Disadvantage England

Headingley. Fourth Ashes Test - day one.

Preview

Every so often there is a day in your life when you have to earn your money - and that was true for everyone in the England management team this morning.

They had a tricky decision when they knew Andrew Flintoff was out but just as they were pencilling in Steve Harmison's name they looked up and saw Matt Prior down in a heap with a back spasm.

Half an hour later they had patched up Prior so that on the surface the only change was Harmison for Flintoff. Our selectors like unchanged teams because it worked so well in and around 2005 and if you have no changes as a policy life becomes a lot simpler.

The Aussies chose Stuart Clarke for Nathan Hauritz - a more debatable change because sometimes you need a spinner at Leeds - and when Strauss won the toss it looked as if it was advantage England before a ball had been bowled.

To lunch

Quickly followed by disadvantage England. I reckon it was all down to Strauss, although he was hardly to blame.

Even when he was winning the toss he looked distracted - by injuries, team changes, interviews - which all tested his ability to deal with the extra load that goes with captaincy. Had he the spare capacity? It looks as if the answer was no. Someone should have taken more of the load. But who? Young Alistair Cook? He's not ready for such responsibility - yet.

Strauss should have been lbw first ball and was out - still looking distracted - to at 11. Ravi Bopara fell at 15, Ian Bell at 39, Paul Collingwood for nought, Cook, who had survived neatly to that point, at 63 and Stuart Broad, last ball before lunch at 72-6.

The ball moved every which way and Clark took the last three wickets with Yorkshire-tight intelligent medium pace.

It was Ashes-winning cricket, taut, expert, planned and well directed and for once the cliche about it being a good toss to lose was right on target.

To tea
In two thirds of a day England had thrown away all the courage they showed in the last few overs at Cardiff, their victory at Lord's and their enterprise at Edgbaston. The Spirit of Flintoff was conspicuously absent.

The last four wickets added only another ten runs and Jimmy Anderson, going for a single that continued his record of never making a Test duck, strained a thigh muscle and proceeded to bowl wildly. Prior cannot be blamed. What could be do more?

Australia, having bowled England out for 102 in 33,5 overs, then rushed to 69-1 in 15overs; Ricky Ponting, heartily booed all the way to the wicket when Simon Katich fell victim to Steve Harmison, played a festival innings and Shane Watson looked like a cross between Desmond Haynes and Herbert Sutcliffe.

All the lessons of Headingley - don't bowl short, lure the batsmen forward, let the pitch provide the devil - were forgotten. Faces fell, the crowd went quiet, even the Barmy Army could not raise a tune.

Their trumpeter has been "encouraged" not to attend the match as if he might be a 1930s Black Shirt seen heading for the East End. It has been a sad, sad day and I wonder if there is a voice left in the game to bring a revival from an England side that looks defeated already.

To close

Greg here

Ted has thrown the toys out of the pram and gone off to weep into his silk handkerchief just like Poms do when life goes wrong. "You take over and tell how your thieving mates steal this match," he says and promptly turns off his mobile.

Rest of the day is quite simple. Oz reach 196-4, Broad gets two jammy lbws and Onions one that is a bit closer but Michael Clarke and Marcus North bat out time. Clarke is full of runs although Harmison hits him on the helmet and seems to have him caught off his wrist band but 94 ahead at the end of the first day and Aussie are bound to win and keep the Ashes with a draw at the Oval.

Draw at the Oval . . . remind you of four years ago? I'll laugh so much I'll buy my own ale if that happens. I'm thinking of making a return trip so you'll all be able to buy me a beer on the last day. I'll be wearing an Aussie flag - just so you don't go getting in rounds for the wrong guys. In the meantime I will accept warm notes of congratulation by email so get typing, you miserable Poms.