The Cricket blog

Another promising Eng-Aus encounter ends in a lull..

After srilanka chased down New zealand's 165 the other night, England vs australia promised much funfare as the rivals met ahead of the ashes. England had got to a steady start reaching 83-0 after Australia put them in to bat. The departure of Ian bell however started the downfall which saw england only manage a partly 169, which is not enough on the board, esp against the champions. Their strategy of promoting Kevin peiterson backfired as Johnson got the better of him by welcoming him with a bouncer and planning his exit by following up with a short of length delivery which was nicked back to gilchrist. Flintoff was sent back soon with  a similar ploy and the england team lost advantage of the momentum provided by the openers. For consolation, England picked up 3 quick wickets and had australia reeling at 34-3, but martyn played a classy innnings worth his salt for the place in the side. Played by the book and in a stylish class of his own, martyn was a delight to watch as he confidently hammered perfect crisp boundaries whenever the opportunity presented itself. England dropped one catch which could have possibly send him back, but the result was in australia's favor due to the partnership with Hussey.Australia's strategy of unsettling batsmen with their bouncers, verbal comments and touch pyschology paid dividends once again. Why could not england do the same ? Why can't all teams learn from the australians? Instead of thinking that they are robots who have the potential to win every tournament they play why cannot teams emulate them  only to better them? What is it that makes them champions so better than the rest of the teams?