Another Bell ton puts England in box seat: T4D3

England 238 & 5/234 (74ov, Bell 105*/189b/10x4, Pietersen 44/84b/6x4, Harris 20-1-74-3, Lyon 2/46). Lead Australia 270 (89.3ov, Rogers 110/250b/14x4, Watson 68, Broad 24.3-71-5, Swann 2/48, Anderson 2/66) by 202 runs with 5 2nd inns wits in hand: T4/5 D3/5 at Chester-Le-Street Durham.

in the second half of the day Ian Bell scored his third century of the series, and with support from Kevin 

Pietersen and Jonny  Bairstow, stroked England ahead of Australia and well on the way to an impregnable position.

At the end of the previous day's play Australia's situation looked potentially good. But while the worst case scenario didn't come to pass the fact that the last 5 wickets, including Chris Rogers, who made only 5 of them. added a less than expected 48 must have given England some heart. But Australia had a first innings lead, which should have done likewise for them.

And the English top order crumbled yet again, this time in the face of some superb bowling by Ryan Harris (watch a replay of him bowling Joe Root if you can). At 3/49 - effectively 3/17 -  it seemed that the match was pivoting back towards Australia.

Enter Ian Bell. Over the ensuing hours he once again imposed his skills and determination on the match, and in doing so has probably saved his team from defeat and possibly, depending on what happens in the first part of D4, set up a win. Masterful (again).

As if Bell's performance isn't enough Australia look like being a player down for the rest of the Match, as Shane Watson has apparently succumbed yet again to (unspecified) injury/injuries. His bowling will be missed but his batting will be required if Australia is to have much of a chance of chasing down a target of 250+ which the pundits, eg Shane Warne & Andrew Strauss, have suggested will be  sufficient, and which the scorecard suggests is more than likely. 

<ahref="http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2013/engine/current/match/566934.html">Scorecard </a>

Bell's toll mounts before Smith tweaks Australia back into game: T1 D1

England 7/289 (89ov, Bell 109/211b/16x4, Bairstow 67/146b/7x4, Trott 58/87b/11x4, Smith 3/18, Harris 3/43) v Australia; T2/5 D1/5 at Lord's, London. England won toss and chose to bat.

On a hot London day Australia made early inroads into the England batting, from which point Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell and Jonny Bairstow regained the initiative. They took the total from 3/28 to 4/127 and 4/183 at tea, when I went to bed...and caught up with what happened subsequently on the Fox Sports highlights.

In the last part of the final session Steven Smith reminded us that he is now a batter who can bowl leg spin (not the reverse as was the case when he came intoTest cricket in the last Ashes series). First he induced Bell to edge a pitch perfect turning legbreak to slip, next c&bing Bairstow off a low full toss (the kind you some see in shorter forms of the game) and then having Matt Prior caught behind off a quicker straight ball.

5/271, 6/274, 7/283 pulled England up, but they wouldn't feel that they'd had a bad day. They had one piece of good fortune when Bairstow was bowled neck and crop by Siddle: a delivery which was adjudged by the third umpire to be a no ball ( after watching it for the umpteenth time I am beginning to see why  the official came to that conclusion). Yet he, Trott and,especially, the mature - in both temporal and stylistic senses of the word- Bell combatively responded to some high quality Australian bowling and took advantage of some of moderate quality.

Ryan Harris, restored to the eleven at the expense of Mitchell Starc, took early wickets and thereafter, bowling in short spells to keep his frail body fit for combat, kept England restrained, which he needed to do as neither James Pattinson nor Ashton Agar were able to bowl a consistent line and length. But without Smith's late intervention the Australians would not have slept so easily as I hope they did.

So who's in front? If I have to make a call I'd say England, but the First Test showed that the sides are evenly matched, and the first day's play confirmed this. The weather forecast is very good - more Australian than UKish- so there should be plenty of good cricket to look forward to. 

<a href= "http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2013/engine/match/566933.html"> Scorecard</a>

Trivia

* Start of play was delayed by The Queen's visit 

* The Sky scorer pointed out that early in England's innings the 10,000th leg bye in Test cricket was nudged up. Think of it 

* Of the teams presented to Her Majesty only the two captains wore blazers: aren't the rank and file issued with them any more?

England set for victory? T1D4

Australia 280 & 6/174 (71.0 ov, Rogers 52/121b/ 8x4, Watson 46/74b/8x4) need another 137 runs with 4 wkts in hand to beat England 215 & 375 (149.5 ov, Bell 109/267b/15x4 Broad 65/148b/7x4, Pietersen 64/150b/12x4, Cook 50/165b/6x4, Starc 3/81, Siddle 3/85); T1/5 D4/5 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham.

England gained the upper hand late on what a friend watching in Derbyshire confirmed to be a hot Nottingham day (which is not quite the same as a hot Adelaide day).

Despite taking the last 4 England wickets for 49 and embarking solidly upon the long fourth innings haul towards 311, Australia once again faltered with the bat, leaving it tenuously placed. On the last day they need something less (though maybe not much less) than a miracle, something more than a very good performance, to win.

It was another intriguing day, though at the end disappointing to Australian supporters.

Neither Ian Bell, who moved from 95 to 109, Stuart Broad, 47 to 65, nor the last three  - 9 runs between them- inflicted much more damage upon Australia, for whom Shane Watson started assertively and Chris Rogers solidly.

0/28 at lunch made it nobody's session. In the middle session both Watson and Ed Cowan fell, each of them just as it seemed that the visitors were coming back into contention. Cowan's dismissal, on the stroke of tea to  part timer Joe Root, was particularly galling. Fortunately Rogers was reprieved by the DRS which overturned a decision in the same class as Aleem Dar's yesterday, (for either lbw or caught behind) when it was clear to my unaided eye that the ball had passed nowhere near bat, body or stumps.

2/111 meant Australia were still in the game, if not on top. But  at 124 Rogers, who'd looked very solid in making 52, pulled Jimmy Anderson to midwicket. Michael Clarke, looking uncharacteristically scratchy, and Steven Smith, more restrained than in the first innings, looked to be regrouping, but at 161 Clarke fell to Broad, after another pause from Umpire Dar and subsequent DRS (the Cricinfo description of the dismissal must be one of the longest ever -click on the Scorecard to read it).

Then Graeme Swann, who hitherto had looked steady without looking dangerous, had both Steven Smith and Phil Hughes adjudged lbw - the latter subject a poor call by umpire Dharmasena and upheld by Hawkeye, which showed a slender majority of the ball just pitching in line.

So that left Brad Haddin and Ashton Agar - promoted to no 8, not sent in a nightwatchman I believe, to hold the fort until stumps.

They did this but it's asking a lot for them and the three to follow to get Australia over the line from here. Gideon Haigh, speaking on Offsiders today seemed optimistic about Australia's chamces. Much as I adnire his assessments I disagree with him on this one.

Last might I turned down the TV, turned in and listened on the radio until I fell asleep, waking at 3:14 by the bedside clock to the broad Yorkshire tones of Geoff Boycott.

I don't expect to be doing that again tonight, but will treat myself to a glass or two of red by the fire and wait resignedly to see what happens.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
Scorecard

Cook and Bell bat Australia out of match and series: T5/D3

England 7/488 (141 ov, A Cook 189, I Bell 115, A Strauss 60. M Prior 54*) lead Australia 280 by 208 runs with 3 first innings wickets in hand: T5 D3 at SCG.

England batted through the day adding 4/323 from 93 overs and by doing so snuffed out any hopes Australia might have had achieving a first innings lead or, more realistically, a relatively small deficit.

After nightwatchman Jimmy Anderson and Paul Collingwood both fell cheaply (the latter giving Michael Beer his first Test wicket). Alistair Cook and Ian Bell put England 100 in front before Cook, having been rightly reprieved on 99 by the UDRS, was out for a commanding 189/342b (16x4). Bell, who on 67 was also let off by the UDRS when perhaps the original decision should have stood, and Matt Prior, added another 107 before Bell fell for 115/232b (13x4) his first century against Australia. Prior's brisk 54*/59b (1x6, 5x4) was just right for the situation.

The Australian bowling? It was another day of honest trundling. There were a few edges but too few balls which beat the bat. Shane Watson was probably the best, and that's not saying much.

Not that I want or need to say much. England are well on course heading for another victory and series win, both of which they well deserve. I'm now going to watch a more even match: South Africa v India at Cape Town.


Scorecard

Siddle's special day with hat trick gives Australia upper hand : T1D1

Australia 0/25 (7 ov) are 235 runs behind England 260 (76.5 ov, I Bell 76, A Cook 67, P Siddle 6/54 inc hat trick) Ashes T1/5, D 1/5 at the Gabba, Brisbane.

At tea England were 4/172 and seemed to have had slightly the better of the day's play.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat they'd recovered from the hiccups of 1/0 (Andrew Strauss caught in the gully off the match's and Ben Hilfenhaus' third ball) and 4/125. Paul Collingwood 4 had failed, while Jonathan Trott 29/53b and Kevin Pietersen 43/70b couldn't build on promising starts but Alistair Cook and Ian Bell looked solid.

After the interval Cook and Bell continued the recovery until, at 197, England's wheels fell off in one over. Peter Siddle, who many (including me) wondered whether he should have been included at the expense of Doug Bollinger, induced Cook to edge to slip, then next ball bowled Matt Prior. He completed his hat trick by trapping Stuart Broad lbw with his next.

One well set batsman, as Cook's 67/168b (5x4) suggests, one with a record as a good lower order player and the third with a recent Test century under his belt: not a bad trio of scalps. And all on his birthday!

After this Bell tried to rally the tail, with moderate success. Graeme Swann became Siddle's sixth victim before Bell, when 76/131b (8x4), hit out and gave Xavier Doherty his first Test wicket. Doherty, who'd earlier in the day not yielded to Pietersen's attempt to knock him off his length, polished off Jimmy Anderson to return a respectable 2/41 on debut.

But it was Siddle's 16-3-54-6 which has put Australia well on top after D1. The conditions gave some assistance to the bowlers, so 260, while a disappointing total, may not be a bad one. Provided, that is, the the England attack performs as well as its recent reputation has led many English supporters to hope, and Australians, bearing in mind their shaky batting order, to fear.

Scorecard

Fox Sports coverage with links to video

Update(s)

Yesterday was fine and not too hot so I got off the couch, gave the cricket on TV a miss and went walking.

After D3 of the matches in these parts Ian Bell's 192/275b (1x6, 22x4) and Paul Collingwood's 89/117b (1x6, 10x4) have ensured that Australia A 230 & 3/128 are struggling against the England XI 523 .

In the Sheffield Shield Tasmania scraped home by 1wicket against NSW , Mike Hussey's second innings 118 muted the sceptics' voices and helped Western Australia to a strong position against Victoria , while South Australia lost 5/19 in yet another collapse , which allowed Queensland to win by 5 wickets .

.

England hold on once again for draw : T3 D5

South Africa 293 and 7/447d drew with England 273 and 9/296 (141 ov, I Bell 78, A Cook 55): T3 D5 at Cape Town

I turned in at tea time (ie nudging midnight in these parts) when Paul Collingwood 39* and Ian Bell 68* looked well set and, despite some hostile South African bowling from Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, England 5/230 looked to be heading for a comfortable draw.

Draw it was but comfortable it wasn't. I woke to watch the highlights and to discover that the South Africans had made a final effort which had almost succeeded. For the second time in three Tests England, in the person of Graham Onions, held on for a draw, and the home side were one good (or lucky) ball away from victory. Not that they didn't bowl many good balls, just not one that was good enough. In the last over Morne Morkel appeared to have Onions caught behind but replays showed that it brushed his sleeve not his bat (and vindicated the decision of the recently much maligned umpire Harper)

A 1-0 series lead is not a fair reflection of the merits of the two sides but that's the way Test cricket works. Australia couldn't force a win at Cardiff in T1 of last year's Ashes, and their failure seemed, just as the get out of jail draw at Centurion in T1 did, to inspire England to regroup and win the next Test.

There's a few days before the last Test begins and it will be very interesting to see if and how the South Africans can restore their self-belief. The team that they fielded at Newlands had no major weaknesses, though there will be some pondering about the value of Ashwell Prince and Paul Harris. England are not infallible either, as the large South African second innings showed, and Kevin Pietersen is overdue for a mid-range let alone a big score.


Scorecard

England sweep South Africa aside and head towards victory : T2 D4

South Africa 343 & 6/76 (32 ov) trail England 9/575d (170 ov, A Cook 118, I Bell 141, M Prior 60)by 156 runs with 4 second innings wickets in hand: T2 D4 at Durban.

England added 4/189 in sunshine to its overnight 5/386 before reducing South Africa to 6/76 as gloom (both literal and metaphorical) descended over Durban. This is not to let the home team off the hook: Test match days don't come much more one-sided than this, particularly when honours on the preceding ones have been fairly evenly divided.

There were several very good performances from England players, including Graeme Swann's 3/22 from 12 ov and Stuart Broad's 3/18 from 9, but the standout one was Ian Bell's 141/227b (1x6, 10x4).

I've not been alone in thinking that Bell was the weak link in the England batting chain, but this innings has proved me wrong. Sure, he began tentatively on D3 but once he'd found his touch he kept propelling his team into a strong position. And there was more: when South Africa batted again he caught Ashwell Prince at short leg off Swann, which precipitated a collapse from 1/27 to 6/50. Mark Boucher and Morne Morkel held on until the umpires decided that the light was too bad, but at 6/76 with a further 156 runs required to make England bat again surely, despite the surprises of D4, only bad weather can save the Proteas. If it does that will be unfair to England.

Scorecard

Sunshine transforms Durban and England batting: T2 D3

England 5/386 (123 ov, A Cook 118, P Collingwood 91, M Bell 55*) lead South Africa 343 on first innings by 43 runs with 5 first innings in hand: T1 D3 at Durban.

The sun came out at Durban, helping to change the nature of the pitch and the match. Some doughty batting from Alistair Cook 118/263b (11x4) and Paul Collingwood 91/215b (7x4) put England well on the road to a first innings lead. In the last session Ian Bell overcame some initial discomfort against Morne Morkel to push the total along with a fluent 55*/84b (1x6, 5x4).

Good as the English batting was, the South African bowling contributed to this. Morkel excepted, it looked ordinary for most of the time. On the evidence of the series to date Makhaya Ntini is not worth his place. On D3 he was better than on D2 but rarely looked more than steady. He has an admirable record but there are other considerations which the selectors will bear in mind when the team for the next Test is chosen. Paul Harris also bowled (to continue in damn-with-faint-praise vein) steadily, yet his 1/92 from 23 ov didn't look as impressive as J P Duminy's 1/39 from 13. Most batters can survive against him by watchful waiting, waiting that is for the far from uncommon loose balls.

With three days gone and the England first innings still in progress a draw looks the likeliest result, and the one which South Africa is probably already resigned to. An England win isn't out of the question but its 4-specialist-bowler attack will need to lift against the solid and deep South African batting, not to mention the pitch.

Scorecard

Uneven batting, bowling and pitch make for an interesting match: Ashes 09 T5 D1

England 8/307 (85.3 ov, I Bell 72, A Strauss 55, P Siddle 4/63) v Australia: Ashes 2009 T5 D1 at The Oval, London.

Australia fielded an unchanged eleven , and England won the toss and chose to bat. The game therefore started without one side having a clear advantage over the other.

The home team gained the upper hand by scoring 1/108 from 26 often wayward Australian overs in the first session. Andrew Strauss looked in good touch, and Ian Bell vulnerable, yet it was the captain who fell soon after the interval, lbw to Ben Hilfenhaus (off a no-ball overlooked by Umpire Bowden) for 55 (101b, 11x4).

Bell continued to tough it out as the Australian attack tightened up and the pitch to reveal a few tricks. At tea he was 72* and England 3/180 from 53 overs.

Immediately after tea Bell was out bowled Peter Siddle without adding to his 72 (137b, 10x4)
Nobody was able to match either Bell or Strauss as, over the rest of the longish ( 32.3 overs) final session Australia, led by Siddle with the ball and energised by Simon Katich's brilliant runout of new boy Jonathan Trott for a promising 41, looked to have clawed their way back into the game.

On paper, especially as so many critics were talking about a par score of 450 give or take a few, Australia are on top. Given that they have yet to bat and will probably have to bat last, I'm not willing .
to venture any predictions.


Scorecard