L
abelling a ground
“The Fortress” is
asking for trouble.
“The Gabbatoir,” it
was not. Then again,
Edgbaston was not to
know Jimmy Anderson would
break down, Steve Smith would
be imperious and a World CupButtler batting in this first Test and
thought England’s white-ball
heroes were still on a high. Buttler,
the buccaneer, simply planted his
feet and fell all over a Pat Cummins
delivery that bowled him.
Nor could any sensible observer
feel that Jonny Bairstow came here
cocked and ready for a five-Test
marathon. Or Moeen Ali either.
Add to that Joe Root’s inability to
convert a fifty into the kind of
innings Smith assembled twice on
this ground and you start to build a
picture of England falling into this
series rather than marching in.
First time round, Rory Burns
scored his maiden Test century
and Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes
were characteristically stubborn
but from the moment AndersonT
he instinctive reaction was
one of pity. A man doing his
job, not particularly well, but
doing it nonetheless. Umpire Joel
Wilson struck a lonely figure in the
middle of the vast expanse of
Edgbaston, surrounded by a crowd
known for their intensity and a
press box notorious for its
unforgiving nature. The less said
about social media the better.
The numbers, however, painted
a miserable picture. By lunch on
the final day of this Test, the
players had reviewed Wilson’s
decisions 12 times; eight were
overturned, and four struck down.
Aleem Dar fared only marginally
better. The first day alone was
unrelenting, eliciting eightEngland not mentally ready for the
Sport First Specsavers Ashes Test
First Test humiliation could be
just the wake-up call Joe Root’s
team need to win back the urn
PAUL HAYWARD
AT EDGBASTON
DDDDDDD
pulled up lame and Smith took
charge of a side who were 122 for
eight on Thursday, the rhetoric
fell apart.
To end it, out came Anderson
like El Cid strapped to his horse to
face Nathan Lyon, who was in his
element on a fifth-day pitch against
fatalistic opponents. Lyon’s 15th
five-fer included his “bunny”,
Moeen, who has tumbled into a
vortex of low confidence and needs
help, not vituperation.
Woakes, who has something of
the school prefect about him, set a
good example to Jason Roy, who
ran down the pitch to paste Lyon in
the 22nd over when England
needed to bat all day and paid for it
with his wicket.
All in all, a maudlin Monday,when the taunts of England’s
supporters were rendered feeble.
One came over to say, “Steve Smith
should have been banned for life”.
A bit late now for a legal challenge
to Smith’s 12-month suspension. All
the fun English cricket has had
with Australia’s fall from grace has
ended, unless Root’s gang can
recalibrate after a Test for which
they were not mentally ready.
Recriminations are pointless,
except perhaps in the case of Roy,
for whom the modern English
cricketer’s excuse was written:
“This is the way I play.” In this
context, with a day to grind out a
draw, nobody can excuse such a
shot by saying they were trying to
“get after” the spinner. Not at 60
for one.win would dampen England’s
energy.
The script said they would roll
from the Lord’s super over straight
over Australia in the Ashes, as if the
first would provide petrol for the
second. A two-stage summer
conquest was on the cards. But
nobody could have looked at JosGreater investment
needed to fix root of
umpiring problems
umpiring errors – the tone was set.
There are occasions when a batter,
their form lost and nerves shot, is
able to play an innings only of
scrambled minds and shots. But for
them the execution is swift; once
the damage is done they exit. An
umpire cannot. Wilson, probably
aware of his day-one report card,
had no choice but to persist.
He had worked his way onto the
International Cricket Council’s
elite panel through the system
presented before him, and once
offered the Ashes, who was he to
turn it down? There are parallels to
players. Remember Darren
Pattinson, plucked from obscurity
and consigned for eternity as a
one-Test calamity? It was not hisdecision to make. Even Adam
Gilchrist, ultimately a success
story, was booed both on state and
international debut for seemingly
betraying someone further up the
pecking order. Only he was
selected, as Wilson was, by powers
beyond his control. Both duly
accepted, as is their professional
duty. Wilson might not become a
success story, but the man from
Trinidad and Tobago was in no
position to refuse the opportunity.
However, sympathy and ridicule
alone will not remedy a situation
which urgently needs it. Joe Root
successfully reviewed an umpire’s
decision one in every 44 balls he
faced across his two innings. For a
game requiring such single-Joel Wilson’s efforts at Edgbaston have
triggered a much-needed debate on
officiating, writes Isabelle Westbury
Miserable Moeen
With a coterie of left-handers, Nathan Lyon, Australia’s best
finger spinner to date, was never going to be matched. But
Moeen Ali is down on confidence with bat and ball and
Creaking attack needs a break. Jack Leach looks certain to play at Lord’s.James Anderson’s selection backfired and is surely
unlikely to be repeated, even if Joe Root said England
would “wait and see”. Jofra Archer is almost certain to
play at Lord’s, but Sam Curran could also be in contention.Six headaches for hosts
By Isabelle Westbury
Buttler and Bairstow
England’s white-ball supremos have managed just 20 runs
in six innings over the past two weeks. Jos Buttler (above)
has gone 18 innings without a century and Jonny Bairstow
has made just one in 24 innings.6 *** Tuesday 6 August 2019 The Daily Telegraph