I'd Be Salivating Facing the English Team - Glenn McGrath

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For Australia to fight back and claim victory in the first Ashes Test so convincingly as they did, you wonder what psychological damage will be inflicted upon the England team.

What are they going to do for the remaining series?

Surprising Comeback

I do not think anyone expected what transpired on Saturday. When you examine the number of overs taken to finish the game, it was Test cricket on accelerated pace.

England were clearly dominant at the midday break on the second day, 105 ahead with nine wickets in hand. The pitch was still offering assistance. It looked so tough for Australia to get back into the match.

Batting Mistakes

From that point, England's choice of strokes was their major downfall. The Australian bowler put in arguably his poorest performance in an national colors in the initial batting, then completely reversed in the subsequent innings to be the driving force for the recovery.

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

Attempting runs off those deliveries, with those strokes, is the precise action you just do not do as a batter in Australia.

Adaptation Issues

It demonstrated that England had not done their preparation, are unable to adapt or are unwilling to adapt.

There is much discussion about England's approach, their aggressive style. I witnessed it firsthand during the recent series in the UK. Under their captain and Brendon McCullum, they can be pretty stubborn when it comes to adhering to that strategy.

It is acceptable on slow, low pitches. On the fast, bouncy pitches of Australia it is a method fraught with danger. If England fail to reconsider, they will struggle for the entire series.

Pacer's Viewpoint

As a bowler, I would have consistently believed in the game against this England team.

I depended on my accuracy, backing myself to hit the same spot on or outside off stump, with a bit of bounce and movement.

Even if this England team was going well, I'd be eagerly anticipating at the idea of bowling to them, knowing one mistake could bring multiple wickets.

Skill and Resilience

There are times when England can be a high-quality team. They have good players. Competent cricketers have ability, but great players have the mental toughness and attitude to be adaptable enough for the conditions.

They would been stunned at the way events developed at Perth Stadium, crushed at the way they were beaten. 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 improve.

Bowling Concerns

It was similar with their pace attack. England's attack was very good on the opening day, then lost direction when they were attacked on the following day.

In Test cricket, all disciplines require a backup strategy. Quite often it feels like England have one method, then nowhere to go if that does not work.

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Brilliant Innings

In defense to England's pace attack, they were hit by one of the great Ashes innings by the Australian batsman.

His 69-ball hundred was the second fastest by an Australian batsman in Ashes cricket, two overs behind the legendary keeper at the Waca previously – a game I played in.

My old mate Gilly said Head's innings was the better of the two. I concur. Given the difficulty of the pitch and the context of the match circumstances, the innings will go down as a moment of cricket lore.

Strategic Decisions

It was a bold and brave move for Australia to elevate Head up the order for the follow-on.

The opener has copped it for being unable to open in either innings. He had back spasms after playing the sport the previous day the Test, but I don't think the two were linked.

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

In moving the aggressive batsman, who has the confidence of starting in limited overs, Australia were able to go on offensive to England.

Upcoming Decisions

Now there is the issue of what Australia will do for the next match. I'd like to see them continue the method of aggression at the top of the order.

That could mean continuation at the top, meaning someone like the all-rounder enters the middle order, or Head could go back to number five and Mitchell Marsh or the keeper could move to the opening. It would be tough on Khawaja, but occasionally you have to do what the rival team would find most uncomfortable.

Tournament Perspective

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

Perth Stadium is pretty much the fastest, bounciest pitch in the world, so the batsmen should get a little bit of respite from here onward.

It is not all about the pitch. Credit has to be given to the pacemen for getting the ball in the correct areas consistently. Overall, batters on each team will need to look at how they got themselves out.

Crucial Next Test

Now we progress to the next venue, and the vastly different twilight conditions for the following match.

In 2006-07, I was a member of the national side that overwhelmed England to win 5-0. The rivalry in this country have a habit of getting away from England quickly.

At the moment, England are only 1-0 down. There would be no coming back from 2-0, which is why the venue is such a massive game.

They need to adjust, or the historic urn will be gone once more.

Valerie Cook
Valerie Cook

Lena Voss is a passionate gamer and tech enthusiast with over a decade of experience in competitive gaming and content creation.