Pressure on attack to bowl England back into first Test contention
Published:Australia head into the second day of the first Ashes Test, 235 runs adrift of England and in a superb position to start dominating this Test match.
England drifted out to 9/2 to beat Australia after a poor batting performance, but in Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Steven Finn and Graeme Swann, England have bowlers that are capable of taking the Australian wickets.
After just one days play, confidence has been restored in the Australian side as Peter Siddle stormed through the England batsman, but the English attack have a chance to replicate their Australian counterparts.
Mitchell Johnson and Ben Hilfenhaus continue to frustrate the Australian public with their inconsistency and both Broad and Anderson should take to the field knowing they can bowl better than their opposite numbers.
Xavier Doherty proved that spinners can get some action out of the green Gabba pitch, and Graeme Swann, arguably the world’s best spin bowler, can better Doherty’s figures of 2-41.
Anderson, Broad and Swann are all 5/2 to end the first innings as England’s leading wicket-taker, and Doherty findind some turn suggests that Swann could be even more key on a pitch that usually favours the seamers.
Swann took 14 wickets in four matches in the 2009 Ashes, including the scalps of all of the Australian top order minus Shane Watson, and the man whom most of England has its hopes pinned on will revel in the attention.
Swann’s biggest challenge will be taking the wicket of Australian captain Ricky Ponting.
Ponting has batted in three first innings against England at the Gabba and his scores read 21, 123 and 196 – the Australian captain is 4/1 to be Australia’s leading first innings runscorer.
But England will be hoping for a repeat of the 2002 Test in which Ponting could only manage 3 runs in his second innings as they search for a way back into the Test match.
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