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Opinion
It’s time for the final eight teams, as we return to see who takes out the Alphabet Ashes.
For the concept and the methodology, please refer to Part 1. To remind you of where we stand after Part 2, we head to the final eight teams with Australia leading nine wins to England’s six. In terms of aggregate points, however, Australia has a slight advantage at 397 to 393.5.
So who will come out on top in this battle for the ages? Read on.
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Graham Gooch | Sid Gregory |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Tom Graveney | George Giffen (captain) |
| 3 | WG Grace (right arm slow) | Ross Gregory |
| 4 | David Gower | Jack Gregory |
| 5 | Mike Gatting | Harry Graham |
| 6 | Tony Greig (captain) (right arm medium, off spin) | Adam Gilchrist (WK) |
| 7 | Billy Griffith (WK) | Gary Gilmour |
| 8 | Ashley Giles (left arm orthodox) | Tom Garrett |
| 9 | Arthur Gilligan (right arm fast-medium) | Jason Gillespie |
| 10 | Darren Gough (right arm fast-medium) | Johnny Gleeson |
| 11 | George Geary (right arm fast-medium) | Clarrie Grimmett |
| Score | 36 out of 50 | 38 out of 50 |
Verdict: Australia again. England have a powerhouse batting line-up here, earning 18.5 out of a possible 20, but where are all their great bowlers? The lionhearted Darren Gough is left with competent support at best, plus a great all-rounder. The King of Spain was a defensive spinner averaging over 40. And there is no comparison when it comes to the wicketkeepers. I back the stacked Australian bowling attack spearheaded by Grimmett, Gillespie and Gregory to take down the English here.
England 6 Australia 10 (429.5 total points to 435)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Marcus Trescothick | Mark Taylor (captain) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Chris Tavare | Victor Trumper |
| 3 | Jonathan Trott | Grahame Thomas |
| 4 | Ernest Tyldesley | Michael Taylor |
| 5 | Graeme Thorpe (captain) | Johnny Taylor |
| 6 | James Taylor | Albert Trott |
| 7 | Maurice Tate (right arm medium-fast) | Don Tallon (WK) |
| 8 | Fred Titmus (off spin) | Hugh Trumble |
| 9 | Bob Taylor (WK) | Charlie Turner |
| 10 | Fred Trueman (right arm fast) | Ernie Toshack |
| 11 | Frank Tyson (right arm fast) | Jeff Thomson |
| Score | 38.5 out of 50 | 38.5 out of 50 |
Verdict: We have our first dead heat. And look out everyone, as the Typhoon takes on Thommo in a rough-and-tumble battle for the ages! Taylor and Trumper win the battle of the openers, but England have a truly great middle order. Finally, England’s pace bowlers make an appearance and this gains them some points, but Hugh Trumble shades the more defensive Fred Titmus in the off-spin showdown. We are witnessing two of the finest pure keepers in history but Tallon could bat just a little better. In Albert Trott, Australia have a true all-rounder, while England have no options at all to give their pace battery a rest. Australia have the advantage in captaincy, but England have more experience. In the end they could not be split.
England 6 Australia 10 ties 1 (468 total points to 473.5)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Bert Sutcliffe | Bob Simpson (captain) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Andrew Strauss (captain) | Michael Slater |
| 3 | Raman Subba Row | Keith Stackpole |
| 4 | Arthur Shrewsbury | Steve Smith |
| 5 | Robin Smith | Paul Sheahan |
| 6 | Ben Stokes (right arm fast-medium) | Andrew Symonds |
| 7 | Alec Stewart (WK) | Wade Seccombe (WK) |
| 8 | Graeme Swann (off spin) | Mitchell Starc |
| 9 | Brian Statham (right arm fast-medium) | Peter Siddle |
| 10 | Ryan Sidebottom (left arm medium-fast) | Fred Spofforth |
| 11 | John Snow (right arm fast) | Jack Saunders |
| Score | 43.5 out of 50 | 40.5 out of 50 |
Verdict: England win this battle of the heavyweights. There are some delicious match-ups here, not least being Stokes versus Symonds in the pub afterwards! Two great batting combinations cancel each other out, with Alec Stewart’s superior batting at keeper gaining England a small advantage. For once, England’s bowling wins them the contest. The pace batteries are both excellent but the presence of Stokes tips the balance. In Graeme Swann England have a match-winner. At 43.5 out of 50 this England S team are only half a point from the highest score of any team in the competition.
England 7 Australia 10 ties 1 (511.5 total points to 514)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Albert Ward | David Warner |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Cyril Washbrook | Kepler Wessels |
| 3 | Frank Woolley (left arm medium) | Bill Woodfull (captain) |
| 4 | Bob Woolmer | Mark Waugh |
| 5 | Allan Watkins (left arm medium-fast) | Steve Waugh |
| 6 | Craig White (right arm fast-medium) | Doug Walters |
| 7 | Chris Woakes (right arm fast-medium) | Matthew Wade (WK) |
| 8 | Henry Wood (WK) | Shane Warne |
| 9 | Johnny Wardle (left arm orthodox/wrist spin) | Max Walker |
| 10 | Mark Wood (right arm fast) | Bill Whitty |
| 11 | Bob Willis (captain) (right arm fast) | Mike Whitney |
| Score | 35 out of 50 | 42 out of 50 |
Verdict: England come back to earth with a thud. The bowling is excellent, with one great (Bob Willis – a career average of just over 25) and a heap of decent options. But the batting is pretty average. Washbrook was an excellent batsman but the others mostly average in the mid 30s and it drops away quickly, with White and Woakes at six and seven. Contrast the two middle orders. And then there is the Warne factor.
England 7 Australia 11 ties 1 (546.5 total points to 556)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Len Hutton | Mike Hussey |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Jack Hobbs | Matt Hayden |
| 3 | Wally Hammond (right arm medium fast) | Neil Harvey |
| 4 | Nasser Hussain (captain) | Clem Hill |
| 5 | Patsy Hendren | Lindsay Hassett |
| 6 | Graeme Hick | Kim Hughes |
| 7 | Joe Humphries (WK) | Ian Healy (WK) |
| 8 | Dean Headley (right arm fast-mediu) | Ranji Hordern |
| 9 | Mike Hendrick (right arm fast-medium) | Ryan Harris |
| 10 | Steve Harmison (right arm fast) | Merv Hughes |
| 11 | Matthew Hoggard (right arm fast-medium) | Josh Hazlewood |
| Score | 34.5 out of 50 | 42 out of 50 |
Verdict: Well, this is an interesting one, I’m not sure how there is such a margin. Look at that top three! England get a perfect ten their opening combination of Hutton and Hobbs, possibly their two greatest ever batsmen. And it’s nine from ten for their middle order, mainly due to Hammond, another contender for greatest ever England batsman. The thing is, Australia got those numbers as well. England’s pace bowling just about matches the Australians but you might notice there is literally no spinner. Hick took 23 Test wickets with 50-plus average off spin, while Hutton took three with very part-time leg breaks. So one from ten. Finally, there is no contest at wicketkeeper.
England 7 Australia 12 ties 1 (581 total points to 598)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Geoffrey Boycott | Warren Bardsley |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Mike Brearley (captain) | Bill Brown |
| 3 | Ken Barrington | Don Bradman |
| 4 | Ian Bell | David Boon |
| 5 | Trevor Bailey | Allan Border |
| 6 | Ian Botham | Sid Barnes |
| 7 | Johnny Bairstow | Richie Benaud (captain) |
| 8 | Stuart Broad | Andy Bichel |
| 9 | Johnny Briggs | Jack Blackham (WK) |
| 10 | Alec Bedser | Jackson Bird |
| 11 | Syd Barnes | Doug Bollinger |
| Score | 43 out of 50 | 42.5 out of 50 |
Verdict: England just win this heavyweight stoush. Australia just take out the batting thanks to Bradman and England’s non-playing captain. Australia also have the better keeper and they easily edge the lower order batting – when Stuart Broad is at eight, you are in trouble. But England have a significant advantage in pace bowling. Barnes is the greatest and when you add Botham, Bedser and Broad it’s about as good as it gets. This and the lack of an all-round option for Australia (Benaud is a specialist bowler here) just gets England over the line. Barnes to Bradman – I’d pay to see that.
England 8 Australia 12 ties 1 (624 total points to 640.5)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Brian Luckhurst | Bill Lawry (captain) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | David Lloyd | Justin Langer |
| 3 | Alan Lamb | Marnus Labuschagne |
| 4 | Geoffrey Legge | Martin Love |
| 5 | Maurice Leyland | Stuart Law |
| 6 | James Langridge (left arm orthodox) | Darren Lehmann |
| 7 | Dick Lilley (WK) | Ray Lindwall |
| 8 | Jim Laker (off spin) | Brett Lee |
| 9 | Tony Lock (captain) (left arm orthodox) | Gil Langley (WK) |
| 10 | Harold Larwood | Dennis Lillee |
| 11 | George Lohmann | Nathan Lyon |
| Score | 38 out of 50 | 42.5 out of 50 |
Verdict: A no-contest win to Australia. The pace bowling for both sides is great, but Australia’s is greater. Lillee and Lindwall sustained their excellence over a longer period and England have no third seamer. But England get a full ten for their all-time great spinners. England’s batting, however, is really poor. ‘Bumble’ Lloyd of Thommo and the box fame was underrated, but the openers don’t hold a candle to the Australian combination. The middle orders just about cancel each other out mainly due to lack of opportunity on the Australian side. England shade the keeper battle but they have very little lower-order batting. Geoffrey Legge, of course, bowled part-time leg spin.
England 8 Australia 13 ties 1 (662 total points to 683)
| England | Australia | |
| 1 | Colin Milburn | Arthur Morris |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Archie MacLaren | Charles MaCartney |
| 3 | Peter May (Captain) | Stan McCabe |
| 4 | Harry Makepeace | Damien Martyn |
| 5 | Phil Mead | Billy Murdoch (captain) |
| 6 | Eoin Morgan | Keith Miller |
| 7 | Alfred Mynn (right arm fast) | Rod Marsh (WK) |
| 8 | John Murray (WK) | Garth McKenzie |
| 9 | Alan Mullally (left arm fast-medium) | Craig McDermott |
| 10 | Devon Malcolm (right arm fast) | Stuart MacGill |
| 11 | Charles Marriott (leg spin) | Glenn McGrath |
| Score | 38 out of 50 | 44 out of 50 |
Verdict: Australia finish off with a comfortable victory. England go out with a whimper, with Alan Mullally trying to bowl to Arthur Morris and Keith Miller. The England openers and middle order are very good, but shaded by their Australian opponents. The England openers average 33 each (although for MacLaren’s time that was very good). May and Mead both average high 40s but Makepeace and Morgan are a step down. Ideally the great all-rounder Alfred Mynn should be in the top six, but I simply couldn’t find enough bowlers. Malcolm was fast but erratic, and Mullally was willing but limited. Compared that to Australia’s pace battery led by Glenn McGrath and Keith Miller. Marriott took 11 wickets in his only Test and I’ve marked him generously. Australia win the battle of the keepers by a landslide. Finally we have Alfred Mynn, who passed away a decade before Test cricket even began. Mynn had a first-class batting average of 13.5 and a bowling average of just over ten, but these numbers don’t mean a lot. Mynn was considered the greatest English player before WG Grace and definitely adds to this side. But as all-rounders go, Australia has Keith Miller. Australia by a knockout.
England 8 Australia 14 ties 1 (700 total points to 727)
Australia take out the Alphabet Ashes quite comfortably in the end.
This was a surprising result for me. I expected England’s greater depth of player would have more of an effect. But possibly by having such a large pool to choose from, they chop and change and don’t allow players to grow into Test cricket. Maybe also the grind of the county circuit doesn’t lend itself to all-out brilliance. Or maybe I just have my ratings wrong. Whatever the reason, we have a winner.
And finally, let’s have a quick look at the highest ranking Australian team up against the best letter England has to offer. I’ll leave you to come to your own conclusions on that one.
| England – S team | Australia – M team | |
| 1 | Bert Sutcliffe | Arthur Morris |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Andrew Strauss (captain) | Charles MaCartney |
| 3 | Raman Subba Row | Stan McCabe |
| 4 | Arthur Shrewsbury | Billy Murdoch (captain) |
| 5 | Robin Smith | Damien Martyn |
| 6 | Ben Stokes (right arm fast-medium) | Keith Miller |
| 7 | Alec Stewart (WK) | Rod Marsh (WK) |
| 8 | Graeme Swann (off spin) | Stuart MacGill |
| 9 | Brian Statham (right arm fast-medium) | Garth McKenzie |
| 10 | Ryan Sidebottom (left arm medium-fast) | Craig McDermott |
| 11 | John Snow (right arm fast) | Glenn McGrath |
| Score | 43.5 out of 50 | 44 out of 50 |
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