England loses its way

By Ted Corbett

BIRMINGHAM, JULY 5. England, hurt by injuries, undermined by recent poor results, collapsed after lunch on the first day of the Ashes series at Edgbaston. First England gave us reasons to dream of better days, or played with desperation verging on the manic, according to your taste.

Of all the first day scenarios that flitted through my Ashes- fuelled brainwaves this week - England all out 125, Michael Slater a century before lunch - the one that never quite made it to the surface was England beyond 50 in the first three-quarters of an hour. When it reached 106 by lunch, the spectators were delirious.

Even the prologue to today's piece of theatre suggested an unforgettable day. Ashley Giles recovered from both his knee injury and tonsillitis and found a place ahead of Dominic Cork whose injuries are longer-term; but hearts dropped when Nasser Hussain lost the toss for the seventh time in a row and Australia asked England to bat.

Perfect judgement. McGrath had a close lbw decision turned down against Michael Atherton off his fourth ball and Gillespie drew Marcus Trescothick a quarter forward with his first ball and had him caught by Shane Warne low at first slip. Geoff Boycott described Trescothick's likely dismissal in detail in his newspaper column two days ago.

Mark Butcher might have been caught by either Warne or Adam Gilchrist four balls later, the ball almost rolled on to Atherton's stumps and every other ball produced an alarm and an appeal that should have caused an avalanche.

Instead, with the fielders close - four slips and two gullies and a short-leg - runs came as hectically as in the first 15 overs of a one-day game. Eight overs brought 37, 10 overs 56, 13 gave us 67 and after 17 an incredible 83. Steve Waugh persisted with his attacking formations, Atherton and Butcher put hefty bats behind their shots and 4s came off Butcher's helmet and Gilchrist's gloves. Fumbles and slips gave us the impression the Aussie fielding was in tatters; a dangerous assumption.

Warne bowled the last over before lunch to Butcher, who has never comprehended his magic and nudged the second ball to Ponting at short-leg. How Hussain survived the next four balls will always be a mystery but afterwards he got into his favourite zone while Atherton reached fifty - in 90 balls - and guided a ball to Mark Waugh at second slip where he picked off a wide, low, quick catch. Was there ever a better second slip?

Three down for 123 was not too handsome and, with the full complement of slips and gullies still in place Ian Ward soon edged a catch to third slip where Ponting tipped it upwards like a football goalie. Hussain padded up to the next ball and was palpably lbw to McGrath in his first over at the pavilion end.

Ward, encouraged by Alec Stewart, ``played positive'' in that horrid dressing room terminology, hit two 4s and a three off Warne to bring up 150 in 41 overs. The Australians were roundly booed by the crowd for several appeals and when they gathered at the end of Warne's 10th over to review the replay for a shout against Stewart. The payback came in the next over when McGrath, from round the wicket, forced Ward to chop the ball on to his stumps.

Now, at 159 for five, we saw the justification for Waugh's continued attacking fields, as Warne whipped his leg- break - off-break to the left-hander - between bat and pads to bowl Usman Afzaal and had Craig White lbw sweeping. Six wickets had fallen for 68 since lunch and now the Australian voices led the crowd. At tea England was 191 for seven and Stewart was still guarding the portcullis but our initial dream - that the god of sport was an Englishman and had bought the spread - had taken a severe battering.

England 294 all out

BIRMINGHAM, JULY 5. England was bowled out for 294 an hour after tea on the first day of the first Test of the Ashes series here, after being put in. Shane Warne continued his supremacy over the English batsmen with a five-wicket haul. For England, Alec Stewart top scored with 65 and Andrew Caddick bolstered the lower order with a cameo innings of unbeaten 49.

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