CRICKET:AUSTRALIA HAD the better of the first day of this final Test. Unable, once the ball had gone soft, to extract real life from a pitch that is less solid than it might at first appear, they sat back during the afternoon, applied a tourniquet of disciplined length and line bowling to well set fields, and throttled England's progress.

Ian Bell, back at number three and under the microscope, survived a torrid start to make 72 good runs, worth more than they appear, before dragging his first ball after the tea interval on to his off-stump, while Andrew Strauss batted superbly, hitting 11 fours in his 55, on the way protecting Bell from a Mitchell Johnson bombardment while he settled in. The pair added 102 for the second wicket.

There was 41 from Jonathan Trott, who took a dozen balls to get off the mark, played perkily without being convincing in his technique for more than two hours, and then succumbed in a most unfortunate manner when Simon Katich fielded at short-leg as the batsman went down the pitch to Marcus North’s off-spin. Trott was unable to get back before the stumps were thrown down but had Katich been right-handed he might have survived.

There were failures, too of temperament as much as technique with Alastair Cook’s off-stump torment showing little sign of abating, Paul Collingwood succumbing to an airy-fairy drive outside his own off-stump – two of four deserved wickets for the industrious Peter Siddle – and Matt Prior duped by the same slower ball from Johnson that set in motion the downfall of Ravi Bopara back in Cardiff.

There was no rafter-raising knock from Andrew Flintoff either.

Given a standing ovation to the crease, he chopped one boundary but was on tenterhooks until, having made only seven, he slashed wildly outside off stump and gave Johnson a second wicket. Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann were able to continue the trend this series of the lower order contributing significant runs, adding 39 for the eighth wicket before Swann edged what proved the last ball of the day to the keeper.

England thus closed at 307 for eight and, with the second new ball in its third over only, the prospect of adding very few more.

England failed to take the full advantage they would have felt they gained having won the toss, although they may feel they have a working total, with 350 challenging.

By lunchtime the footholes had kicked out and by mid afternoon the pacemen were breaking through the surface on occasions. The seam will bite in such conditions. When North came on, he found immediate turn. There are signs of erratic bounce.

So the shame is that England did not feel sufficiently confident to back two spinners, sticking instead to a seam-based attack, with Flintoff back and Steve Harmison retaining his place at the expense of Graham Onions.

The concern is that England do not possess the bowlers with the discipline of their Australian counterparts. The counter-argument is that Australia have no need to chase the game and attrition just uses up time so all out attack might be the best recourse.

As in Cardiff, it will be instructive to watch how Ponting attempts to play here.

Certainly Trott should watch. There were pleasant strokes, too, though, particularly through the covers off Stuart Clark to break the run drought.

He looks good temperamentally, but once again a county technique does not quite stand Test match scrutiny.

A very good player he may well become but there is work to do first.