Christmas Special

No cricket fan worth his salt wants to miss the St. Stephen's Day (yes) test at the MCG. Over the past couple of years, it might not have had the same fizz about it, given the circumstances of the series involved. This year, it cannot but entertain.

The series stands at 1-1, but even the most optimistic Aussies will know that they've only won four or five sessions in the first three tests. The English team still looks a more settled balanced unit. On the other hand, we've seen England self-destruct before, albeit more rarely these days.

So what do we have in store from 11pm tonight?

Ricky Ponting is good to play - whether a few Aussies will be wondering if this is a yea or nay is another matter. When you come down to it, no one really wants to see Michael Clarke captaining the team at this stage of an Ashes - except maybe Strauss and Flower. It's impossible to believe that Ponting won't have a good knock at some point in the series - the MCG faithful just have to hope that they can inspire that innings.

Mike Hussey has kept Australia in the series so far - with 517 runs, he looks in the form of his life. We always knew he loved a pressure situation (T20 semi-final 2010, the Oval - Ashes 2009), but without him we'd be staring an English whitewash in the face. Brad Haddin has given him decent support at number 7, and Watson has chipped in with a few useful runs, but Ponting and Clarke need a hundred between them in the 1st innings. Haddin really has to move ahead of Smith - he showed at Brisbane that he's not a pounder who comes in late - his century there was one of the most mature and calculated innings I've ever witnessed.

No one knows whether Mitchell Johnson will show up again, but for the sake of a spectacle, I hope he does. It was incredible to see him back, firing on all cylinders, and he's given the Aussies some chirpiness again. Before we forget though, he tore England apart at Headingley in 2009, before relapsing into torpor at the Oval.

The big question is over the spinner. My two cents - you CANNOT play Michael Beer. This guy, aside from having taken 7 first class wickets in his career, had never met half the team before last week. There'll be clamourings about the Oval in 2009, but that is a different matter. They left out a capped and, to a certain extent, proven spinner in Hauritz - Michael Beer? He's Xavier Doherty Mark II. Smith and Clarke may not be Warnes, but they'll give them something, and with Hilfenhaus keeping it tight at one end they should be able to build some pressure.

The English media have been trying to create a story over the pitch preparation, calling it a conspiracy. What? Since when has it not been OK for the hosts to prepare the tracks that suit them best. The dust bowl that was the Oval last time round suited Swann down to the ground - it's only natural that Cameron Hodgkins should prepare a pitch to follow the Perth success. It's not going to be as bouncy, but hopefully he can make it spicy enough to give the seamers something to think about.

As for England, they shouldn't be too worried. They know that they're still on top - aside from anything else, they still only need one more win to retain the urn. It looks like Finn might drop out - I think you have to bring in Shahzad - he's a bit of a liability as regards control, but so was Finn. He'll give you the potential of some reverse swing, and bowl some wicket deliveries. Bresnan is a solid bowler, and will give you control at one end, but England have to be aggressive, and Bresnan simply isn't the aggressive play.

It looks as though Paul Collingwood will retain his spot at number 5 - Eoin Morgan might feel aggrieved, but Colly will hang on because of his fielding and his usefulness as a 5th bowler. Despite not being given the ball all that much so far, they have him in reserve, and his lack of runs won't cost him his place before the end of the series.

Well, I just can't wait. There is no better Christmas Day than that which culminates in an Ashes test at the MCG, particularly in a series as nicely poised as this.

Happy Christmas

Ashes to Ashes

Ashes to Ashes

It all ended so quickly. After 6 weeks, 5 matches, 5755 runs, 155 wickets, and a whole host of injuries, it all ended in a flurry of wickets to leave Andrew Strauss holding the earn aloft.

 Australia never quite got going in the last match. Admittedly, we didn't know that England's first innings of 332 would later be so strong, and at 73-0 Ponting's men looked comfortable, but from then on the game just eased away from them. Early wickets in the second innings gave them hope, but a fantastic ton on debut by Jonathan Trott left them chasing a mammoth total. It says something about the public's belief in England that everyone still faintly believed/feared that 546 was chaseable, although quite a few records needed to be shattered. The highest winning chase at the Oval for a Test victory was a mere 263, and while Mike Hussey pushed Australia bravely to that score and beyond, the margin of victory was still comfortable.

From first light on Thursday morning it looked like a good toss to win. This was borne out quickly, as any runs put up on the board became increasingly valuable as the game progressed. The lack of a full-time spin option undoubtedly hurt Australia's chances, although Marcus North, to his credit, showed himself to be a very competent player with the ball, having already performed heroics with the bat. In Ponting's defence, no one could have predicted the extent and immediacy of the pitch's deterioration. "Dust bowl" doesn't describe it - it was more like the Atacam desert during a dry spell, just after a herd of whatever is heavy and lives in the Atacama had had a bit of a shuffle around.

Jonathan Trott deserves an honourable mention. All of the doubts surrounding his inclusion will be forgotten; the name of Ramprakash will be recalled only with a laugh. His 41 in the first innings, despite being a trifle lower than Strauss would have liked, showed England that they had what they wanted: a middle-order batsman who was calm and collected under the very greatest of pressure. He consolidated this in his second knock, where he showed maturity and coolness far beyond his experience, and hit a glorious hundred to take England home.

A performance like that pretty much guarantees him a place in the team for life, although I'm glad to see him fall to Trent Johnston for a duck against Ireland as I write.

England deserved the victory, both in the Test and in the series. The fact that they only had one of the top seven run-scorers (Strauss at No. 1) and none of the top three wicket-takers only serves to underline this. It shows an ability to dig their feet in, take wickets when it counted, and scrap an important few runs at the death. Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, and James Anderson (sadly out for his first Test duck at the Oval) contributed so much more to the team than their wickets. How many times were England floundering at 250-7, only to climb past 320? England's tail in the 2007 drubbing did well to make it out to the crease - remember Giles, Harmison, and Panesar flolloping around? England now have a long and determined batting line-up, and there's no wicket that spells the end prematurely. Mind you, they needed it here. Cook (apart from a 90 at Lords), Bopara, and Collingwood (after the all-important innings at Cardiff) failed to get going throughout the series, and the bowlers were sorely needed to prop up Strauss's scores.

As for the Aussies. The fact of the dominance in the statistics shows a failure to strike while the iron was hot, a failure to finish off a team in its death throes, a failure to bowl at Monty Panesar at Cardiff. They showed brilliance in their batting in Cardiff and throughout the whole match in Leeds, but aside from that they were lacklustre. Michael Clarke deserved more than 3 runs in the last match, but when it came to it, the visitors showed their inexperience and, dare I say it of an Australian side, killer instinct. They also played some downright terrible cricket.

Ricky Ponting is the first Australian captain to lead his team to consecutive Ashes losses in England in over 90 years. Will he be back? It's difficult to say, but you get the feeling he'll want one more go. Will he be captain? Still more difficult - Michael Clarke can't be too far off taking up the mantle - a wonderful batsman, fielder, and decent bowler, Pup is definitely the next skipper - his cool and calm, combined with his popularity in the team, speak for themselves.

Andrew Strauss deserves this victory. He came into the captaincy at a difficult time, after the Pietersen/Moores debacle; despite struggling against the West Indies in March, he showed himself up to the task. He's also enjoyed his best batting in his career since he took over. Lest we forget, this is a man who endured a significant break from international cricket only 18 months ago, with many questioning his recall when it came. He was tactically astute in this Ashes series, no more so than at the Oval, where he used his bowlers to the full and led from the front in the field. There seems to be a great team spirit in the England camp, and Strauss must take the credit. His batting was strong all series, discounting a couple of soft dismissals at Headingley, and provided just what was required from a captain and opener. He deserves his spot at top of the runs board, and few will deny his place as man of the series.

Until December 2010.

Super Bowls

With only hours to go to the start of the 2009 Ashes decider, all await the announcement of the Australian team. In the enviable position of having everyone in pretty good form, Ricky Ponting's side will remain unchanged as far as the batting is concerned, but the bowling still appears to be up for grabs.

Ben Hilfenhaus, Mitchell Johnson, and Peter Siddle seem assured of their places; the fight for the final spot is still raging. Stuart Clark will feel justifiably disappointed if he's dropped after his stellar return to Ashes cricket in Leeds, while Nathan Hauritz is confident that spin will be important enough at the Oval to give him a start. And, of course, Brett Lee, the man himself, out himself back into contention in the tour match with a solid bowling performance, but can he break in?

Ben Hilfenhaus: He's been the stand-out bowler for the Aussies all tour; coming into the series, he was unlikely to get his place, but an injury for Brett Lee turned into Gentle Ben's gain. He's been the one Aussie bowler who's consistently taken wickets, bowled economically, and managed to swing the ball from day one. He'll be straight into the attack at the Oval, and there's no question it's the right choice.

Mitchell Johnson: Unlike Hilfenhaus, Johnson was tipped from the start as the spearhead of the attack, and didn't quite get off the runway. When on form, he's the type of bowler who might go for 4.50 an over, but it's well worth it - he'll take plenty of wickets and break a few hands for good measure. We didn't really see any of that until the second innings at Edgbaston, and since then he's got his act together. The over to Paul Collingwood culminating in his wicket in the second innings at Headingley was pure Johnson class. He's back, and he's scary.

(Although, as an Irishman, it was a delight to see Niall O'Brien of Northhants hit him around the place in the tour game.)

Peter Siddle: Siddle came out of Africa, like Johnson, with great reputation. He was economical and accurate. Like Johnson, he started poorly in the UK, spraying it around, bleeding runs, and not taking too many wickets. While he's steadied the ship somewhat, emphsized by a maiden Ashes 5-for in the 4th test, I'd make the controversial call to drop him. There's no way it will happen, because of those five wickets, but his performace in the last game was helped no end by having Stuart Clark building the pressure for him, and in the end he mopped up a pretty shell-shocked tail. Clark does the same job as Siddle (accurate, economical, consistent) only better. Take Siddle out and there's room for Brett Lee, which might be just what Australia need to take back the urn.

Stuart Clark: He played brilliantly at Headingley. However, for Stuart Clark, this means doing his job quietly, keeping the runs down, building pressure, and allowing the other quicks to blast into glory. He went for a few too many to Broad in the last hour or so, but that shouldn't keep him out of the final test. He's taken 29 Ashes wickets at about 15, and did anybody notice the first test he played they won?

With a nervous England batting line-up, Someone like Clark will make them bite their nails a little more, before Mitchell and Brett knock them off.

Nathan Hauritz: Spin may well play a part in the last test. There hasn't been much for Hauritz and Swann so far (obviously not Panesar), but the Aussie spinner will be hoping to get another chance. The negative is that, while he's taken 10 wickets, he's been quite expensive, and if the quicks are on song Ponting and Nielsen will be tempted to leave him out again. Don't forget, Australia have Marcus North, Simon Katich, and Michael Clarke who can take care of a bit of spin when necessary.

Hauritz will unlucky to miss out, as he hasn't done a lot wrong, but surely the selectors won't drop Clark at this stage.

Brett Lee: He's Brett Lee. His injury was a major blow to players and fans alike, and everyone's been waiting impatiently to see him have a go at the Poms. He bowled well in the tour matches in which he's featured, and you feel that a bit of Brett Lee intimidation is just what the Aussies need to attack a wobbling Ian Bell, a tentatively pushing Paul Collingwood, and a total newbie Jonathan Trott. He'll send rip snorters down their throats, and with Mitchell Johnson will remind them what good old-fashioned pace is all about.

Ponting has said he'll play if there's a chance of reverse swing, which doesn't appear to be likely, but if there is he'll knock Stuart Clark out of the team. Lee at one end and Clark at the other could be a finely balance attack for 20 overs, but unless Tim Nielsen reads this and is convinced to drop Siddle, we'll only have one of them, at most.

Going into the series the Australians' bowling was criticized, and there was nothing to change this view for the first two and a half tests. At Headingley, we got a glimpse of what this new-look team could do, particularly when it had a touch of the old about the edges.

The Ashes can only go to the team who takes 20 wickets, and right now, only one side looks like achieving that.

Rain, Rain...Don't Stop The Cricket

We could have it all at Edgbaston. Centuries and five-fors, heroics and disasters, an Aussie resurgence or another bout of England dominance.

What we're probably in for though, is a whole lot of rain and a drawn match.

With a strong history of draws at the venue already, Ricky Ponting isn't getting any better news from the weatherman. There's rain forecast for the next week in Birmingham, and even a hope for an on-schedule start looks optimistic, with groundsmen working through Wednesday night to try and get the pitch dry.

The English won't be too concerned about it, given their position, but the way Andrew Strauss has played since he's become captain you get the feeling he's just really enjoying his cricket.

a 160 in the last match to set up a historic win for his team will certainly leave him feeling good, and tactically speaking - well, whatever people say about his follow-on decisions and declarations, he won the game. A W's a W.

Strauss has told the world that Monty Panesar won't be taking part in the match (one feels Monty might have to settle for his 7 not out in Cardiff as the extent of his Ashes contribution this summer) but is still confident that Andrew Flintoff will be back and ready to play.

Flintoff, who's been sleeping with an ice-pack this last week - never one to avoid controversy - ripped through the Aussies at Lords, and is determined to play out the remainder of the series, even if he never walks again. Backed up by James Anderson and Stuart Broad, the England attack is looking stronger every game.

It's not so simple for Australia. Mitchell Johnson, undoubtedly their best bowler over the last 18 months, has yet to rediscover his form with the ball. A single wicket against Northants last weekend didn't raise anyone's confidence in him at all, but it seems that Australia are going to stand by him, at least until Brett Lee is back on his feet.

Ben Hilfenhaus has bowled beautifully so far, and Peter Siddle has showed guts and determination, but the Aussies need someone else in the pace attack, and hopefully it means that Stuart Clark will get the nod. He bowled well in Northants, taking 4-74 in his 23 overs, and he's the sort of unerringly accurate bowler who could prove a good foil to Hilfenhaus swinging it at the other end.

If Mitch manages to stay in, Nathan Hauritz is favourite to go. He's bowled pretty well on the tour so far, to be fair, but Edgbaston doesn't seem to be the place for spin, particularly if the rain keeps up, and Ponting might be content to rely on his part-timers, Marcus North and Michael Clarke.

That's not to say that North's position isn't under threat as well - Shane Watson and Andrew McDonald both put in strong performances at the weekend, Watson making a couple of quick half centuries and McDonald taking 4 wickets along with a 60 of his own. If they do get a look in, it would probably be Watson, whose batting has looked convincing and who's had a bit more experience. If Hauritz goes, however, North is probably safe and, let's not forget, he had a fantastic unbeaten 125 in Cardiff - he's not in the team for nothing.

Phil Hughes has had a troubled time so far on the tour, and murmurs of Shane Watson partnering Simon Katich at the top of the order might have got him a little twitchy. He did make a 60 at the weekend though, which will probably be enough to keep his place - he's a player with great class, and if he has a little more patience in the first ten overs, we could see him make a really big score.

That seems to be about every possible permutation of the Australian team. Not much needs to be said about Michaels Hussey and Clarke, and no one doubts Ponting's going to hit back hard this match. He's only 25 runs short of beating Allan Border's Australian Test runs record, but you have to feel he'll put a few more on than that.

Brad Haddin is in superb form with the bat, and don't think he'll let those few blips behind the stumps deter him - he's always a fighter.

The biggest change for England is obviously that Ian Bell will be taking Kevin Pietersen's place. Aside from a duck and a 7 in his last outing, he's been scoring very solidly this summer, and he's told the press he's confident of a good game. On the other hand, it's almost cruel how much the Australians are looking forward to playing him. They've figured him out in the past, and if he wants to try and get his place back he'll have to try something new. He's got a history of playing fluently to get to 30 or 40, and then giving away his wicket.

Strauss seems to have been trying to stir up the Aussies in his interviews, suggesting that their "aura" is gone (pretty mystic stuff for a tough lad like him) - you get the feeling that Ponting, Clarke and the boys are just lapping it up - they love a challenge.

The first two tests have been reminders of what a great game Test cricket is, in these days of Twenty20 and Stanford Challenges (oops). England are deservedly 1-0 up in the series, but it would be a huge disappointment to have a rain-forced draw here. With the Aussies riled, and England nervously looking a couple of rungs below them on a tottery ladder they're not used to climbing, we could be in for one hell of a match.

So please don't rain.

No Way A Flop, But Not Quite A Top

"Who is England's best player?"

Few people even think of another answer. Maybe they'd have picked Freddie Flintoff in 2005. In the last 9 months, Graeme Swann's become a crucial team member. Andrew Strauss has taken on the captain's role superbly. Paul Collingwood's a fighter who'll never give up.

But no.

The answer's always Kevin Pietersen.

True, on his day, he's spectacular.He can play shots all around the park, he scores quickly, and strikes anything from trepidation to terror in the hearts of oncoming bowlers. He's exciting to watch, and you know you could be about to see something special.

On the other hand, there are the bad times. Look at the short and troubled captaincy, the undoubted ego, and, arguably, a lack of team play at times.

He's scored 15 test centuries, and close on 4,000 runs, at an average of just below 50. No one can argue with those figures.

So what's the problem?

Pietersen's scores seem to have declined almost without anyone noticing. True, he had a century in the West Indies in March, and a couple of semi-tons since then, but he also seems more prone to the single-figure dismissals than the other great batsmen. Everyone has their bad days, but with Pietersen it seems to be either very good or very bad.

More frustrating than his recent lack of converting good scores into 100s is the manner of his dismissals.

Remember his 97 in the first test in the Caribbean this year? 97 not out, doing plenty to help set up a strong first innings total. However, a century wouldn't have been enough, apparently; it had to be reached in style. A six may have been what he had in mind, but a massive top edge to Denesh Ramdin later and England were another wicket down. In Cardiff this year, we saw a similarly rash stroke.

Is it understandable, just a rush of blood to the head? Maybe, for a 20-year old on debut, looking to impress the world. Pietersen did that years ago. This is a former captain, a man with 46 test matches to his name, and allegedly his country's greatest player.

Look at the other top batsmen playing today - Sachin Tendulkar, Kumar Sangakarra, Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Shiv Chanderpaul - that's not an act you'd see from them. A great player knows when to wait, and knows when to pounce.

Having happened on more than one occasion, it shows KP for what he is - a player's who's more concerned with serving himself than the team.

Lee Trevino, golfing legend of the 1970s, and 6-time major winner, famously remarked to his caddy on the 18th fairway of his first major victory that he didn't want to be known as the guy who laid up to win. Only needing a bogey, he took on thew water and the green. All ended happily, but what if? We could have had another Jean Van de Velde.

In the West Indies, on his way to his 15th test match ton, with England on the brink of a crucial declaration, Pietersen was keeping his eyes firmly away from the dressing room. Strauss was going to have to drag him off the field, and let's remember, Straussy was only recently put in the awkward position of leading a team that had just given KP a vote of no confidence.

He made his hundred. Congratulations. England then declared, and failed to bowl the West Indies out again, leading to another draw.

Look at other captains, other batsmen. Maybe Ricky Ponting isn't too popular outside Oz, but no one can deny that he puts the team first. A master of the tight declaration, always judged to give a chance of victory, even if it brings with it a risk of defeat, Ponting would be prepared to declare on 98 not out, rather than waste precious minutes to boost his own stats.

Pietersen is never going to be dropped. He's achieved hero status, and the English are slow to take such a man off a pedestal, even without his sort of talent (just ask Tim Henman).

However, there are younger players, the future of English cricket, who need some air time. Alistair Cook and Ravi Bopara, to name but two, both hugely talented and still young men, need to be given the help to become the game's greats.

Consider the best batsmen of the last 10 years: Lara, Waugh, Kallis, Ponting, Jayasuriya, Tendulkar. It's not all about physical skill. It's about class, calm, strategy, and selflessness. Pietersen doesn't make it on to that tier. Not yet.

Let's see how England do in the Ashes without the big man. If Strauss gets to lift the urn on August 24th, maybe there'll be a few new heroes