I'd Be Licking My Lips Bowling to England - McGrath

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For Australia to fight back and claim victory in the opening Ashes Test as decisively as they did, you wonder what scars will be left on the England team.

What are they going to do for the rest of series?

Unexpected Turnaround

I do not think anyone anticipated what happened on the weekend. When you examine the quantity of deliveries required to complete the game, it was Test cricket on accelerated pace.

England were well on top at the midday break on the second day, 105 ahead with most wickets in hand. The pitch was still offering assistance. It looked so tough for Australia to re-enter the match.

Shot Selection Woes

From that moment, 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 catalyst for the recovery.

England's batters were out attempting to strike 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 batsman in Australia.

Adaptation Issues

It demonstrated that England had failed to complete their homework, are not able to adjust or are unwilling to adapt.

There is much discussion about England's method, their attacking philosophy. I witnessed it up close during the recent series in the UK. Under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, they can be quite rigid when it comes to adhering to that method.

It is acceptable on sluggish pitches. On the quick, lively pitches of Australia it is a method full of danger. If England do not reassess, they will struggle for the entire series.

Pacer's Viewpoint

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

I relied on my precision, backing myself to land the identical area on or outside off stump, with a some bounce and nip.

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

Quality and Mental Toughness

There are times when England can be a high-quality team. They have talented individuals. Good players have skill, but exceptional athletes have the psychological strength and attitude to be adaptable enough for the conditions.

They would been shellshocked at the way things unfolded at Perth Stadium, devastated at the way they were defeated. Now we will see what they are capable of. Even as a true blue Australian, I somewhat wants to see them change, just to show they can improve.

Bowling Concerns

It was almost the same with their pace attack. England's attack was excellent on the first evening, then lost direction when they were attacked on the second night.

In the longest format, all disciplines require a backup strategy. Quite often it seems England have a single approach, then nowhere to go if that fails.

'Where has this come from?' - The dismissal as England lose third wicket in quick succession

Brilliant Innings

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

His 69-ball hundred was the second fastest by an Australian man in the historic rivalry, two overs behind the legendary keeper at the Waca 19 years ago – a match I participated in.

My former teammate Gilchrist said the performance was the superior of the two. I agree. Given the difficulty of the wicket and the context of the game situation, Head's knock will go down as a moment of cricket lore.

Strategic Decisions

It was a bold and brave move for Australia to promote Head up the order for the second innings.

The opener has faced criticism for being unable to open in both attempts. He had muscle issues after playing the sport the day before the Test, but I don't think the two were connected.

When the batsman missed out on day one, Australia advanced Marnus Labuschagne and got stuck.

In moving Head, who has the experience of opening in white-ball cricket, Australia were able to go on offensive to England.

Future Considerations

Now there is the issue of what Australia will do for the next match. I'd like to see them continue the approach of attacking play at the beginning.

That could mean Head remains, meaning someone like the all-rounder comes into the middle order, or return to number five and Mitchell Marsh or the keeper could move to the opening. It would be difficult for the batsman, but occasionally you have to do what the opposition would find most challenging.

Series Outlook

After the opening match was controlled by the bowlers, questions arise if the remaining series will be brief, low-run Tests.

The venue is pretty much the quickest, liveliest pitch in the global cricket, so the batters should get a little bit of relief from here onward.

It is not all about the wicket. Recognition has to be given to the pacemen for getting the ball in the correct areas so often. In general, batters on both sides will need to look at how they got themselves out.

Crucial Next Test

Now we progress to the next venue, and the completely distinct day-night conditions for the second Test.

In the historic series, I was a member of the national side that overwhelmed England to achieve 5-0. Ashes series in this country have a tendency of slipping from England rapidly.

At the present, England are just one match down. There would be no coming back from 2-0, which is why Brisbane is such a massive game.

They need to adjust, or the historic urn will be lost again.

Kelly May
Kelly May

Automotive enthusiast and certified mechanic with over a decade of experience in clutch systems and performance tuning.