🔗 Share this article

• Published
  9 minutes ago
• 4 Comments

The Australian team to bounce back and win the first Ashes Test so convincingly as they did, one questions what psychological damage will be left on the England team.

What are they going to do for the remaining series?

Unexpected Turnaround

I believe no one expected what happened on Saturday. When you examine the quantity of deliveries required to complete the game, it was Test cricket on accelerated pace.

England were well on top at lunch on the second day, 105 ahead with most wickets in hand. The pitch was still offering assistance. It looked so tough for Australia to get back into the match.

Shot Selection Woes

From that point, England's choice of strokes was their major downfall. Scott Boland put in arguably his poorest performance in an national colors in the first innings, then completely reversed in the second to be the driving force for the recovery.

England's batsmen were out trying to hit balls wide of off-stump, in the air, through the covers.

Attempting runs off those bowls, with those strokes, is the one thing you just should avoid as a batter in Australia.

Adjustment Problems

It demonstrated that England had not done their homework, are unable to adjust or are reluctant to adapt.

There is much discussion about England's approach, their attacking philosophy. I witnessed it up close during the 2023 Ashes in the UK. Under Ben Stokes and their coach, they can be quite rigid when it comes to adhering to that method.

It is fine on slow, low pitches. On the fast, bouncy pitches of Australia it is a method fraught with danger. If England do not reassess, they will struggle for the entire series.

Bowling Perspective

As a paceman, I would have always felt in the contest against this England team.

I depended on my accuracy, having confidence to land the identical area around off stump, with a bit of bounce and nip.

Even if this England team was going well, I'd be licking my lips at the prospect of facing them, aware a single error could result in three or four wickets.

Skill and Resilience

There are occasions when England can be a high-quality team. They have talented individuals. Competent cricketers have ability, but great players have the mental toughness and mindset to be flexible enough for the situation.

They would been shellshocked at the way events developed at the venue, devastated at the way they were defeated. Now we will see what they are made of. Even as a true blue Australian, I somewhat wants to see them change, just to show they can get better.

Pace Attack Issues

It was similar with their bowling. England's bowling unit was excellent on the opening day, then lost the plot when they were attacked on the second night.

In Test cricket, all disciplines require a Plan B. Quite often it seems England have one method, then no alternatives if that fails.

'Where has this come from?' - The dismissal as England lose third wicket in quick succession

Head's Masterclass

In fairness to England's bowlers, they were confronted with one of the memorable Ashes innings by the Australian batsman.

His century off 69 deliveries was the second fastest by an Australian man in Ashes cricket, 12 balls behind the legendary keeper at the Waca previously – a match I played in.

My former teammate Gilchrist said Head's innings was the superior of the two. I concur. Given the difficulty of the wicket and the situation of the game circumstances, Head's knock will be remembered as a moment of cricket lore.

Strategic Decisions

It was a courageous move for Australia to promote the batsman up the order for the follow-on.

Usman Khawaja has faced criticism for being unable to open in both attempts. He had muscle issues after playing golf the day before the Test, but I do not believe the two were connected.

When the batsman missed out on day one, Australia advanced their number three and got stuck.

In moving Head, who has the confidence of starting in limited overs, Australia were able to take the attack to England.

Upcoming Decisions

Now there is the question of what Australia will do for the second Test. I'd like to see them stick with the approach of aggression at the beginning.

That could mean continuation at the top, meaning someone like Beau Webster enters the middle order, or return to number five and Mitchell Marsh or Josh Inglis could go to the top. It would be difficult for Khawaja, but occasionally you have to do what the opposition would find most challenging.

Series Outlook

After the opening match was controlled by the bowlers, some are wondering if the remaining series will be short, low-scoring Tests.

Perth Stadium is pretty much the quickest, liveliest pitch in the global cricket, so the batters should get a little bit of relief from now on.

It is not entirely about the wicket. Credit has to be awarded to the pacemen for delivering the ball in the correct areas consistently. In general, batsmen on each team will need to analyze how they got themselves out.

Pivotal Match

Now we move on to Brisbane, and the vastly different day-night conditions for the following match.

In the historic series, I was part of the Australia team that overwhelmed England to achieve 5-0. Ashes series in this nation have a tendency of slipping from England quickly.

At the moment, England are only 1-0 down. There would be no coming back from two down, which is why Brisbane is such a massive game.

They must adapt, or the historic urn will be gone once more.