The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : England wraps up Test series in quick time

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Monday, Jun 06, 2005

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Sport - Cricket

England wraps up Test series in quick time

Ted Corbett

Bangladesh loses by an innings again; Hoggard claims five, Trescothick wins Man-of-the-Series award

CHESTER-le-STREET: England polished off its aperitif in 17 minutes and 26 balls on the third morning of the second Test against Bangladesh at the Riverside. Now for the main course of the summer, the Ashes series that will begin on July 21, just as soon as the Australians have made their ritual visit to a French war grave where their soldiers died bravely in the Second World War and played England in the final of the one-day tri-series.

Aussies land

The Aussies had been in the country only six hours when England dodged the rain drops and won by an innings and 27 runs. They claim not to be impressed by anything England has done this year, their outspoken commentators claim that a 4-0 victory over five Tests will be disappointingly narrow and their players sailed through Heathrow on Sunday morning without saying a word but looking arrogantly self-confident.

Even English experts are unsure of the outcome of the Ashes. After all, Australia sent a team here in 1989 that was described as "the worst to fly out of the country" by its own newspapers and won 4-0 in six Tests.

Those Ashes have not returned to this country since and to tell the truth have never seemed likely to come back. England has won seven Tests against Australia since that seminal moment but three have been at the end of a series when the Aussies seemed to be putting in rather less than 100 per cent effort.

So even the English bookmakers have made Australia the favourite for this series.

This despite England's recent form, despite its second place in the world rankings, despite its home advantage and the influence of rain followed by sun followed by a pitch that is unplayable.

But, as it has shown in the six days it has taken the team to win two Tests against Bangladesh — both by an innings — there is more to England than a couple of lucky results. In the last year it has lost narrowly to Sri Lanka but beaten West Indies twice, New Zealand and South Africa. A former Test player friend of mine claims that only means that they will give the Aussies a better game than they have in the past, but I argue that if they are able to compete England might find a way to win.

That is why coach Duncan Fletcher contended that he had his charges "on course for victory over Australia" — although typically this cautious man declined to forecast the return of the Ashes — and why both he and Michael Vaughan, the captain, pronounced themselves pleased with their performances in recent times.

The rest of the country looks to Steve Harmison, back to something like his best, to crank up his speed above 90 miles an hour, to shatter the confidence of the cocky Australian openers and to wipe out their tail. More likely it will take the careful bowling of Matthew Hoggard, England's main swing bowler, to prise open the door.

His detractors claim his deliveries swing too early in flight but as he went up on Sunday to receive his man of the match reward for his eight wickets — 14 in the series in which he did not use the Harmison, Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones method of a couple of bouncers to disturb the timid batsmen first — he was realistically content.

"I am not bowling as well as I can and the ball is not always coming out right," said Hoggard. "I have had trouble with no-balls, but it is still nice to take a few wickets." So, instead of following his Yorkshire pattern of walking his dogs on the moors near his Bradford home, Hoggard will be back at the nets, building up his accuracy, swing and reliability before the Ashes.

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