The Ashes Diary - Day One, The Oval.

The Ashes Diary, Review Day One: Oval Test.
Highlights: England 319/7
Strauss 129, Warne 5-118
The honours even they have said. I suggest Aussies have drawn first blood in the last test of the series. Why do I say so? It is flat pitch to no ones surprise. The score looks healthy at present but won't do so if the Aussie bowlers polish up the tail in the first session itself. The score would not be sounding too great at 340 all out. The job is already cut-out fot he English. I suggest they should look at it as thus is the only inning they have to bat. This inning is perhaps being the key which can set the Aussie batsmen out of jail. If they can do it they will make mockery of this very brilliantly performing English team.
The Aussies would have to do serious batting make lots of runs, take a big first innings lead and set up challenge for the English batsmen.
A good century by Strauss, Trescothick is a batsman who will always give a chance. He presented one to Aussies who accepted it gleefully. The rest of English top-middle order batted like millionaires and got stuck in the web of the Sheikh of Tweak. If Sheikh can induce batsmen of the class of Tendulkar, Dravid, Lara, Attpattu and Laxman regarded as class players of spin bowling then English batsmen are easier to deceive. They show minimal of footwork; show no intention of leaving the safe haven of the crease, they have tradionaly been too committal on either front or back foot. There is nothing being taken away from Shane Warne, he is such a prodigious spiner of the cricket ball. It is no mean task; this can be gathered that not many can spin it that much.
I always fancied Tendulkar as a genuine leg spinner. He often shows signs of good leg spinner. He has the turn and variety too. The few dismissals that immediately come to mind are Moin Khan can being bowled by a googly which squared him up and went through his legs in third test in Pakistan. Steve Waugh having a wild waft at a sharp tuning delivery succeeded in guiding the ball into safe house called Dravid. The last and the most fitting: Warne leg before wicket to Tendulakar in Kolkatta Test which India won after following on.
Warne will continue to get wickets wherever he goes ‘coz that the only thing he knows.
There is one more thing I would like to bring to everyone’s attention. The following statistics also under line, how vital is Warne-McGrath partnership. They have more than 1150 international wickets between them in the last decade. In this match too their combined efforts is as follows, 53 overs 168 runs and 6 wickets. There are a few more facts; India blossomed in their tour to Australia simply because Warne-McGrath duo was missing. Well that’s part of history now.
A few things which either team would like to do:-
Australia: - Polish the English tail quickly, bat well, score big bat England out of the game. Then see what happens in second innings with a rather infamous tendency of English to collapse.
England: - Weather the storm of second new ball. Then cross the psychological 400 run mark. Then give the ball to Freddie Flintoff and party. The Aussie batsmen are not exactly on the run will be a bit scratchy and jittery.
This series is slated to go down to the wire. There are few surprises in-stored for every one. The saga has just begun. I am to know what happens next. The Ashes remains so close and yet so far. My fingers are crossed; I hope the rain does put off the fire of The Ashes