Fifth Test, day three
Jonathan Trott sets pace to put Ashes in sight for England
- guardian.co.uk, Saturday 22 August 2009 19.44 BST
England's Jonathan Trott celebrates reaching his century against Australia on the third day of the fifth Ashes Test at The Oval. Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
The sting is still going rather well even though England were unable to separate the Australia openers by the close. With two days remaining the tourists need another 466 runs for victory; the home side need those 10 wickets. England would have settled for that equation in the aftermath of Headingley.
In this series Australia seem to have scored most of the runs; they can boast seven centuries to England's two (it was one until Jonathan Trott's superb effort today ). They seem to have taken most of the wickets as well. The top three wicket-takers are all in the touring party. And yet England are on the threshold of regaining the Ashes, which would be some heist.
It seems that Andrew Strauss's side have managed to win the vital sessions, even if his players have been outscored in this oscillating Ashes summer, none more vital, it now seems, than the last hour back at Cardiff where the circus began six weeks ago.
After the heady melodrama of Friday this began as a day of serene consolidation for England, which transformed into a romp as the lower order made merry against a side in a tailspin, in part due to their lack of quality spin.
England lost one wicket in the morning session, three more in the afternoon, but by then the lead was way in excess of 400. In the evening Trott reached his coveted century, becoming the 18th England player to achieve that feat on debut, while Graeme Swann despatched the ball to all quarters of Kennington.
England's only disappointment was that they could not penetrate Simon Katich and Shane Watson, who, once again, were resolute. Still, the Ashes are on the horizon. Only the advent of rain or a run-chase that surpasses any other in the history of Test cricket can deny England.
The Ashes were most definitely the focus yesterday. So far this match has not been hijacked by the farewell of Andrew Flintoff. He strode out purposefully and thumped a boundary to deep midwicket to open his scoring. Determined to depart in a blaze of glory he swashed, scoring 22 from 17 balls, and then buckled, hitting a straightforward catch to long-on off Marcus North. He was in the mood to try to clear the boundary fielders.
Flintoff was given a raucous reception as he returned to the pavilion for the last time as a Test batsman. But the volume of the new batsman's welcome was just as deafening. Stuart Broad replaced him at the wicket just as he intends to take on the role of Flintoff in the England team for the foreseeable future.
As if infected by the mood of the day Broad also batted with a certain recklessness. He, too, holed out off North after a flurry of boundaries. When the dust settles more discretion will be required from an England No7. But in the cauldron of The Oval – and with England already holding a very substantial lead – such abandon was perfectly apt.
Broad's performance here brings a rosy tint to England's prospects as a Test nation in the post-Flintoff era, but there have been other equally cheering aspects to this match. Strauss remains the future. As a batsman he has discovered that the captaincy is a boon not a burden. He plays better with responsibility and the knowledge that no one is going to drop him. Until he drove and edged a North off-break just before lunch, he batted once again with assurance, patience and deft skill.
Strauss the captain may not have the intuition or inspiration of some of his predecessors. Tactical wizardry is not his speciality, but he is calm, imperturbable and solid as a rock. He declined to panic after the debacle of Headingley, expressed faith in his team, took a deep breath and galvanised his side for this finale.
After all the frenzied speculation the selectors made one change – and what a change. Trott now has a real future, which will start back in his native South Africa, when England tour there this winter. That century brought a broad smile to Trott's face, tears to that of his mother and huge relief to the selectors.
Any worries that this occasion was too big for a debutant had been swept away by an innings more notable for its composure and pragmatism rather than breathtaking strokeplay. Trott was content to lean on his bat and watch the others play the flamboyant shots. He just got on with the business of run-making with marvellous self-possession, looking more the old pro than the tender novice. His arrival as a Test player is great news for England, though possibly not for Paul Collingwood.
The best of the exotic strokeplay came from Swann who made hay against the spinners just before tea before assaulting the second new ball after the interval. He was eventually out trying to hook Ben Hilfenhaus. Quite why Australia declined to bounce him more often is a mystery. Perhaps they were shell-shocked, despite their obvious endeavour in the field.
It had long become obvious that they had the wrong team out there. North had bowled 30 presentable overs – especially for a part-timer – but the "professional" spinner, Nathan Hauritz, should have played.
However, as the shadows lengthened there was no evidence of Australia's resolve weakening. Watson and Katich looked more likely to run themselves out than to be bowled out in the opening overs. They were so determined to be positive that they attempted desperate singles to give the innings momentum. But England could not strike with a direct hit.
For the quicker bowlers there was no encouragement; no swing for James Anderson, no uneven bounce for the big boys. There was turn for Swann and though he beat the bat a few times and had one excited lbw shout when Katich padded up, the openers held firm.
Australia are in a grand canyon of a hole but there was not a trace of resignation last night.
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