The summer storms of the last few days had cleared away and a cloudless sky greeted the first day of the Adelaide Test match.
Over breakfast I was amused to read The Australian newspaper's annoyance at the latest "tweet" from England batsman Kevin Pietersen, who had dared to criticise the Adelaide ground staff for failing to cover the practice wickets from the heavy showers. Apparently it was just not on for any England player to whinge about the weather in Australia - "even if he is South African".
England's start to this match will live long in the memory. In the very first over, Australia lost Katich (run out without facing) and Ponting (caught first ball), then Clarke departed not long after. 2 runs for 3 wickets. Even the Barmy Army seemed shocked into (relative) silence and only started to rectify this much later in the day.
Australia then gritted out a response (that man Hussey again) which promised more than it ultimately delivered. After four hours of play during which only two more wickets fell, the last session belonged again to England. If England's 260 batting first at Brisbane was considered 100 below par, Australia's 245 here appears even further adrift on a flawless batting surface.
A good day for England which could yet prove very important in the context of the series. Fuelled by the optimism of spending a day in the ranks of the Barmy Army (or maybe just by the huge quantities of lager consumed), I'm backing England to press on tomorrow and overtake the Aussies' total for the loss of only a few wickets.
Where's today's blog? :-) Sounds like the Aussies are rubbish or are "we" playing brilliantly? Honest reply please! Think you need to sign on to Twitter so that you can get closer to the players. What do you think? All the best, Brian
ReplyDeleteI think it's a bit of both, Brian. Cook, Trott and Pietersen all batted brilliantly today in searing heat, but the Aussie catching (or lack of it) again played a part. It's also clear they have not been able to replace Warne with a spinner who's even half as good. The quick bowlers are trying hard but lack Test match experience. Good idea re Twitter :-)
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