Attacking the spinner and being positive will benefit England
Itake so many positives from the opening Test in Brisbane, despite there also being a few negatives. But England looked strong and in control of their game for the best part of three-and-a-half days and there is plenty for the guys to work with.
For me, it was a Test match of missed chances where England failed to cash in fully when they edged in front.
James Vince had the Aussies bowlers on toast during his 83, looking as assured as any Ashes debutant I have seen. He just seemed to have so much more time than anyone else and while it was a slow pitch, he had the measure of the quicks.
That he was run out was very frustrating; he should have gone on to make a big hundred to set the game up for England. First chance missed.
Then Moeen and Dawid Malan batted beautifully on the second morning to see off the new ball. They just didn’t look in any trouble and looked to be taking advantage of the slow surface.
At 244-4, even though it wasn’t easy, they should have been eyeing a score of 400 plus – a position where you rarely lose from – and sitting in against the quicks who were dropping it short, trying to entice them into the hook.
When Malan fell into the trap, it exposed the tail and England were all out before lunch some 100 runs short of where they should have been. Second chance missed.
And after reducing the Australians to 77-4, we then had half an eye on opening the tail up. Shaun Marsh batted well but England lacked variety. They still had Australia on the floor at 200-7 and 94 runs behind, but the bowling lacked discipline against Steve Smith – who played an innings for the ages – and Pat Cummins.
England say Jimmy Anderson was fine to bowl, so why didn’t he bowl more at
Jonny Bairstow coming in at seven is farcical. I don’t get the logic. He is wasted there, six is the lowest he can bat
this crucial stage? The Australians chalked off the deficit and edged in front. Final chance missed, and the Test was gone from here. But like I say, there are positives… Australia’s house isn’t really in the best order. Cameron Bancroft and David Warner looked in good touch chasing down that modest total of 170, but the match situation had changed dramatically and the pressure valve was released.
There are areas to exploit; Peter Handscomb looks a good shout for the full ball while Tim Paine, who kept very tidily I might add, will need to chip in with runs at seven. He can’t be there just to hang around. Meanwhile, Usman Khawaja looks a walking wicket to the spinner.
There are two things England must address. Firstly, they simply cannot allow Nathan Lyon to bowl as well as he did in Brisbane. Lyon is a fine bowler, but like any off-spinner, if you give him room to settle he then becomes both a run-drier and also a wicket threat. I am not suggesting a gung-ho approach, but you need to smother the spin. I think it looked more threatening than it was.
Then we have to look at the batting. The position of Jonny Bairstow coming in at seven in Brisbane was pretty farcical and I just don’t get the logic. You could argue he is our best batsman along with Joe Root. He is wasted at seven and there is even an argument to get him in earlier – although I don’t think that will happen. But six is the lowest spot he can bat.