My picks of the fifth and final day:
Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott broke record after record on the fifth and final day at the Gabba. England declared 517-1, 296 ahead, and took a wicket before tea to make the hosts more than nervous, but in the end Australia survived the last session without losing any further wickets, turning the obvious prediction of the morning into the result at the end of the day and leaving honours and spoils even after the first Test.
Run of Play: Advantage to...
1st session, England 439-1, 218 ahead at lunch: England in dreamland with all top three batsmen scoring centuries for the first time since 1924. Superb morning for batting, Australia would rather forget about it, hardly any fans in the ground apart from a happy, dancing, singing and dancing English bunch.
2nd session, England declared on 517-1, 296 ahead, Australia 11-1 at tea: All records and eyes are on England. Stuart Broad gets the early breakthrough and first wicket of the day - can they do the impossible and get Australia all out in the last innings of the day and match? As we have learnt from this match, nothing is impossible...
3rd session, Australia 107-1, 189 behind, match drawn at the end of the fifth and final day: England could not do the impossible and grab a win in the end, but a draw is still a result-and-a-half for the guests, especially in what fashion and after the first disastrous couple of days! Record breaking match from both sides, draw it is, bring on Adelaide.
Partnerships:
Bowling: It was more the fielders that let down their sides most with drops all over the place. First Clarke missed a sitter at slip by Trott off Watson, his second drop v Trott (on 34 and 75), then the third umpire reckoned Cook's shot didn't carry to Ponting at mid-wicket who was not happy with the decision as he thought he had gotten his fingers underneath; and to make things from bad to worse the skipper misses a sitter in the slips a couple of overs later, Cook the lucky one again. England didn't go without a drop either - Cook, of all fielders, the one you can always count on, top-catcher, dropping Watson. We will never know if any of those misses would turned the match around again. But, I think we had enough twists and turns for one match, in record-breaking fashion. I can't wait until Thursday night, when the second Test kicks off for us here in the UK...
Ups: There were hardly any Australian fans left - it was a game of spot the Aussie in the crowd on the last day, with the England fans taking over. The little in numbers they were, the louder and more encouraging they were for their team, the 12th man alright on this day. And they were rewarded alright for all their effort.
Downs: As mentioned yesterday, after seeing both sides playing their hearts out, it was a shame to see no result out of all the action and drama and records and blunders and wonders. It is definitely a promising indication of what's to come though and a brilliant promotion for the game and tournament.
Hero to zero: Australia somehow lost the plot. At the end of day three you thought the match was the Aussies oyster and it would give them the best start to this Ashes tournament they could have wished for. But, how do they say, every game has two halves, every match has two innings and England will have thanked god for that in this match. The second innings turned the match around, turning England from zeroes to heroes, and the Aussies... Well, you get the gist...
Australia v England first Test day five as it happened
1st session:
- 152 off 271 partnership and 150 off 302 for Alastair Cook, his third 150, England with a solid start to the morning v Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle, 340-1, 119 ahead, Jonathan Trott on 66 off 146.
- Mitchell Johnson on for Australia, looking to find some kind of form. Trott dropped at first slip on 75 off Johnson, straight to Clarke and straight out of his hands, England 365-1 at the end of that over, 144 ahead. Blank Aussie faces, Trott was walking, completing about three steps thinking that was the end of his innings for sure. Trott dropped by Clarke on 34 and 75.
- 17 overs, 61 runs, 0 wickets so far this morning, England 370-1, 149 ahead. Xavier Doherty on for Australia.
- 150 lead comes up for England next delivery. Shane Watson v Cook at the other end.
- 191 partnership highest for England v Australia, Cook's career best on 175, record after record after record for England, 379-1, 158 ahead at the end of that over. 20 overs, 78 runs from it.
- Next ball: 200 partnership off 333 balls, Cook contributing 104 off 157 from his total of 176 off 333 and Trott 83 off 176.
- Boundary after boundary for England, including a sweet 6 for Cook and 8 byes by Doherty, 400 comes up for England, 402-1, 181 ahead, 214 off 344 partnership, healthy run rate of 4.2 so far this morning.
- Highest successful run chase so far at Brisbane has been 236 for Australia...
- Marcus North comes into attack v Trott. Boundary brings up 200 lead for England.
- Btw: It's the first time ever there's no English nor Australian batsman in the ICC top 10, Trott the highest England player on 12th... Surely that will change after this Test's records?!
- More records tumbling... Cook on 199, his highest ever score. Trott on 93.
- Cook hesitant but gets single to give him his maiden double-century from 361 balls in 537 minutes, only the second to do so in Australia since WWII, Paul Collingwood the other in 2006. England 434-1, 213 ahead, 246 partnership, last over before lunch.
- Cook on 201, Trott on strike on 95. Trott v Doherty: 2 0 0 0 3 and a century for Trott before lunch, his fourth century, second v Australia, the celebrations show how much it means to him, 100 off 213.
- 0 off the last ball, 251 partnership, England go to lunch 218 ahead at 439-1 off 133 overs, all top three batsmen with centuries for the first time since 1924. Superb morning for batting, Australia would rather forget about it, hardly any fans in the ground apart from a happy, dancing, singing and dancing English bunch. See how far England can and will want to take it until they declare, if they declare, and if they can scare Australia out of a draw and into defeat. I would think and feel to just smash it in after lunch, treat it like a ODI or 20twenty and see how far the total can go before getting the Aussies in flapping... Just my idea... But I'm not at the crease... And better for it I think! :-P A happy lunch-nap for me... :-D
2nd session:
- Last time all top three England batsmen got centuries was 1924, Hobbs, Sutcliffe and Woolley, Hendren adding his half century.
- Ponting catch, but has it carried? It's sent to the third umpire Tony Hill, no great celebration, given not out, Cook survives on 209, England 457-1. Not sure whether it bounced or the skipper got his fingers underneath, no celebration, I think that's what let the Aussies down, no reaction by anyone, weariness, no appeal whatsoever, whether it's because of the scoreboard or because they had doubts about the catch and whether it's carried is for them to know, but the umpires weren't impressed, that's for sure, so not out stands eventhough and even if Ponting has his objections.
- Cook boundary brings up 250 partnership.
- Appeal for lbw next ball not given, Australia with no reviews left, boundary next ball to add salt onto the wound - replays show it was marginally outside the line but hit the stumps, umpire's call would have stood anyway.
- Aaaaand another drop for Ponting at first slip on the off-side!
- Trott smashes the next ball down the pitch for four, the salt-on-wound trend continues, the England batsmen anihilating the Aussie bowlers.
- Single brings up 300 partnership off 479, England 494-1, 273 lead end of that (146th) over.
- A boundary smashed in by Cook and more byes conceded by Australia bring up the record partnership, highest at the ground, breaking Haddin and Hussey's record that was set a just a couple of days ago and brings up England's half-millennium, 503-1 end of that over.
- 505-1, 284 ahead, and drinks come on end of the next over.
- Cook on 230 breaking Don Bradman's record from the 1930s to become highest scorer ever at this ground, Trott on 128, 317 partnership off 494 deliveries, Johnson and Doherty both conceding over a century each.
- 513-1 after 150 overs, Cool 233, Trott 133, 292 lead. Will England declare? If so, when? When they pass the 300 mark on the lead?
- Stuart Broad has left his seat (to warm up I give it a guess), and yes, Strauss comes out and calls his men in, Cook 235 (sixth highest score ever v Australia - and he could have gone on!), Trott 135, 329 partnership, England 517-1 after 152 overs. 1.5 sessions left, Australia need 297 to win off 41 overs left in the day (required rate of 7.24), England need ten wickets off 246 balls (that means they have 24.6 balls per wicket or in other words, a wicket every 6-7 overs).
- Big cheers for England as they come on, Aus 0-0 & 481; England 260 & 517-1 dec.
- Shane Watson v James Anderson to kick off the last and decisive innings of the match - who would have thought it would have been England all smiles and hopeful, ey?
- First over a solid maiden over, good start for Anderson, defend, defend, defend for Australia.
- Stuart Broad v Simon Katich, slight changes to the field discussed and made, three slips, a gully and one at short leg, Katich off the mark, 2-0 at the end of the second over.
- Katich edges it and is gone, caught by Strauss off Broad, out for 4 off 16, Australia 5-1, first wicket of the day and nine to go...
- Ricky Ponting to the crease...
- Three slips and a gully, short mid-wicket and a silly one on the off-side, the skipper's off the mark with a single from the third delivery he faces, off his glove. 6-1 at the end of that over.
- Four fielders on the legside v Ponting, Anderson going straight at him, Kevin Pietersen conceding four overthrows with a boundary what was just a single for Australia, Anderson not happy at all, 11-1.
- Brilliant over by Anderson to make it 11-1 at tea after 7 overs. All records and eyes are on England.
3rd session:
- Anderson and Broad having their goes at Watson and Broad. Temperaments flowing over a bit. Australia 30-1.
- Graeme Swann into attack, boundary off his second ball. Ponting edges it to first slip but is dropped by Collingwood, should have been a wicket!
- Broad still at the other end, Australia 36-1.
- 43-1, Steven Finn on...
- Australia end the day on 107-1, Ponting reaching his 51st half century and Watson on 40ish. A draw it is but it was everything else but a given, obvious, boring match. Day one and two, you thought England were going to get a thrashing and beating of a lifetime, on day three that trend changed thanks to the last session and 5 wickets for only 45 runs. The last two days were all England and you thought - could they do the impossible and grab a win?! They didn't in the end, but a draw is still a result-and-a-half for England, especially in what fashion and after the first disastrous couple of days! Record breaking match from both sides, draw it is, bring on Adelaide! :-D
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