The first two days of the Ashes have not gone especially well from an English point of view.
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After winning the toss and electing to bat – a call perhaps set to go down alongside Nasser Hussain’s ‘We’ll have a bowl’ in infamy – England’s innings got off to a horror start, Rory Burns bowled behind his legs first ball. On a green pitch, under muggy skies, it didn’t get much easier, and England were bowled out for 147.
While day one conditions were challenging, rain denied England the chance for a tricky new ball spell at Australia before stumps, and day two dawned bright and hot. Australia duly racked up 343-7 with David Warner scorching back to form with 94, Marnus Labuschagne showing his class with 72, and Travis Head, a far-from-certain selection, smashing the third fastest Ashes hundred of all time after tea. There were controversial oversteps, dropped catches and misfields aplenty, and England need a miracle to avoid going into the second Test 1-0 down. All in all, not great.
But if you’re really, really willing to look for them – and if the next six weeks are going to be even halfway bearable, you’ll need a bit of blue-sky thinking – then there are some positives to take from an England perspective.
Ollie Robinson looked very, very good
Much expectation has been placed on Ollie Robinson. His debut earlier this year was mired in controversy, but he has swiftly become central to England’s bowling attack, coming good on years of county churn. While he has all the traits of a classic English seamer, getting movement off the seam and speeds hovering around 80mph, his height, accuracy and intelligence has given plenty reason to believe he can crack Australia, a theory boosted by his seven wickets in an England Lions game in early 2020.
The early signs this series are excellent. Robinson probed and prodded, proving tough to get away and taking three wickets. His competitive streak hasn’t been wilted by a day in the dirt – he jibed after stumps that he felt like he could get out Warner every over – and his prising-out of Cameron Green, nipping his first ball back in to catch out the leaving-alone batter. While his speeds dipped by stumps, this was hugely promising.
Mark Wood, also bowling for the first time in Australia, pushed the speed gun and hurried Steve Smith, and Chris Woakes kept the runs down too. There are the seeds of a bowling attack to challenge Australia.
There are cracks to be exploited in the Australia batting line-up
This was a perfect batting day on which plenty went wrong for England. There were Stokes’ oversteps and some general waywardness as he felt his way back to fitness. Jack Leach got a pounding. Chances were missed. And yet Australia still ‘only’ made 343-7. This wasn’t a batting performance to evoke the years of yore, with Hayden and Ponting grinding England down, 550-4 declared, see you later. Warner made 94 but really did look edgy throughout, and had plenty of luck. Smith made his lowest score against England in 12 innings and four years. Head’s runs largely came against England’s weaker bowlers. An England attack fully match-fit, keeping their feet behind the line and with fielders holding onto their catches, and it could have been very different.
Jos Buttler still looks in gorgeous touch
What impact, if any, does an innings in a different format in a different country months before the Ashes starts make? Not much, you’d think, and yet Jos Buttler began as if carrying on from his 71* off 32 in the T20 World Cup group stages against Australia. OK, it was only 39, and there was the odd chipped three. But there were hints of the Test-match Buttler we’ve been promised, the counter-attacking ball-striker to turn the momentum of a game in a session. Imagine what he might do if England gave him a platform.
If you’re looking for other batters to emerge with credit, Haseeb Hameed defended stoutly and Ollie Pope made a start. As for the rest, Joe Root is obviously still good, Rory Burns still averages nearly 50 this year when he makes it past 0, Dawid Malan has pedigree in Australia, and Ben Stokes is Ben Stokes. All of that is still true, even if England remain capable of an aberration a bit too frequently.
James Anderson and Stuart Broad should be very well rested
Much has been made about England’s decision to leave their two leading wicket-takers of all time on the sidelines for this Test. Whatever the rights and wrongs of that choice, it should mean both will be fit and raring to go for the day/nighter at Adelaide. Just imagine, a fully fit Broaderson, each with a point to prove, with a pink ball in hand and the lights doing their thing.
It’s the Gabba; this always goes wrong
No one comes to the Gabba and wins. OK, I know what you’re thinking. India did just come to the Gabba and win. Let’s change that to, no one starts at the Gabba and wins. Without warm-ups, with niggles around and with some players coming back after long layoffs, this was always going to be England’s toughest challenge. India didn’t knock down the fortress forever, even if they did weaken it.
And let’s talk about India, if you were looking for a precedent of a team coming to Australia with high hopes only to be embarrassingly bundled out in the first game of the series. England’s 147 is a comparative feast compared to the 36 all out humiliation Virat Kohli and co. suffered in the day/nighter last year, and that tour turned out OK for India.
Joe Root’s England are the bounce-back kings
Bouncing back from a thumping isn’t something you want to have too much practice at, but Joe Root and England have had plenty, and in general they’ve done pretty well. They won at Headingley against India after being thrashed at Lord’s. They came from one down to beat West Indies and South Africa in 2020. They levelled the 2019 Ashes even after failing to retain the urn.
Even the 2017/18 Ashes, a tour which, by rights, should have ended with Broad flying home mid tour with a career-ending ‘injury’, Cook attempting a coup to take back the captaincy, and Trevor Bayliss finally losing his cool to scream at James Vince for continuing to nick off, saw England largely stay together as a group. Jonny Bairstow headbutted Cameron Bancroft. Ben Duckett poured a pint on James Anderson. But still England were just about held together, even if the series did end with Root literally passed out in the dressing room exhausted and ill from the effort of it all. A 4-0 defeat counts, technically as England’s second best result in Australia in the last 18 years.
His greatest trait as a captain is keeping the show on the road. This might be his toughest task yet. But then he is in the form of his life.
