Third Ashes Test, Edgbaston (Day 2 of 5)
England 116-2 v Australia 263 (Stumps)
Chris O'Keefe
It seemed set for Australia on the second morning as Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting went out to bat. Graham Onions was asked to bowl the first over of the morning having gone at seven runs per over the previous evening. Then Onions ran up to bowl!
First ball, he trapped Watson in front - out lbw - and the Edgbaston crowd roared their approval. The perfect start, that was until Mike Hussey gift wrapped something better. The left-hander didn't play to a straight ball that took out clipped his off stump leaving Hussey looking stupid. Onions smiling and the Edgbaston shouting "Cheerio" to a man leaving a tail between his legs.
Although Onions failed to get a hat-trick he had already set in motion an England bowling display so different from the first days anti-climax. When the Durham paceman removed Ponting with a short ball edged to Matt Prior Australia were 163-4 and their good work undone.
So if Australia hoped for an escape from the morning torture, James Anderson's swing bowling masterclass confirmed their fate. The Lancastrian worked over the middle and lower order, first removing Clarke with a questionable lbw decision and then removing Marcus North. Matt Prior took a superb catch, one handed, in front of Andrew Strauss as England reached the Australian tail and started to eat away instantly.
Mitchell Johnson failed to play a shot to a ball that swung in from Anderson. It looked out, but replays show the ball going over the top. Graham Manou was dismissed on the stroke of lunch to give Anderson his fourth wicket of the morning. England had taken 7 for 77 and were left with only the tail-enders to mop up.
Australia tail-enders managed to score 60 after lunch before being bowled and Anderson claimed a fifth wicket and Onions a fourth. Then set about making inroads into the hosts batting. The breakthrough came in the second over. The problem for the new ball pair of Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus was that they couldn't swing the ball like Anderson and Onions!
However, they did remove opener Alastair Cook - a first Test catch for Manou off Siddle - for a duck but that was as good as it got. Andrew Strauss and Ravi Bopara shared a 50 partnership to see England to tea at 56-1. Then Bopara threw away his wicket with a loose shot to be bowled by Hilfenhaus. Once again though, England this time with Bell to partner Strauss played comfortably as Australia toiled. Only the light saved Australia from more punishment as the hosts closed just 146 behind the Australians.
Onions later said England's patience was key to the change in fortunes adding, "We were probably impatient on Thursday, but today we showed patience, put the ball in right areas and we were rewarded."
The tourists captain Ricky Ponting was optimistic about his side's fortunes despite events on Day Two suggesting that England couldn't swing the ball until around over 35, which is where his side are up to with the ball.
Ponting who became the highest scoring Australian in Test Cricket said: "Hopefully we can keep working on it and get a little cloud cover tomorrow and have a similar morning as England did today."
Image: BBC Sport Online
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