Observations from the Brisbane Ashes Test

image: www.smh.com.au

The Australians played very well in Brisbane through some quality batting by the tail in the first innings and the top order in the second. But this was followed up with some great bowling in both of England’s innings that had speed and caused several difficulties for the English players.

The Australians achieved most of my requirements to win the test as per my last paragraph on November 12. Although I am possibly being a little harsh in that they scored 400 in the second innings and not the first. But the Australians have shown that they will be very competitive in this Ashes series and that Test Cricket is still the best form of cricket.

Anyway here are some observations from the first Ashes Test in Brisbane:

• David Warner can score runs at Test Level. However he still needs to learn consistency and to keep his thoughts to himself, especially when it comes to critiquing players from opposition sides. Warner’s assessment of Trott’s dismissals during the test was overstated and it was unnecessary. Warner may be better off refraining from these types of comments until he can consistently score runs at Test level and remove all doubt over his ability.
• England is susceptible to the short ball. Several English players were dismissed with deliveries that were pitched short. This tactic needs to be used in tandem with good length bowling to ensure that England do not expect the short stuff too often. At this point I would have preferred the next test to be played in Perth where it would be possible to really get into the English player’s psyche with the “chin music”, however Adelaide’s much more benign pitch will probably be a relief for England.
• Brad Haddin is a really good cricketer (who was always going to be compared to Gilchrist through being the next wicketkeeper in line). There was a time that I was critical of Haddin’s ability, however Haddin has made me eat my words, which means he is performing well for Australia and I cannot complain. Haddin’s record in Test cricket (2661 runs at 35.01 per innings) is fairly good when you compare it to all wicketkeepers. The issue is that Gilchrist was just a great batsman who could (and would) dominate all bowling attacks. Unfortunately Haddin is nearing the end of his career at 36 and a replacement will need to be found from Paine, Wade or Nevill in the near future.
• Mitchell Johnson is the epitome of a confidence player. Johnson contributed 64 in Australia’s first innings and backed it up with 4/61 and 5/42 in both of England’s innings with good spells of short bowling. The Adelaide test becomes a crunch game for Johnson as he needs to show that he can play consistently good cricket. In fact the whole series will make or break Johnson in my opinion.
• Shane Watson should not have played in this test and his contributions for the match back this up. Watson contributions were 22 and 6 in his two innings and 0/0 off two overs with a catch in England’s first innings. This is clearly not good enough from a senior player who was originally in doubt with a hamstring strain. As noted in my earlier post, if a player is not 100% fit he should make himself unavailable for the team’s benefit and not be selfish in taking another player’s opportunity unless he can perform.
• Stuart Broad is a warrior, the opening crescendo fired at Broad by the Brisbane crowd was totally expected. While some cricketers may have been affected by it, Broad appeared to absorb it well and answer in the best way possible through his on-field performance. Broad’s 6/81 in the Australian First Innings showed that the man has a large amount of self-belief. There will be some admiration for Broad's actions but whether they offset his previous actions remains to be seen.

Over the next six weeks it is reasonable to expect this Ashes series will be very competitive and absorbing. The final result may not be known until the final test in Sydney.