CRICKET ASHES TEST SERIES:AS AN autumnal chill descended on the ground and the cacophony from the Hollies stand reached its peak for the day, England began to take control of a game that had seemed destined for a draw once Saturday's play had been sacrificed to the rain gods.
In the first Australian innings, when the cloud rolled over, Jimmy Anderson had made the ball swing and profited. There was filmy cloud only yesterday evening and he was as straight as a Quaker’s path through life. Nor was there any barnstorming from Andrew Flintoff, although his impact had come with the bat earlier.
Instead, as Australia began the task of wiping out a first-innings deficit and batting long enough into today to secure the draw they need so desperately, Graham Onions and Graeme Swann brought proceedings to life. Onions, whose double-wicket opening over on Friday had transformed the match for his side, was greeted uncompromisingly by Shane Watson but held his nerve to slant one away from Simon Katich, who edged to Matt Prior.
It brought to the crease Ricky Ponting, greeted by the boos that will follow him to the end of the tour (twirly-moustached pantomime boos for the most part but impolite to a great batsman playing what must be his last Test innings on this ground). Swann toyed with him briefly and dismissed him, the lbw appeal turned down by Rudi Koertzen, immediately cancelled out by the ball that drew him lunging forward before spinning back through a gate the size of the Brandenburg.
Ponting remained transfixed for a moment before marching off briskly. If the inside edge that ballooned from Mike Hussey’s pad had stayed in the air a fraction longer, Onions would have snared him for a king pair. Hussey survived and by the close was playing with a fluency that belied his form, reaching 18 as he and Watson, 34 not out, advanced the score to 88 for two, 25 adrift of England.
It now needs the cloud to trundle back again this morning, and for the ball to start singing its song again, for England to seal a win that would make them dormie in the series. The prospect though of chasing, say, 150 to win, against the clock, while not to be discarded, could provide some nervy moments. There is some cricket to be played before this match is done. In fact, until England counterpunched in thrilling manner during the afternoon, Australia had seized the initiative. The start was delayed by an hour as early sun helped transform a quagmire into something playable. The ball had swung massively for the Australian bowlers during their warm up though, and continued to do so, for Ben Hilfenhaus in particular, during the early part of the day.
Hilfenhaus has been Australia’s steadiest bowler during this series, and although his lack of or reluctance to use an inswinger as counterpoint to his away swinger, makes him a little predictable, he caused problems, removing first Andrew Strauss for 69, and then Paul Collingwood, taken at second slip as he drove at a wide ball with lunch imminent. When Ian Bell was lbw for 53 to Mitchell Johnson England rather than anticipating a significant lead found themselves 168 for five, still 95 short of Australia and in some trouble.
Beware the wounded beast. Never was the great Gordon Greenidge more dangerous than when he began to limp. Flintoff now is hobbling arthritically at the crease but he put bat firmly to ball yesterday, surviving the remnants of Johnson’s spell, clambering into a brief dose of muscle-bound dross from Watson and belting Nathan Hauritz. Together he and Prior added 89 in 15 overs, before Prior mistimed a pull to mid on.
By now though England had closed in on Australia, a six from Flintoff over wide long on bringing the scores level and a boundary that took him to his half century giving them the lead. With noses in front, Flintoff and Stuart Broad added 52 for the seventh wicket before Flintoff, unluckily, saw an off-spinner from Hauritz spit out of the rough, take his gloves as he offered no stroke, and rebound to slip. His 74, though, had come from 79 balls with 10 fours.
Yet more runs came now from Broad and Swann, the eighth wicket producing 39, with Johnson, from his first ball delivered from round the wicket, snaring Swann at cover for 24. Peter Siddle ended Broad’s knock but not before he had reached 55. The lead of 113 was riches compared with how it might have been. Of such vigour had the riposte been the last five wickets produced 208 runs from 35 overs. With the second new ball Johnson had sent down four overs for 32 runs, and still has work to do.
Edgbaston Scoreboard
Australia: first innings
S Watson lbw b Onions 62
S Katich lbw b Swann 46
R Ponting c Prior b Onions38
M Hussey b Onions 0
M Clarke lbw b Anderson 29
M North c Prior b Anderson 12
G Manou b Anderson 8
M Johnson lbw b Anderson 0
N Hauritz not out 20
P Siddle c Prior b Anderson 13
B Hilfenhaus c Swann b Onions 20
Extras: (b-5, lb-7, w-2, nb-1) 15
Total: (all out; 70.4 overs) 263
Fall of wickets: 1-85, 2-126, 3-126, 4-163, 5-193, 6-202, 7-202, 8-203, 9-229, 10-263.
Bowling: Anderson 24-7-80-5, Flintoff 15-2-58-0 (1nb, 1w), Onions 16.4-2-58-4 (1w), Broad 13-2-51-0, Swann 2-0-4-1.
England: first innings (overnight 116-2)
A Strauss c Manou b Hilfenhaus 69
A Cook c Manou b Siddle 0
R Bopara b Hilfenhaus 23
IBell lbw b Johnson 53
P Collingwood c Ponting b Hilfenhaus 13
M Prior c PJ Hughes b Siddle 41
A Flintoff c Clarke b Hauritz 74
S Broad c and b Siddle 55
G Swann c North b Johnson 24
J Anderson c Manou b Hilfenhaus 1
G Onions not out 2
Extras: (lb-4, nb-9, w-6, b-2) 21
Total: (all out; 93.3 overs) 376
Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-60, 3-141, 4-159, 5-168, 6-257, 7-309, 8-348, 9-355.
Bowling: Hilfenhaus 30-7-109-4 (4nb); Siddle 21.3-3-89-3 (1w); Hauritz 18-2-57-1; Johnson 21-1-92-2 (5nb, 1w); Watson 3-0-23-0.
Australia: second innings
S Watson not out 34
S Katich c Prior b Onions 26
R Ponting b Swann 5
MHussey not out 18
Extras: (b-4, nb-1) 5
Total: (two wickets; 28 overs) 88
Fall of wickets: 1-47,2-52
To bat: M. Clarke, M. North, G. Manou, M. Johnson, N. Hauritz, P. Siddle, B. Hilfenhaus
Bowling (to date): Anderson 8-4-19-0 (1nb); Flintoff 4-0-11-0; Onions 7-2-30-1; Swann 9-2-24-1.
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