GUTSY ENGLAND RIDE THE STORM
THE ASHES Raw, brutal cricket as Malan takes blows to breathe life into series
There was nothing corrupt here. No need to worry about the dark forces supposedly trying to fix this third Test. This was compelling, often brutal, sometimes controversial, but always brilliant Ashes cricket in the raw.
The first day of a match england simply must win was a throwback to how it used to be at this famous, edgy old WACA ground that is about to give way to a very modern but soulless stadium across the Swan river.
There were proper Australian fast bowlers operating at more than 90mph on a quick, bouncy pitch against gutsy english batsmen who rode the storm and wore the blows inflicted on them.
There was uncertainty over the totally modern, unsatisfactory dismissal of Mark Stoneman after he had somehow come through the most testing and physical examination of his career. But, above all, there was Dawid Malan breathing life into england’s Ashes hopes with a maiden Test century after they had come close to rock bottom in losing the first two Tests and embarrassing themselves off the field.
Malan’s mother Janet and father Dawid snr were in the crowd and the 30-year-old said: ‘It was so emotional. I almost started crying. To do it in front of them — the sacrifices my old man and mother have made along the way — felt like repaying them. When you are out there, it doesn’t feel enjoyable, but it’s great fun to get through those situations.’
What a day’s Test cricket this was and what an antidote to the ugly and depressing claims that Indian bookmakers had targeted this Test for the illegal practices that still pose such a threat to the health of the game.
Mercifully, there seems no substance to those allegations in
The Sun, with the International Cricket Council’s anti-corruption unit and both boards seemingly confident none of their players or officials are implicated.
That knowledge left a packed house to enjoy the last Ashes Test at a unique venue that may be out of date and ripe for replacement but which can still produce the most dramatic and entertaining cricket. The WACA represented the last-chance saloon for england and for a while it looked as though they would end up as muddled and fuzzy-headed as when ten of them ventured out to The Avenue Bar here late last Thursday.
But, after Stoneman’s departure had left england in danger of wasting yet another winning toss, along came Malan and Jonny Bairstow to produce the best english batting of this sorry tour.
england began day two on 305 for four and with a golden opportunity to put Australia under pressure. They have set up that position again without a meaningful contribution from captain Joe root or from former skipper Alastair Cook — who is now enduring a very real threat to his Test future.
What Cook would have given for a century of his own to mark his 150th Test appearance but instead he had no answer to a 92mph full-pitched delivery from Mitchell Starc and was palpably lbw. he is now without even a half-century in his last nine innings.
root was england’s best hope, but after James Vince had again flirted fatally outside off-stump just before lunch, the england captain was ‘strangled’ down the leg side by Pat Cummins. Forget bad luck. It was a poor shot.
It was then that Australia realised this was not the slower ‘road’ of a pitch that we had been promised but instead close to a vintage WACA surface that enabled them to exploit the extra pace at their disposal.
What followed was a fullblooded, extraordinary assault on Stoneman that was both utterly riveting, but also difficult to watch, before it was ended by the latest confusing intervention of the Decision review System.
First Stoneman was badly dropped by the returning Mitchell Marsh off Josh hazlewood, who followed it up by inflicting a sickening blow to the side of the Surrey opener’s face. Then Stoneman, who had earlier seen his bat handle broken by Starc, was hit again, and almost fended off another short ball to a diving Nathan Lyon, before Australia went up for a brilliant one-handed caught behind by Tim Paine.
Umpire Marais erasmus said no, but when Steve Smith referred, TV official Aleem Dar overturned the decision on the flimsiest of evidence, with Stoneman’s bottom hand clearly off the handle. It was a crass decision by Dar even if Michael Vaughan and Graeme Swann said later TV replays on BT suggested Stoneman was out.
On the pictures Dar saw there was no conclusive evidence to overturn and root had every right to express his anger alongside assistant coach Paul Collingwood in the dressing room.
Australia looked certain to blow england’s house down but in came Malan, who up to now has looked gutsy but limited against the very best bowling. Now he was superb in company with Bairstow, rightfully restored to No 6.
The Middlesex man would have been run out on 32 had David Warner hit the stumps with a direct hit and was then dropped at third slip by Cameron Bancroft on 92 off the very first delivery with the second new ball. But only england’s second individual century in Australia since the fabled 2010-11 series came when Malan pulled hazlewood for four.
Malan, who has now arrived at the highest level at the age of 30, remained unbeaten on 110 overnight and had added 174 with Bairstow, who passed 3,000 runs in Test cricket on his way to an unbeaten 75.
Truly superb cricket and a day that left england very much in the contest on a ground where they have only ever won once.