Stranglehold

Lord's. Second Ashes Test - day three

Preview

Remember what Michael Vaughan said just before he retired. Someone should remind James Anderson what the effect would be - for him as well as the team - if he took 30-plus wickets in this series. He should make big inroads into that total in the next 48 hours which will mean England have made considerable strides towards winning back the Ashes.

I will remind what I said: that Australia were, like the 1985 squad, not as good as everyone thought and that England would win by going from strength to strength.

I also like the idea of an Andy - Flintoff, Strauss, Flower and now Anderson - playing a major part. Lets see.

To lunch

England found a dry, batsman's pitch and needed an hour to get the last two wickets -to Graham Onions - while Australia took advantage of the absence of a third man to add 54 runs.

Naturally Andrew Strauss decided not to enforce the follow-on and, with Mitchell Johnson bowling in a way that gave drains a bad name, 57 were added without loss and or difficulty. Half way through the match England had the game in their hands although second innings wickets may be a problem.

Johnson took his 100th Test wicket in the first innings as he ceded a run a ball but there must be serious doubts about his place on the tour. He seemed to be a real find right up to his arrival in this country. Now Ricky Ponting must wonder to get rid of this wayward paceman.

To tea

Strauss and Cook went in successive overs from Nathan Hauritz soon after lunch and Ravi Copara and Kevin Pietersen batted so slowly that both appeared to be totally out of form. Ponting missed the stumps when trying to run out Pietersen and four balls later dropped Bopara.

Then, in the final over of the session, a low catch to Hauritz off the struggling Johnson was turned down. England were so far on top, 350 in front with eight wickets left, that they did not want to give Australia too much time in the fourth innings unless they dreamed of winning.

Ponting was operating on such limited bowling resources that he had to go back to Johnson for all the left arm swing bowler looked as if he was a nervous debutant rather than a top-class wicket-taker.

To close

Matt Prior, Paul Collingwood - already a candidate for man of the series - and Andrew Flintoff all followed the lead set by Pietersen and Bopara so that at the end England were 311-6, with a lead of 521 and the only concerns about the weather and the perfect time to declare.

There was no point in closing the innings tonight as rain approached - and eventually stopped play - and now Strauss has to decide if he bats on in the morning or decides he has enough.

No side has come close to winning with 521 in the fourth innings of a Test but it is easy to understand a caution. An Australian side scored 404-4 to beat England at Headingley n 1948 and no-one in this country at that time could see anything but an England victory.

Records are made to be broken, Strauss will think tonight, and he is right. So a few more minutes batting and a few more runs and an awkward declaration are on the cards.