DAY 4 Summary

Turning points aren't much good for anything unless you turn and for Australia, it was time. With yesterday predictably lost to rain and another day of this series over, there are now less days left than already played which is a comfort for the boys with the three lions on their hats. Australia had to start dominating from the first ball today. They needed to make the start England did on Day 2. There was no time left for excuses. There was no point going through the motions, or Australia would be walking backwards uphill to Headingley.

Yes, the selectors have botched their work. Yes Ricky lacks tactical acumen. Yes the batsmen gave their wickets away. Yes I'd be happy batting left-handed against our attack. It doesn't matter. Champions don't care about such things ... Ponting, Clarke, Warne & Lee at Manchester 2005 showed that. Dean Jones in Madras in 1986. I could go on but you know the drum. If the Ashes are to come home, our blokes had to stop being ordinary and find that "extra" and they had to find it today.

Hard to tell from TV pictures but it's hard to image why the start was delayed. At least it allowed the Australian bowlers extra time to graduate from Mother Clark's Swingers School because shock among shock, that damn red thing was moving about in the morning session. But for the last ball, it was an even session with runs for England but Collingwood's millionaire swing to another Hilfenhaus outswinger gave the session to the Aussies and made victory for England a little more difficult. Still, low scores make teams braver in the chase so you never know.

Hilly, Siddle and even Johnson bowled well. Bell rode his luck a little but only the Speed Dialer Warne could be one-eyed enough to not have doubt over the lbw near thing. You couldn't possibly count the ball to Katich as a dropped chance. Fairer to say it hit him rather than he dropped it. Of course, in the Miranda Magpies U/16 back in 1972, you swooped on those chances!

Ponting, who was overly defensive early in his field placings, improved as the session went on and I thought he managed the bowlers well. Enjoy it. I don't often find reason to complement him. Mind you, he only had an hour - probably not enough time to stuff up!

By tea, England's 157 in the extended session was more important than Australia's three wickets. Flintoff batted beautifully, as he often does after a quiet time with the ball and I like the big fella when he waits for the ball and times it sweetly to the boundary rather than trying to bludgeon it. His driving was outstanding and apart from a spell of short stuff from Johnson, he looked in control for all of the 79 deliveries he faced. He became another member of the not playing a shot gang, caught at slip when the ball spat from Hauritz and brushed his gloves.

Bell was the first out after lunch, Uncle Rudi finally running out of patience and giving him the finger after another rap on the pads from Johnson. This was during an excellent stint from the much spoken of left handed Aussie quick which was all improvement over what has come before in this series. For Bell, it was hardly a chanceless return and his contribution was a good one but sadly again, as so often in his Test career, he was out with the job half done.

England's keeper/batsman Matt Prior, was the same erratic mixed bag of cricket shots he always is with thumping cover drives of Watson and Hilfenhaus and nice flicks off the legs from Johnson, using the bowler's pace against him. Then, when looking on top of the attack, he was out with an ugly heave to sub fielder Hughes off a shorter ball from Siddle.

After tea, the English tail smashed 60 in just 13 overs, despite the slow-down tactics so prevalent in modern cricket. It was quick runs and a lead beyond a hundred they wanted and first Swann, then Broad provided just that. Swann's innings was a short cameo and included words with Johnson but in the end, it was Johnson who deservedly had the last say. Changing to round the wicket, he served up a slower ball first up and Swann paddled it gently to North at cover. Broad took up the fight from here and turned into the baby-faced assasin with scorching drives and a massive pull from Hilfenhaus to bring up his fifty. Johnson, even less impressed than with Swann, had words and compared chins with the young man. Broad, for his part, didn't take a backward step and smashed Johnson with an audacious drive past mid on as his commentary.

Maybe the most telling sign, perhaps even one of relief, was the sight of Johhson stretching on the boundary and taking potions for an unhappy hamstring.

Anderson came and went, giving Manou his third catch and Hilfenhaus the bowling honours and then Broad returned one softly to Peter Siddle in reward for a solid effort throughout the innings. With five players passing forty and only three failing to make starts, this was a very solid team effort from an England side which is winning all the tight moments.

The quest for safety by the Australians started well. Watson and Katich suffered few frights getting to 47 before Katich inexplicably snicked an Onions delivery behind to Prior. The little left hander was suitably angry with himself for what was, a very lazy shot and out of character for Australia's best batsman of the past few summers.

Pressure is a strange thing and so too familiarity. Ponting, who made the walk to the centre briskly, knowing that Edgbaston has not added much to the lustre of his career and more importantly, that his team needed him, looked intense. The match changed in the space of one over from Graham Swann. Varying his pace and his flight but not his line, Swann delivered arguably his best over in Test cricket, until, drawing Ponting forward, he extracted wicked off spin and sent one through the forward lunging gate and knocked back middle and leg. Having watched a lot of "jaffers" this was a close second to Warne's famous dismissal of Gatting with his first ball in Tests in England. Ponting stayed there, stretched almost to where he should have been, glancing back in disbelief several times before stealing himself for that long, lonely walk we have all known but never with the ache Ponting carried back to the rooms. Swann shared no such pain.

Hussey played his first ball onto his thigh pad and vary nearly into the bowler's -Onions - fast advancing hands. Thereafter, he stroked the ball about with more of his old confidence, looking like a man who has just re-met an old friend.

Watson, through it all, kept playing for a career which has so far spent more time in partnership with the physio than his team mates. He was selective in dismissing both tactical comments and bad deliveries and was easily Australia's best, if for no other reason because of his solidarity. It wasn't till the last over that Anderson pricked his skin in a thin spot.

Australia fighting hard but only England can win from here.