DAY 1 - Summary

It was all drama before the start for both sides.

England knew Flintoff wouldn't be kneeded the night before ,big Steve Harmison was already on the raw meat and eggs in preparation' but Matt Prior's back spasm in the warm-ups was further evidence of how dangerous this period is in the daily life of a Test cricketer. Whilst rushed phone calls were made to find a replacement, Paul Colingwood put on the gloves just in case. By the time the toss was finally made, ten minutes late - following Ponting's agreement - Prior had recovered. Despite all this excitement, England may have missed a golden opportunity and in the process given the Australians just a sniff at their longer tail. Why not move Bopara to six and Prior to seven and bring in Jon Trott to bat at three?

Australia finally gave Stuart Clark a start, about three Tests too late and at the expense of Nathan Hauritz. The wicket and the situation deemed it the only move they could make and one which was widely expected. The real surprise was the inclusion of Haddin, still recovering from a broken finger.

Starting under blue skies, Hilfenhaus was unlucky enough to bowl the perfect inswinger to Strauss first ball, unlucky that Strauss' bat clipped his pad at the same time an inside edge would have and unlucky that Billy Bowden was worrying about where his front foot landed. Strauus, on the other hand, had all the luck when the justified lbw shout against him was turned down.

Australia paid no price, when a few overs later Siddle put the ball in the right place for Strauss to snick into the gully where North held a spectacular one-handed catch ... for reasons that would escape a former great slipper and the first Australian coach, Bobby Simpson. Two hands for beginners Marcus.

Bopara failed again, again out of his depth at three with a technique built for flogging tired bowlers in the middle order. Hilfenhaus moved the ball towards the slips and Bopara put the edge on it to Hussey. 2-16 in the 7th over was the start a captain with four quicks wanted.

Drinks came and went and soon after, so did Bell. After slicing Johnson's first ball down the only empty corridor in the Australian slips cordon, he made sure of his fate just four overs later when Johnson did what he does best, peppering Bell with successive bouncers and his re-discovered inswingers. Another uncomfortable short ball and Bell, jumping as he often does when the ball gets big on him, edged into the wounded gloves of Haddin.

Stuart Clarke started in his usual miserly fashion, conceded only 1 run in his first three overs and having his first shout at international level since last November, when a ball held its line against Collingwood and would have just missed leg stump. In his next, he opened his text book and showed Collingwood what he needed to do to snick to slips. Ever the vigilant, Colly steered the ball in to Ponting's safe hands at second slip. England 4-42 in 80 cloudless minutes but with the ball hooping for the seamers and bouncing for the quicks.

Prior in and that usual mix of spanking and mistakes but into double figures at least. Only the persevering Alistair Cook had done that. Just twenty minutes later, Clark had Cook as another slip - this time Michael Clarke - had a comfortable catch and the England gamble of a long tail of all rounders was about to have it's dice rolled.

Stuart Broad has made a serious mistake somewhere in this series. If it wasn't clear after the clashes wi th Australian players at Edgbaston, then it was underlined in his short stay at the crease, with Johnson and then Haddin making their feeling plain. It didn't matter much as Clark struck again when Broad turned the ball straight to Katich at a slightly deeper short leg.

6-72, Australia's session and a very long step towards winning this Test match.

Memo the selectors: Any number of Australian cricket fans and even the tea lady at work have known since the first morning at Cardiff what you finally discovered this morning ... Stuart Clark is Australia's best bowler. Thank you for finally realising it. 3-7 off close enough to seven overs should provide evryone with justification!

It was all rather rushed after lunch.


Peter Siddle, the man who everyone would have dropped, cleaned out the tail in the way a busy fisherman does with his catch back at the wharf. Forty minutes after lunch, he had the final four wickets and a 5-21 from 9.1 overs and his best Test return. He didn't move the ball much but pulled bounce out of the deck - the reason, after all, why he has been selected all series. Clark (3-18 from ten), at the other end, kept the pressure on and in truth, was the pick of the bowlers.

You might have thought we were back in seventies and Lillee, Thomson and Walker were routing the English. Eight of them caught between gully and keeper and two at short leg, although Onions was unlucky to be given out, caught off the arm guard. Swings and roundabouts that decision, equalising the first ball lbw not out on Strauss. In the midst of this debacle, Steve Harmison equalled Mike Atherton's record of 20 ducks for England, batting above Jimmy Anderson who has never recorded a duck in more than fifty innings and averages 15. Go figure.


Matt Prior top scored with an unbeaten 37, where at least he played shots.

England 102 and in need of something very special against an Australian team which runs on a heavy fuel of confidence to cover the short falls since the many stars departed. They are up after the way Edgbaston ended and will be ready to hammer England and build a quick, large lead.

Watson gave early proof of this, smashing fours square of the wicket past point off the first two deliveries of the innings by Anderson. Katich, facing Harmison's redemption over, worked 4 leg byes but couldn't control the rising next ball from the big, awkward quick and only managed to tuck it around the corner, via his retreating gloves, to Ravi Bopara at leg gully.

Ponting dominated the next hour to tea, making a run a ball 39 not out, including 5 fours and a big six launched over mid wicket. Considering he was out hooking in the last match, this was typical no fear batting from a man who loves to crush bowlers. Everything short was fodder and Onions introduction typified Ponting's approach. By over's end, two brilliant fours and that six into the crowd, all asked questions of Ponting's strength and were all answered in shouts.
Australia 1-69 from fifteen overs and in complete control.

A half hour after tea, the Australians were into the lead as the runs kept flowing at a run a minute as first Ponting then Watson tore England apart with precise, clean stroke making. Harmison's return to what we must politely call the attack, was greeted by four powerful shots in two overs which dismissed a threat which Harmison himself took lightly by bowling half-track gifts. Two went crashing to the mid wicket fence and another off the back foot through extra cover, before a fourth was finessed up and over the slips. When Ponting finally faced Harmison at the end of the second over, he slotted a classic cover drive past coverpoint on a rare full pitched ball.

Like most of the innings, England had been too short or too full and were punished by good batting.

Anderson looks unfit, after a mishap during his innings and appeared little more than a passenger.

Onions replaced Harmison and ended the 119 run Watson-Ponting partnership when he trapped Watson in front with a straight one for his third consecutive Test fifty since being recalled at Edgbaston. There were some fine strokes in Watson's innings and resolute defence to boot.

In the next over, Ponting tried very hard to run himself out, so keen was he to get back onto strike against Stuart Broad. He need not have worried, playing across the next ball in that overly confident fashion he does and being adjudged lbw by Billy Bowden. The ball may have clipped leg stump but plenty of these have had the reverse decision. It ended a delicious innings and further proof that this was a wicket imported from Brisbane and very friendly to our players. In the end, Ponting lost what would have been his third century in three matches here despite generally failing in this country.

Hussey was gone in Broad's next over as England came charging back, finally remembering they had to pitch up to cause problems. Hussey went in a mirrored version to his captain's dismissal, with leg stump just likely to be hit and Bowden was in the midst of a productive spell for England. At 4-152, the game was changing after England had taken 3-18 in 21 deliveries. Drinks were taken as North joined Clarke and they settled in to build a lead because Australia would prefer to bat just the once.

The earlier hustle from Ponting and Watson was replaced by caution and defence, with only Clarke unleasing the occasional drive. North was so steady that he remained on 7 at the close after 80 minutes and more than forty deliveries. There were several scares as the shadows grew longer, surviving a close lbw appeal (rightly) and a catch behind (wrongly) and a full body contact blow to the head (just). At the end, Harmison was steaming in again and mixed up Australia's best batsman with a choice selection of short balls and one or two slipping past the outside edge. Clarke looked far less than assured in the last half hour but still finished unbeaten on 34. With runs made by Australia and wickets by England, the final session finished square on a day where Australia took control of the game, finishingwith a lead of 94 with six wickets in hand.

England 102 (Prior 37x. Siddle 5-21, Clark 3-18) Australia 4-196 (Ponting 78, Watson 51. Broad 2-29)