Winning score?

The Oval. Fifth Ashes Test - first day

Preview

At least we know the selectors have not had a brainstorm overnight. Flintoff, Swann, Harmison, Broad and Anderson are the bowlers; enough to give Strauss a choice. No Panesar to give Strauss a headache; Trott at No.5. Heaven help his poor delicate debutant soul when he first arrives at the wicket even if there are words around the county circuit which describe him in terms far from complimentary. I feel he is a mistake. Aussies unchanged, without a spinner

England win the toss, given the chance to strangle the life out of Oz and use the wasting pitch at the end. I just wish there was evidence of imagination, daring or anyone who is fully fit and able to turn the match on its head. Rashid must wonder when someone will show faith in him.

To lunch

In the words of the old song: "Who could ask for anything more?"

True, England lost Alastair Cook for ten, but even at that point Andrew Strauss looked as if he had set his mind on a century. Ian Bell was peppered by Mitchell Johnson, looked uncomfortable, but survived without giving a chance. What is a No.3 supposed to do when an opener has gone early? Keep his wicket intact, that's what.

By the interval Strauss has reached fifty and Bell had made 41 off 55 balls. Grumpy voices in the television commentary box could be heard muttering that Bell was far from solid but I liked the score - 108-1 in 27 overs - and the style. As for the Aussies they must have looked at the footmarks on the pitch and wondered if there was some way they could get Nathan Nauritz into play.

A plea for ideas from Harlequins might provide an answer.

To tea

The ball is going through the top, it looks as if the Australians have picked the wrong side and all England have to do is to bat.

So, Strauss is out ten minutes after lunch, Paul Collingwood struggles for 90 minutes before being caught in the gully and, well you know Bell, he does not tear up trees even when he is 150.

He just bats to the interval when England are 170-3 and not as far on top as they would like to be although this Test may be low-scoring. The Aussies bowled two sessions of 27 overs each so that it begins to look like a defensive plan.

Jonathon Trott is not impressive and it takes him 12 balls to get off the mark. Just batting now seems to be the only option.

To close

After half an hour's overtime - 85.3 overs - England were 307-8, their middle order having let them down again and scored just 91 for the lose of five wickets. Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann pushed the score beyond 300 in an eighth wicket stand that mixed common sense and bold strokes. It might even be a winning score.

The pitch deserved the term "sporting" if that means turn, lift, bounce and a broken surface on day one. Australia had no bowlers to exploit this mess and England must be favourites for one of the worst Test pitches in years must wear further.

Trott made 42 of those 91 middle order runs but unless he suffers excessively from nerves his innings did not define a Test star of the future. It may be enough for a famous victory.