Ashes: The second Test (continued)

The previous post was getting stretched out a tad too much, so decided to start off afresh. "Start afresh". That is what both England and Australia should be thinking to do in the next Test. This one hasn't been worthy of being called a Test match. It is more like an elongated ODI! Events have been unfolding at a breakneck speed throughout the game. The run-rate has been above 4 throughout the 3 days of play we have seen so far. And keeping up with the run-rate, wickets too have falling like nine-pins regularly. Other than Langer in the first innings, there hasn't been a single batsman who has shown application to stick out their in the middle.

Atleast in the second innings now, one would have expected the Aussie batsmen to put their heads down and plod their way to victory after Warne and Lee handed the advantage back to them this morning (though Freddie pulled it back a bit with this assualt). After all, they had 7 sessions to complete the job. But, no! How could they not keep up with the run-rate of 4, that seems to the par for this match?! The Aussie batsmen are freely going for their strokes determined to not let the English bowlers dominate. On their part, the England bowlers aren't doing a terrific job as such. Other than Flintoff's first over (which was just out of this world!), the rest of the bowling has been pretty ordinary. They seem to be having a tough time controlling their line and length with the ecstatic crowd pumping up their adrenaline. But, it certainly does not look like they have to worry about the Aussies putting together a long partnership given the way they are batting. Just consider the two other dismissals (I mean other than the two in Flintoff's first over):
1. Matthew Hayden - After all the talk before this test began, that he needed to play in the V, rather than square (supposedly one of the openers in the Aussies' 1930s Invincibles gave him this advice), he got out trying to drive through cover. With Simon Jones slanting the ball across the left hander, clearly the odds of the ball taking the edge are pretty high ... unless Hayden had been on top of his game, which he is not! To Vaughan's credit, he had a second slip instead of first slip and Trescothick gleefully dived across to his left to grab the chance.
2. Damien Martyn - Did his girlfriend ditch him just before the match? Or, is he coming in to bat doped? Looking at both of his dismissals in this test, just one word comes to mind - LAZY! In the first innings Vaughan caught him ambling across and this time round, he just lazily tapped the ball across to midwicket off the first ball of Hoggard's new spell. In fact, Michael Holding was wondering why the hell Vaughan had such a defensive field. There was just one catcher at slip, everyone else was saving a single as though it was an ODI. But, Martyn decided he's had enough out there and played a LAZY flick off this pads to pick out Bell at midwicket.

Anyway, inspite of all this, Clarke, Katich and Gilchrist might just guide the Aussies home. But, so far, the world champions have sucked throughout this Test!

Cheers,
Harsha