Apparently, none of the Aussie players, the spectators and the former players would ever forget the Edgbaston test of the 2005 Ashes. It is still a wound that is hard to heal for every Australian. We can never forget the grim face of the helpless Glenn McGrath when Kasprowicz was given out (though it wasn’t a catch) as Australia fell 2 runs short of victory. McGrath could not play the match due to injury.
England scored a speedy 407 runs in the first innings with good contributions from Trescothick, Pietersen and Flintoff. A few lusty blows from the tail-enders helped England to score above 400 runs, which proved good on a deteriorating track.
Australia lost Hayden in the second over, however Ponting and Langer steadied the ship. At one stage they were 115/2 then bundled out for 308 runs and England gained a valuable 99 runs lead. Lee bowled with fiery pace to remove the English top-order before Shane Warne ran into the middle order with 6 wickets. Amid this hiccup, Andrew Flintoff played a gem to take England to 182 runs, giving Australia a target of 282 with more than 5 sessions to complete.
Australia lost wickets at regular intervals and they ended the 3rd day at 175/8. The target looked very tough with 2 wickets in hand. However Brett Lee and Shane Warne weren’t ready to give it up. After Warne departed, Kasprowicz, the last man joined Brett Lee to continue the fight and in the end, a wrong decision from the umpire helped England to seal the victory in a cliffhanger.
Today, when Ricky Ponting goes for the toss, this defeat would be in his mind than ever before. Australians will have to work their tail off to win over the enthusiastic England, who look solid even without Kevin Pietersen. If Brett Lee makes the cut to the final XI, it will bolster the bowling department, however doubt remains over his lack of match practice.
© The Daily Mirror
Tags: Ashes 2005, Australia
Are you a professional journalist? You write very well.
But as far as Australian team spirit is concerned, I hope they wont get worried thinking about their past loses. They usually gains more power, even if the previous match was a victory or failure. They wont loose the spirit.. But still, their continuous defeat can depend upon the other team’s realization about this fact !!!