England: Third in a row!

We are the Champions!

As expected, England protected The Ashes on its home soil and sowed some seeds to prepare for the return series in Australian summer. Before start of the series, England was definitely favourite contender to win the prestigious titan - The Ashes. Australia, on the the other hand, though not considered to reverse the favourable result was expected to clash with the throne-bearers to create an elusive factor, so that there would be at least a positive gain when Clarke again tosses the coin in the reciprocal series down under in few month's time. But England didn't allow Australia to win even a single match. In a game's perspective, it is mandatory to take twenty wickets, if you desire to win test matches. But it is equally important to score a competitive total to lessen the burden on the bowlers. England did it precisely. Out of the three tests it won, two were close encounters which could have favoured any of the teams, but as England's batsmen contributed cumulatively, the victory along with ashes preferred to stay with England.

Though Cook failed to play notable innings in this series, his other mates, particularly Bell, supported by handy and some crucial innings by Joe Route, Pietersen, Trott, Bairstaw ensured healthy score of the team on pitches that generally pamper the bowler.

Australia, a team known for its deligence few years back is facing a steep challenge to maintain even its average performance. The aura has faded away. (Transition-phase, they name it as to the current dubious performance.) Yes, if we look at the leadership aspect of Clarke, he was up to the task, strategically and tactically, but the resources which were expected to implement the plan could not stretch themselves enough to touch the benchmark set by the English players.

How to come back on track??

This series has also put DRS under scanner. Manipulation, or say ambiguity in using DRS marred this series as both the teams received shocking decisions at the key point, but Australia paid a heavy price of it. DRS has to be continued by removing some flaws in it, as it helps to control some errors made by umpires. It should be used just like the third umpires giving their decisions for run out and stumping. Decision should be displayed on the screen independently.

In this series, Cook's defensive approach was also a talking point. His strategy - 'If you can't control the game, don't let the opposition gain control over it', was bit negative. Spread-out field or playing dead overs while batting was indication of go-safe. He had used it in India too, when they toured last year. But ultimately, captain judges the situation and has the onus of extracting the best result.

The proud captain

After every match, Australian supporters and former players kept giving the past Ashes references and hoped for the rise of the Australian team. All this could not prevent the third straight Ashes defeat. But again they can hope and say - come down under Australian summer, we will continue.

To be continued...

Ritesh R. Kadam
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