Ashes Agony

Same old England then. Looked dodgy in the first test at Cardiff, but held on by the tips of their fingers for a draw, then improving considerably to win the second at Lord's. The Ashes spirit of 2005 was once again present. We can do it were the calls, 4-0 some people said. The English (and Welsh) supporters of cricket were behind Strauss' men to pull off a remarkable comeback to what was quite frankly, a thrashing Down Under in 2006/7 (remember that? Not many English fans do!) England fans looked forward to 2-0 by the 4th day of Edgbaston. Michael Clarke and Marcus North had other ideas though, but no matter everyone said. Win at Headingley and win the series. As a certain meerkat would say, Simples! But no one expected what was to come. 102 all out on day one? Surely not! Echoes of the 51 all out collapse against the West Indies came. Maybe it's a terrible batting pitch. Erm, no. The Aussies piled on a lead and England found themselves batting to save the test. 57-0. Great start by Cook and Strauss. 87-5. Oh Dear. The middle order again. The don't fire when they need to, and even when the pressures off, 50's don't turn into 100's. Broad and Swann provided some very entertaining fireworks near the end. Possibly the most exciting batting phase of play of the whole series. But it was all in vain. England were never really going to get back in to the match, and Graham Onions' wicket gave the Aussies the equaliser they so dearly wanted. Now England are in a pickle. A misfiring middle order and they have to win the final test at the Oval to regain the Ashes. There's talk of Rob Key coming in, or Warwickshire's Jonathan Trott. Even Mark Ramprakash's name is being thrown into the hat. But one things for sure. Anything's better than what we've got at the moment!