- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Is that so much to ask? I grew up in the wonder years of Australian cricket. McGrath, Warne, Gilchrist, Gillespie, Langer, Hayden, Lee, Waugh, Martyn and yes, Ponting. These were the names that brought Australia victory, year after year. As the top team in the world, Australia was near unbeatable in every match.
But now the phrase, “You don’t know what you’ve got, till it’s gone” rings most true to me.
Now I’ll give credit where credit is due. England have put up a very talented squad this series. They have shown finesse in the field, sharp attack with the ball and some very elegant batting so far. To make matters worse, with strapping young guns like, Finn, Cook, Broad and now Tremlett, I’m personally finding it very difficult to cheer against the old enemy!
In contrast, Australia have been all over the place.
Before yesterday, we saw sloppy fielding, and a below average display with the bat and ball, with exception to Harris, Haddin and Hussey. But even the top performers on the Australian side, such as Brad Haddin, Peter Siddle and Mike Hussey have had their moments. Siddle had been unable to back up his display at the Gabba, and Haddin and Hussey had together dropped a few in the field.
Furthermore, the constant switching and shuffling of the squad have made the current Australian test team more unstable, than ever before.
And there we were.
The top of Australia’s batting order struggling to escape the duck, let alone make centuries, with our bowlers unable to find an answer to the exceptional form of England’s top order.
We have the talent, we just weren’t seeing the type of game-play necessary to win.
While we were sinking, the English were swimming. Australia, incapable of rising to the challenge – until today.
Staring down the barrel of the first Ashes defeat in Australia since 1986/87, Perth was shaping up to be our Waterloo. But we might still have a shot thanks to a resurgent Mitchell Johnson who led the fight back yesterday.
Taking 6/38, Johnson proved to selectors that the fire in his belly was still there, and with the support of some tight bowling from Siddle, Hilfenhaus and Harris, England look like goners in this test.
However, there are still some concerns with our batsmen, particularly Ponting, Hughes and Clarke who are still failing to make decent totals. Nervous moments in the field were again popping up, which is another real concern for the Australians, going into the final two tests. But one out of three ain’t all bad right?
Even so, Day Two of the Perth test has convinced me that there IS a faint glimmer of hope that Australia can take back the Ashes.
Perth was an example of what we’ve come to expect from the Australian side in an Ashes series. Now that they’re fired up, the Aussies have to be ruthless, and keep that passion, concentration and intensity on the field. It’s the only way they’ll be able to knock over this impressive England side.
They may not be the same team from the wonder years, but I don’t think we’ve lost all hope.
I’ve made my list and checked it twice. All I want for Christmas is for Australia to win back the Ashes. That’s not so much to ask.
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.