I Would Be Licking My Lips Facing England - McGrath
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The Australian team to fight back and claim victory in the first Ashes Test as decisively as they did, one questions what psychological damage will be inflicted upon the England team.
How will they respond for the rest of series?
Surprising Comeback
I do not think anyone anticipated what transpired on Saturday. When you look at the quantity of deliveries required to complete the game, it was the longest format on fast forward.
England were clearly dominant at the midday break on the second day, 105 ahead with nine wickets in hand. The playing surface was still offering assistance. It looked extremely difficult for Australia to re-enter the match.
Shot Selection Woes
From that moment, England's shot selection was their big undoing. Scott Boland put in arguably his poorest performance in an national colors in the first innings, then turned it around in the second to be the catalyst for the comeback.
England's batters were out trying to hit balls wide of off-stump, on the up, through the covers.
Trying to score off those bowls, with those shots, is the one thing you just do not do as a batter in Australia.
Adaptation Issues
It showed that England had failed to complete their preparation, are not able to adjust or are unwilling to change approach.
There is much discussion about England's approach, their aggressive style. I observed it up close during the recent series in the UK. Under their captain and Brendon McCullum, they can be pretty stubborn when it comes to sticking with that strategy.
It is acceptable on sluggish pitches. On the fast, bouncy pitches of Australia it is a method full of danger. If England do not reassess, they will struggle for the entire series.
Bowling Perspective
As a paceman, I would have always felt in the game against this England team.
I depended on my precision, having confidence to land the identical area around off stump, with a bit of bounce and movement.
Even if this England team was performing strongly, I'd be licking my lips at the prospect of facing them, aware one mistake could result in multiple wickets.
Quality and Mental Toughness
There are times when England can be a high-quality team. They have good players. Competent cricketers have skill, but exceptional athletes have the mental toughness and mindset to be adaptable enough for the situation.
They would been shellshocked at the way events developed at Perth Stadium, devastated at the way they were beaten. Now we will see what they are capable of. Even as a true blue Australian, part of me wants to see them adapt, just to show they can improve.
Pace Attack Issues
It was similar with their pace attack. England's bowling unit was very good on the first evening, then lost the plot when they were attacked on the following day.
In the longest format, all disciplines require a backup strategy. Quite often it seems England have a single approach, then no alternatives if that does not work.
'Where has this come from?' - Starc bowls Root as England collapse in six balls
Head's Masterclass
In defense to England's pace attack, they were confronted with one of the memorable Ashes innings by the Australian batsman.
His 69-ball hundred was the second quickest by an Australian man in the historic rivalry, 12 balls behind the legendary keeper at the Waca 19 years ago – a match I participated in.
My former teammate Gilly said the performance was the better of the two. I concur. Considering the challenging nature of the wicket and the situation of the game circumstances, the innings will go down as a moment of Ashes history.
Strategic Decisions
It was a courageous move for Australia to promote the batsman up the order for the follow-on.
Usman Khawaja has copped it for being failing to start in either innings. He had muscle issues after playing the sport the day before the Test, but I do not believe the two were connected.
When Khawaja failed on the opening day, Australia promoted Marnus Labuschagne and got bogged down.
In moving Head, who has the experience of opening in white-ball cricket, Australia were able to go on offensive to England.
Upcoming Decisions
Now there is the question of what Australia will do for the second Test. I'd like to see them continue the approach of aggression at the beginning.
That could mean Head remains, meaning someone like the all-rounder comes into the batting lineup, or Head could go back to his position and Mitchell Marsh or Josh Inglis could move to the opening. It would be difficult for the batsman, but sometimes you have to do what the rival team would find most challenging.
Tournament Perspective
After the opening match was controlled by the pace attack, some are wondering if the remaining series will be short, low-scoring Tests.
The venue is essentially the quickest, liveliest pitch in the world, so the batsmen should get a some respite from now on.
It is not entirely about the pitch. Recognition has to be awarded to the pacemen for delivering the ball in the correct areas consistently. Overall, batters on both sides will need to analyze how they got themselves out.
Pivotal Match
Now we progress to the next venue, and the vastly different day-night conditions for the following match.
In the historic series, I was part of the national side that dominated England to achieve 5-0. Ashes series in this nation have a habit of getting away from England quickly.
At the moment, England are only 1-0 down. There would be no recovery from two down, which is why the venue is such a crucial game.
They must adapt, or the Ashes will be lost once more.
