

The second day started with England in sparkling form, as their lower order batsmen took the fight to the Australian bowlers, and added 99 runs in just 17 overs for the last 3 wickets. Hauritz, Australia's inexperienced spinner, took three wickets, and the quick bowlers shared the rest. The English batsmen almost all made reasonable starts but none of them went on to build a really big total - 60s, 50s, 40s, nothing more.

Australia were required to bat for 30 minutes before lunch, with Katich playing cautiously and new country lad Hughes swinging lustily. Both survived until lunch, at least partly because of rather tame bowling by England.

After lunch Flintoff took the ball for England and immediately looked dangerous, having Hughes caught behind off an inside edge by a very sharp catch by keeper Prior with the score on 60.

That was England's last highlight for the day, as Katich and Australian captain Ponting knuckled down and built a professional, determined innings. They saw off the threatening Flintoff, defended against the spin of Swann and Panesar, and took runs as they were available.
By tea, Australia was 1 for 142, and by stumps the score was 1 for 249. Katich is 104 not out, and Ponting is 100 not out, both will resume in the morning.

Australia still trail by almost 200 runs, but, with 9 wickets in hand, are in a very strong position. The big difference between the teams is the determined application shown by the Australian batsmen. The English batsmen almost all made starts but then got out through ill discipline, whereas Ponting and Katich played steadily throughout the day.

Australia will be looking to post a big total in the second innings, because they will be chasing in the fourth innings and the pitch looks like it will become increasingly difficult to bat on.

[Pie]

[monster]

Hey I found it interesting and I don't follow cricket. it's much better in a condensed one-minute read! Yes, Edgbaston. great source of firewood, apparently.

[ZenGum]

Day three began as day two ended. Ponting and Katich played sound, assertive cricket, and took the score to 299 before Katich was given out leg-before-wicket to the bowling of Anderson, with the second new ball.

Hussey was out cheaply (3) and then Ponting was bowled for 150, getting an inside edge off the spin bowling of Monty Panesar and dragging the ball back onto the stumps. It was an excellent innings, scored at a good rate, and took control of the game. (FWIW Ponting is the fourth highest run scorer of all time, behind Border, Lara, and Tendulkar).

The score was 4 for 331, and Australia had lost three wickets for 34 runs in ten overs and had two new batsmen at the crease. England, still leading by 100, had a chance to get right back into the match.

They didn't. Clarke and North put on a 143-run partnership, that took Australia's score past England's first innings total, with 6 wickets in hand.

After tea, there were some rain interruptions and upon resuming, Clarke was out for 83. Haddin joined North and as rain forced an early end to the day's play, Australia were 5 for 479, with Haddin on 4 and North on 54.

The laws of cricket allow for an early start or late finish tomorrow to try to make up for lost time. However, if the poor weather continues, there is a serious risk the game will end in a draw. There are two full days left, and if Australia can pile on some fast runs tomorrow, they may well be able to set England a tricky target to chase on the final day. Since Australia will have an innings in hand, it is very hard to imagine them losing from here; but stranger things have happened.

Tomorrow we can expect Australia to play aggressively. If they can post another two hundred runs they will be in a position to push for victory on day five. However, the weather in Cardiff could yet spoil the party.

[Sundae]

Just keep ending the reports with clear statements about who is winning or losing.
It helps me

Perhaps Captain Jack was ready to leave Torchwood to get away from the cricket?
Maybe he knows how it ends.

[FuglyStick]

This sport needs more high sticking.

[ZenGum]

As day four began, England began showing signs of psychological defeat. North and Haddin were at the crease, both youngsters in their first Ashes game, but England seemed to be aiming at leaking runs as slowly as possible, rather than getting the Australians out. They started with their less-threatening quick bowlers, then tried their two specialist spin bowlers, who between them have done very poorly - taking just one wicket and conceding 246 runs between them.

Worse, England's attitude in the field went bad. They played slowly. They didn't attack the ball chases, allowing the batsmen to take runs they shouldn't have taken, take extra runs, turn twos into threes. The returns to the wicket keeper were often inaccurate. One runout chance was missed because the bowler failed to get in the correct position behind the wickets to catch the fielder's return.

England took the third new ball (a very demoralising thing to have to do, but which often creates a few wickets) but this merely allowed the Australians to increase the scoring rate as the fast bowlers were brought back, and the fresh ball bounced on to the bat and ran over the field better.

By lunch, Australia had added 98 runs without losing a wicket, with North on 101 and Haddin on 50, with the total an impressive 5 for 577.

Now the strategy of the game became complicated. There were only five sessions left in the game (1 and 2/3 days). To win, Australia must bowl England out a second time. This will take some time - at least a day, usually - and if the English batsmen can avoid getting out, the game can end in a draw, and Australia's huge run total will be pointless.

To prevent this, the batting captain can declare their innings closed when they judge they have enough runs. So it became Ponting's decision as to when to declare; the sooner the better, to have more time to bowl England out, but not so soon that England could make a lot of runs, set Australia a target, and then possibly bowl Australia out, and win.

With the declaration looming, wickets become less valuable, and quick runs more valuable, so North and especially Haddin came out firing after lunch. Haddin belted his way to 121 before being caught in the deep, leaving North on 125 as Ponting took the opportunity to declare.

Australia made 674 for six wickets. This is a massive total, leading England by 239 runs. It is the fourth highest Ashes innings total ever. It is the first time four batsmen have all passed 100 in the same ashes innings. It is all but impossible for England to win.

England's batsmen began their second innings in dull light with damp weather about. The English were tired and dispirited from two days of chasing the ball about the field, but the Australian bowlers had spent the same two days in the dressing rooms, waiting to bat, and now they were popping with energy.

The pressure was soon rewarded with Cook out for 6, plumb LBW to Johnson with the score on 13, and then Bopara was rather harshly given out LBW to Hilfenhaus for 1, and as some rain came, England went to tea at 2 for 20.

However, the weather intervened and showers and drizzle made play impossible for the remaining session, so two hours were lost.

England's best chance to save the match is to hope for rain. The forecast for Cardiff tomorrow is for "morning rain".
The other option is to bat the day out. Since Australia will have little fear of defeat, they can be very attacking with their field settings and allow runs in exchange for taking wickets. Because of time already lost, tomorrow will be a longer than usual day - minimum of 98 overs, weather permitting. Australia need eight wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series. Australia has one specialist spin bowler, and three of the batsmen are also part time spinners, so the turn-friendly wicket could see some high-pressure cricket tomorrow. Stay tuned!


Sundae: England are doing badly.
Pie: I deny your alleged Indian heritage. :p

[monster]

Nothing changes then.....

[ZenGum]

Day five started with England on 2 for 20. The first goal was to not get out, and thus achieve a draw. If they could score more than 239, they would force Australia to bat again, and the extra time this would take would make the draw easier.

England struggled early, losing three wickets for 70 runs in the morning session, with Pietersen absurdly bowled not offering a shot to one from Hilfenhaus that came back in and knocked the top of off stump, and captain Strauss and keeper Prior beaten by the spin of Hauritz. Australia looked on track to win.

After lunch Collingwood and Flintoff put on a determined stand, adding 57 very slow runs before Flintoff fell to the pace of Johnson, and Broad was plumb LBW to Hauritz. Swann joined Collingwood, and was met by a barrage of short, fast bowling from Siddle. Swann was struck on the fingers, then the elbow, and then the helmet, by Siddle's 90 mile per hour (145 kph) bowling, requiring treatment each time. He toughed it out until tea, but with just three wickets in hand and 38 overs to play, England still looked in trouble.

Swann finally fell after tea for a hard fought 31 runs. Collingwood had been the anchor of the innings, playing carefully with great concentration for five hours and 44 minutes, making just 74 runs off 245 balls, but when he was finally out caught, the score was 9 for 233, and it was left to England's worst two batsmen to see out the last 12 overs.

Somehow, they did it. The Australians threw everything at them, but to no avail. The English managed to erase the deficit and post a tiny lead - the runs were trivial, but it meant Australia would have to bat again, and every minute taken up would be precious. Very late in the day, with less time left on the clock than it would take to change innings, the Australians conceded the draw and England escaped.

It was not a dull draw. It went right down to the wire and required great character from the England tail-end batsmen to survive. The draw was an achievement to lift the spirits of the England players, after their poor bowling performance and lack of application with the bat.

The Australians will be disappointed by their inability to cut through the English line-up as they have in the past, and frustrated that the series score is 0-0 despite their excellent batting performance. Nevertheless, England took a mental beating, and the scars of this will still affect them in the next test starting on Thursday at Lords.