After the early competitive exchanges in this series, the games between Australia and England are now taking on a very familiar feel. The 3 days of the Melbourne test, resulting in a win for Australia by an innings and 99 runs, had a bizarre feel, almost to the extent that it was a non-event.
Some truly awful bowling to Shane Warne saw England fans patience tested to the limits, as he relished the opportunity to demonstrate his favoured stay leg side of the ball method to the plethora of short, wide long hops proferred to him by the erratic Sajid Mahmood. A deficit of over 250 runs on 1st innings was an almost impossible burden to cope with for the England batsmen and for the first time in this series, they batted like players who knew they could not win.
Where they go from here is anybody's guess, but with a one day series lasting until the middle of February after the final test at the SCG, this tour is shaping up to be about as much fun for the England cricket team as the Battle of Stalingrad was for the German 6th Army. It isn't much better for the suffering supporter too, and the envy on show when informing friends and family of my intention to watch the whole series in Australia is now being replaced by stunned looks and repeated comments of 'My God, I don't know how you've put up with this.'
Things will get better. England are a young, developing team and the bulk of their current side will be there as better players in 2009 whilst Australia will lose at least half of their world beating team, including the irreplaceable Warne and McGrath. That said, it doesn't make for a better mood on December 28th 2006 when defeat is the only thing on show.
Wello
