Day by day analysis: Where a thrilling Ashes series opener was won and lost
There are questions to be asked of England’s decision-making in the first Test. SIMON WILDE examines the calls and moments that saw Australia prevail in an Edgbaston epic.
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Inevitably there will be questions about England’s decision-making during this remarkable Test.
The selection of Moeen Ali always looked a gamble and in the final analysis it did not pay off. He took three wickets compared with Nathan Lyon’s eight, and that he ripped his spinning finger after so long out of Test cricket surprised no one. Nor really was it unexpected that Jonny Bairstow made some of the errors he did behind the stumps after spending many months on the sidelines.
If England really wanted a pitch like this then they might have reconsidered their selection: it largely neutered James Anderson, and with hindsight Mark Wood would have been a better option; he could have bounced the Australian tail on the final afternoon. The captain, Ben Stokes, said he expected to be fit to bowl some big spells but fell well short of filling the role of fourth seamer.
But what will live longer in the memory is the quality of this contest – a topsy-turvy epic that advertised so much that is good about the Test format and did not finish until 7.22pm on the final day.
England, of course, repeatedly insist that they are not a results-based team. Before the final day began, Anderson said: “We’ve been asked to entertain people and we’ve done that for four days. If we don’t get the win, so be it.” Afterwards Stokes said: “If that’s not attracting people to this game we love and have committed so much of our time towards, I don’t know what will.”
It is also indisputable that across the five days there were numerous incidents that could have sent the game off in a different direction and eventually led to a different outcome.
Day one: Eng 393-8 dec, Aus 14-0
England scored at more than five runs an over despite Australia being defensive from the start. Had Pat Cummins, the Australia captain, set more attacking fields, England might not have had such a comfortable ride before lunch, when they took a record 54 singles. Crawley, 40 runs into his 61, feathered a catch to the wicketkeeper, but the Australians did not appeal. Harry Brook was going well when he was bowled in freakish fashion by a Nathan Lyon ball that popped up off his thigh pad before bouncing into his stumps. Stokes’s declaration 25 minutes from the close took everyone by surprise; it was a ploy to rattle Australia’s openers, but David Warner and Usman Khawaja survived a jittery passage of play. It was Stokes’s most controversial decision of the match as Joe Root was still in and batting brilliantly on 118.
Day two: Aus 311-5
England did well to remove Warner, Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith cheaply but were held up by Khawaja, with an unbeaten 126, who shared good stands with Travis Head, Cameron Green and Alex Carey. But Khawaja was bowled by a Stuart Broad no-ball on 112, while Green ought to have been stumped by Bairstow before he had scored; he went on to make 38. Bairstow also dropped Carey on 26 and, when on 46, Carey narrowly escaped a half-chance that dissected keeper and slip. Khawaja drew some criticism for not being more proactive and sharper between the wickets, both in this innings and on the final day.
Day three: Aus 386, Eng 28-2
Rain meant only 32.1 overs on this middle day but there was still plenty of drama and what-ifs. Anderson bowled Carey for what proved to be his only wicket of the game, and Stokes and Ollie Robinson conspired to set an umbrella field to lure Khawaja into a false shot. Robinson and Stuart Broad then combined to blow away the tail with short balls. England’s small lead was being smoothly built on by Crawley and Ben Duckett when the weather halted play for 75 minutes. When it resumed the skies were dark and the floodlights on; it was a completely different game, Australia went into attack mode and the England openers soon perished. Root narrowly survived before the abandonment; had he gone, Australia might have won the game earlier than they did.
Day four: Eng 273, Aus 107-3
England had a good day overall, their batting kickstarted by a stunning opening from Root who unleashed a string of scoops and ramps. However, while Root, Brook and Bairstow all made forties, they gave their wickets away when, with a little more care, they could have made sure Australia’s target topped 310. Root was stumped for the first time in his Test career attempting a shot that is not really in his repertoire. The forecast of rain on the fifth morning may have confused the issue of how many runs they needed. England took a huge stride forward by again removing Warner, Labuschagne and Smith fairly quickly, but Khawaja blocked their path once more.
Day five: Aus 282-8 to win by two wickets
Australia refused to chase the game, creeping towards their target at a painstaking tempo, so slowly that the second new ball came into play – only to then pounce after the final drinks break. England desperately needed a fully fit Ali and had to give more overs to Root to compensate. Root bowled so well that England delayed taking the new ball: it looked like a masterstroke when Root promptly removed Carey, less so when – directly after drinks – Cummins clubbed 16 from his next over. Stokes then dropped a difficult chance from Lyon when he had scored two and 37 were still needed. Australia’s late aggression after four and a half days on the back foot left England without answers. Afterwards Ricky Ponting asked: “Is England’s style of play going to hold up in an Ashes series?” Nice try Ricky. You’ve clearly not being reading the script.
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