I Would Be Licking My Lips Facing England - McGrath

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For Australia to bounce back and win the first Ashes Test so convincingly as they did, you wonder what scars will be inflicted upon the England team.

What are they going to do for the rest of series?

Unexpected Turnaround

I believe no one anticipated what transpired on Saturday. When you examine the number of overs required to complete the game, it was the longest format on accelerated pace.

England were clearly dominant at the midday break on the following day, 105 ahead with most wickets in hand. The playing surface was still offering assistance. It looked so tough for Australia to re-enter the match.

Batting Mistakes

From that moment, England's choice of strokes was their major downfall. Scott Boland put in arguably his poorest performance in an Australia shirt in the first innings, then turned it around in the subsequent innings to be the catalyst for the comeback.

England's batters were out attempting to strike balls wide of off-stump, on the up, through the covers.

Trying to score off those bowls, with those strokes, is the precise action you just do not do as a batter in Australia.

Adaptation Issues

It showed that England had not done their preparation, are not able to adapt or are reluctant to adapt.

There is much discussion about England's method, their aggressive style. I witnessed it up close during the recent series in the UK. Under Ben Stokes and their coach, they can be pretty stubborn when it comes to sticking with that method.

It is acceptable on sluggish pitches. On the quick, lively pitches of Australia it is a approach fraught with danger. If England fail to reconsider, they will face difficulties for the entire series.

Pacer's Viewpoint

As a paceman, I would have always felt in the game against this England team.

I depended on my accuracy, backing myself to hit the same spot around off stump, with a bit of bounce and nip.

Even if this England team was performing strongly, I'd be licking my lips at the prospect of bowling to them, knowing a single error could bring multiple wickets.

Skill and Resilience

There are times when England can be a top-class team. They have good players. Good players have skill, but great players have the mental toughness and attitude to be adaptable enough for the situation.

They would been shellshocked at the way things unfolded at the venue, crushed at the way they were beaten. Now we will see what they are capable of. Even as a true blue Australian, part of me wants to see them adapt, just to show they can get better.

Bowling Concerns

It was almost the same with their bowling. England's bowling unit was very good on the first evening, then lost direction when they were put under pressure on the following day.

In the longest format, all aspects require a Plan B. Frequently it feels like England have a single approach, then no alternatives if that does not work.

'Where has this come from?' - The dismissal as England lose third wicket in six balls

Brilliant Innings

In fairness to England's pace attack, they were confronted with one of the great Ashes innings by Travis Head.

His century off 69 deliveries was the second quickest by an Australian batsman in Ashes cricket, two overs behind Adam Gilchrist at the Waca previously – a game I played in.

My former teammate Gilchrist said Head's innings was the superior of the two. I concur. Given the challenging nature of the wicket and the situation of the game circumstances, Head's knock will go down as a moment of cricket lore.

Tactical Moves

It was a bold and brave move for Australia to elevate Head up the order for the second innings.

Usman Khawaja has faced criticism for being failing to start in both attempts. He had muscle issues after playing golf the previous day the Test, but I do not believe the two were connected.

When Khawaja failed on day one, Australia promoted Marnus Labuschagne and got bogged down.

In promoting the aggressive batsman, who has the confidence of opening in limited overs, Australia were able to take the attack to England.

Future Considerations

Now there is the question of what Australia will do for the next match. I'd like to see them stick with the approach of attacking play at the top of the order.

That could mean Head remains, meaning someone like Beau Webster enters the middle order, or Head could go back to number five and the all-rounder or Josh Inglis could move to the top. It would be difficult for the batsman, but sometimes you have to do what the rival team would find most challenging.

Series Outlook

After the opening match was controlled by the bowlers, some are wondering if the rest of series will be brief, low-run Tests.

The venue is pretty much the quickest, liveliest pitch in the global cricket, so the batters should get a some relief from here onward.

It is not all about the pitch. Credit has to be awarded to the pacemen for delivering the ball in the correct areas consistently. Overall, batsmen on both sides will need to look at how they were dismissed.

Pivotal Match

Now we move on to the next venue, and the completely distinct twilight conditions for the following match.

In 2006-07, I was part of the Australia team that overwhelmed England to win 5-0. Ashes series in this nation have a tendency of slipping from England rapidly.

At the present, England are only 1-0 down. There would be no coming back from 2-0, which is why Brisbane is such a massive game.

They must adapt, or the historic urn will be lost once more.

Lindsey Foster
Lindsey Foster

A tech enthusiast and writer with a passion for demystifying complex technologies and sharing practical insights.