Well the first Ashes Test between Australia and England is done and dusted and it must be said that anyone who thought that it would be a replay of the walkover in England earlier this year was given a rude shock. From the third session on the first day it was difficult to say that England won a single session during the Test Match. With the Second Test just under two weeks away, there is time for the Poms to regroup and regather, but there is no doubt that they are coming up against a hardened Australian unit that will go to Adelaide full of confidence and fire after totally dismantling England in four days- despite the heavens conspiring to stop them. So, what else did we learn about the series from the Gabba Test? Read on...
5. Australia's Bowling Unit Looks The Goods
Australia's bowlers bowled well together during the test matches at the Gabba. Much malarkey is often talked about bowlers needing to work in partnerships and playing their roles as if they were staging a play rather than trying to send batsmen back to the pavilion, but in the case of the Australians during the First Test one could see how each complimented the other. Ryan Harris is the best bowler of the lot- a bustling 135+km/hr who can swing the ball and land it on a good length time after time to ask questions of the batsmen. Peter Siddle is the side's workhorse, always willing to give 100% within the overs when movement could be construed to be nonexistent. His ability to wrangle out a wicket during this period is unquestioned. Mitchell Johnson comes into the side now looking like he has a place as the lethal raw quick who can get batsmen thinking about preservation of body rather than preservation of wicket. And Nathan Lyon, despite Geoffrey Boycott's comments about his abilities, has proven his worth to his national team with fine spells of spin bowling that removed key men at key times. As for England, well their attack looked...flat. Broad was a mercurial force and did everything he could with bat and ball to attempt to keep his side with a hope of salvaging something from the test, but his colleagues with the ball could hardly say similar. Jimmy Anderson has been seen by many as a barometer to England's fortunes and by his standards he had a very ordinary test with little penetration. Graeme Swann- seen as the world's premier off spinner by some was surgically taken apart by David Warner and Michael Clarke in the second innings on a pitch that his counterpart seemed to be delivering hand grenades on at times. And as for Chris Tremlett, England have to decide if he is still a viable third seamer in Australia- where bounce and carry count for more than swing. It would be wrong to put all of the blame on the loss onto the bowlers, however, which leads me to my second point.