Australia vs India. 4th Test. Melbourne. 2024/25. Day Five.

Of any thoughts of what I thought might occur today... none of them came to pass. Surely Australia declare overnight... nope, bat on. Surely India come out positively to show they are at least interested in chasing down 340 to win the Test... nope, batten down the hatches. Surely the Indian batters will not play stupid shots and throw their wickets away if they aren't chasing a total... nope, some dreadful shots. Having shown the pitch is negotiable by not losing a wicket in the second session, surely India are safe for the draw... absolutely not. I obviously know heaps about cricket.

India's outlook today was the most confusing. At lunch, after 26.1 overs, they were 3/33. The bowling had been good but they made no effort to move the game forward. And in that were two dreadful strokes from two players who look close to the end. Rohit slap to leg to be caught at gully was the shot of a defeated man. He has no answers out of his slump, and if India are serious about winning in Sydney then Sharma should have played his final Test innings today. And Virat Kohli's awful no foot drive to a wide ball from Starc in the final over before stumps was as bad as Steve Smith's had been yesterday. His is a frazzled mindset at the crease, and he is doing his team zero good with the bat or with his antics in the field. He needs a reset if he is to continue forward.

 
Jaiswal and Pant were terrific in the middle session, keeping their wickets intact while adding 79 runs, but only 28 of those in the second hour. Despite the frenetic barracking from the commentators on Channel 7 who said India would launch an audacious bid for victory in the final session, it was plainly obvious they had decided on the draw, and at 3/112 and 37 overs remaining it looked the safe bet.
Then Rishab Pant lost India the Test match. In the same way as Jaiswal's run out changed the match in the first innings, this changed the outcome of the match. Such a numbskull shot, after basically dead batting for two hours, he decided to hit a long hop from Travis Head over the boundary. Why? Dead bat it like the others, and count down the overs. But he had a brain explosion and he hit it straight down Marsh's throat. For as much as he is praised for his innings where he wins India matches, this cost them the match.

Then Joel Wilson decided to put his hands in his pockets, and but for the cool and correct decision making of the third umpire Sharfuddoula from Bangladesh we may have had a different result. Both Jaiswal and Deep were plainly and obviously out. Wilson has had a good match for his standards, and he almost blew it on the final afternoon. The third umpire deserves enormous credit for making the correct decisions. Jaiswal's shot was the fourth dreadful shot of the afternoon, and footage on Channel 7 showed Travis Head asking him if he had hit it, and getting the answer in the affirmative. His resigned look when Australia reviewed also proved it to be correct. No doubt Indian commentators and board members will make much of this incident. That is a shame, because the correct decisions were made, and isn't that why we have the third umpire for? I'd love to know if Jaiswal admitted to his teammates the truth when he returned to the dressing room.

Australia's bowling in the main today was superb. Starc was terrific for a guy who seems unlikely to play in Sydney and he got the big wicket of Kohli. Cummins was the aggressor, Boland was the patient killer. Lyon was good in patches but seemed unable to settle to a line and length required for each batter. Perhaps I'm being pedantic. His 2/37 today probably flattered him compared to his three pace bowlers.
In the long run, Australia, despite no input with the bat from Head or Marsh, managed to find a way to win the Test. India perhaps did more to lose it. And look what happens when you offer reasonable pricing for Test cricket tickets. Kids were free and adults just $10 to sit anywhere in the MCG today. If it had been normal pricing they would have gotten perhaps 20,000 people, still a great crowd. Instead they got over 70,000, and the atmosphere combined with the cricket being played out made it a fabulous day. Note Cricket Australia - it CAN be done!

And so to Sydney and hopefully no rain. Australia now only need a draw to regain the Border Gavaskar Trophy and to practically tie up a spot in the World Test Championship Final. India now must win to do either.

Surely India must make changes. I cannot believe Rohit retains his spot. Bring in Shubman Gill for him, and Bumrah takes back the captaincy. What wouldn't they give for Ashwin to be available? Australia must exchange Marsh for Webster, but will likely need a replacement for Starc. Sean Abbott, on his home ground, for his Test debut, would be a wonderful reward for ten years of hard work.

Let's wait and see. All I know is that Day Four in a box at the SCG is going to be very loud!!

Australia vs India. 4th Test. Melbourne. 2024/25. Day Four.

Hello to everyone out there who believes Test cricket should be shortened to four-day games. You are imbeciles.

We enter the fifth day of this 4th Test no wiser as to what the result of this game will be. What has become obvious is that the bowlers from both sides are also required to score the majority of the runs. Yesterday on a pitch that died completely once the ball became old, Reddy did what he has done all series, seemingly scoring runs with ease, and twice now having been a big part as to why India have managed to avoid two follow on's in succession. His 114 and Washington Sundar's 50 have proven to be a stumbling block for the Australian bowlers. It also shows that India's selection policy is based around having a lengthy batting line up. In two innings in this match, where India has bowled a total of 205 overs, between them Reddy and Sundar have bowled only 27, a little over 13%. They obviously have not been a part of India's bowling plans, which to be fair revolve almost entirely around throwing Jasprit Bumrah the ball and hoping he decimates the Australian batting. Which, to be fair, he did again today. He removed their middle order in 11 deliveries, and with the scoreline at 6/91 and a lead of just ove4r a hundred, it began to look as though the Test would be over today. Then Cummins again fought hard with 41 runs off 90 deliveries, and the final pair of the rabbit Nathan Lyon (41 off 54) and the ferret Scott Boland (10 off 65) put on an unbroken partnership of 55 runs to get Australia to an overall lead of 333 runs. After Bumrah's spell Australia scored 3/137 off 46 overs. It was almost ridiculously easy for Australia's 10 and 11 to see off 18 overs at the end of the day.

Which brings us to tomorrow. What happens from here. 98 overs are available to both teams. Which team is the bravest to announce they are looking for victory? We know that England now seem to play for victory at all costs from any position no matter how ridiculous, but will either of these teams risk defeat to chase victory? In India's case, they don't need to win. A drawn series sees them hold the Border Gavaskar Trophy, and after the first two days they would see a draw as a great result, much as they did in Brisbane. Australia need to win the series, which means they need to win here. Is the bowling cartel up to the task, given Starc is obviously not 100% and Marsh has barely bowled all summer? Will Cummins continue to attack even if the pitch flattens out further, or will he retreat to a defensive mindset and hope that India implodes? Will the Indian top six hope to repeat their victory at the Gabba four years ago, or repeat the draw in Sydney the week earlier on that same tour?

333 is a gettable target in the modern age, and the pitch doesn't seem to have deteriorated too much. Their elder statesmen are not in the best of form but certainly have the pedigree to break out of their slumber for a famous run chase. Australia will rely on Boland's nagging accuracy, Cummins' aggression and Lyon's persistency. To win Australia will have to risk losing, to draw India into a chase they may want to attack. India will be positive early but even with Jaiswal and Pant and Jadeja in that top six, you feel they will want to ensure they are safe before they looking for a victory chase.

Whatever happens, it should be the final day that Mitch Marsh treads on the field for Australia in a Test match. I have spoken about generational change in the Australian Test team all summer so far, and any attempt to retain Marsh in this team should mean the immediate eviction of the selection panel from their jobs. There are a lot of players in this team who will be waving their goodbyes in the near future, but Marsh should be given his plane ticket to the BBL as soon as stumps are called tomorrow afternoon.

Australia vs India. 4th Test. Melbourne. 2024/25. Day Two.

After two days of play, this Test can already be split into two halves. The difference between India's fading star batsman Virat Kohli and Australia's rising star Sam Konstas, as well as India's captain Rohit Sharma and Australia's captain Pat Cummins.

Sam Konstas has had the best two days a 19 year could have. His innings on day one was audacious, creating heart attacks for Australian supporters early and then heartburn for India's cricket team by its conclusion. Konstas had to have fortune shining on him for his innings to work, and on the day he did. Surviving that first over from Bumrah was remarkable in itself, the attempted ramps in his second something surely no one expected. The fact that they then came off not long after that, causing the bowlers to lose their focus in the heat of the battle which not only allowed Konstas to make people stand up and take notice but gave Usman Khawaja the space to find his own form and work his way into the innings. Then today, for two sessions in the field, Konstas became a crowd her0. He channelled Marv Hughes on the boundary, he encouraged the crowd into clapping as Lyon bowled, he ran around the field and threw the ball at the stumps. And he smiled all afternoon. Think back to when you were 19. How much would you have loved to have done all of that?!

On the other hand, Virat Kohli is rattled and confused and struggling to find his feet. He offered his usual advice to the batters from second slip, but as Konstas continued on his merry way, he decided to take things into his own hands. His deliberate and unprovoked decision to walk and deliberately bump into the 19 year old, and feign responsibility and indeed claim it was Konstas's fault the collision occurred - all in an effort to get into his head and change his game plan - was a disgrace, and far below anything someone with his standing in the game should ever have stooped to. His arrogance in refusing to accept he did anything wrong is exactly how far he has fallen in recent times, and something that should have been immediately taken care of in the dressing room. The fact he barely got a slap on the wrist for this incident is only indicative of the power the BCCI holds in world cricket, and not an indication of the severity of the incident.

And his batting today exemplified that. Though he looked determined, even on a track that has flattened out completely he was not fluent and not at ease. Even so, he and Jaiswal had gotten India to within stumps at 2/153 when the kid on 82 hit the ball to mid-on and called yes immediately. If Kohli was on song, he would have just run on the call of his partner and would have made his ground. Instead, he thought about himself, looked around at the field, and his first movement was back into his crease rather than to the other end, and he barbequed his teammate who was destined for a century and more. Sure, some believe there wasn't a run there... but if he had trusted his partner, not stopped to look around at the field and just run, there would have been no problem. On a flatbed, Australia had made the breakthrough.
And with his head now out of place, he poked at a ball from Boland that he had spent all afternoon ignoring, and edged it to Carey to end his own innings at 36 just seven balls later. Instead of being 2/180 at stumps, India is 5/164 and the game is wide open again. Kohli has not had a good two days at all, while Konstas is having a ball.

The captains too are having a whole different game once again. Pat Cummins has been at the top of his game again. Winning the toss and batting was a fillip. Today he reached 49 in a partnership with Smith of over a hundred that truly set Australia up for their final score of 474. And today he again bowled the perfect delivery to dismiss the very solid looking KL Rahul on the final ball before tea, and he also dismissed his fellow captain. He fielded the ball that caused the run out of Jaiswal. And his tactics in switching the bowlers around constantly to find a wicket led to Scott Boland nabbing two before stumps from terrific bowling. So with bat, with ball, in the field and as a captain, Cummins has had a very successful two days.

On the other hand, Rohit Sharma looks a shell of the cricketer he once was and could well be playing his final Test match. His tactical acumen in the field for much of Australia's innings was a dismal failure. He had no idea how to attack Konstas, and lucked out with Khawaja and Labuschagne pretty much dismissing themselves. Then today then seemed no plan to dismiss the Australians, it seemed as though he was just hoping that Bumrah would run through the tail, and when he didn't, he had no plan B. Cummins and Starc are solid bats, but should they have batted without many problems like they did today? He was months overdue to utilise a short ball policy against Cummins, and even then his bowlers didn't seem able to comprehend it. The field and bowling plans looked as though they fell apart, and Sharma just let the game run without trying to find a way to change it.
He then came back out as opener, hoping to find a way to break out of his form slump and lead his team with the bat. He lasted five balls, and fell to a shot that was neither one thing or the other. His confidence has gone, and he is at an age where it is very difficult to rediscover it.
Finally, with 25 minutes still left in the day, Sharma decided to send in a night watchman in front of Rishab Pant when Jaiswal was dismissed. Now that is a scrambled decision from the captain. Designed to protect a batter, but telling him to last almost half an hour at the crease. Which he did not. There was no justification for the decision, and it seemed one made with a belief of disaster rather than an air of confidence.

Two days down, and there is still a lot of cricket to be played, and a result is still not certain for either team. Australia though appear better placed, and India have an air of resignation about them. Day three could well decide the match. It has been a fascinating Boxing Day Test so far. It looks as though that will continue into the next three days.

Selectors Boys Club Does for McSweeney as Marsh Survives Again

It must be great to be a part of the Boy's Club. Keep being fun and popular with the boys, and you'll never have to worry about whether you are performing or not.
A few short weeks ago, Nathan McSweeney would have been the most excited cricketer in Australia. He had lived his dream, getting the Baggy Green of Australia, and becoming a Test cricketer. He had proven over a lengthy stretch that he was in good touch and had scored the runs necessary to make the team. Sure, he was going to bat out of position, but he would be given plenty of opportunity to succeed, and the experienced batters around him would score enough runs to provide the support he needed early on.

Well... no. McSweeney ran into a red hot Jasprit Bumrah, and has found the going tough. So too though has most of the rest of the batting lineup. Indeed, the new kid has done just as well as two of the other batters, and not much less than one other. But that's okay, because we know it is harder to get out of the team than to get in, and he would be given that support by the selectors to help him find his feet. Just like certain others have had before him.
Well... no.

Once again, our selectors have flown in the face of a reasonable selection policy and thrown out the baby with the bath water. McSweeney is now deemed disposable and is dropped. Looking at the situation can anyone see how he gets back into the team in the near future? There is no Shield cricket to play, only T20 rubbish. The next tour is to Sri Lanka, with the selectors currently mulling over a guy who doesn't play first class cricket, Glenn Maxwell, as a possible middle order player. After that is the Ashes next summer. Even if he makes runs in February and March... who will be watching? And given the selectors don't even seem to watch Shield cricket anymore, will it matter?!

Meanwhile, the 38 year old opener has scored few runs in the last 12 months, someone who is surely closer to the end of his career than anyone suspects. And the 33 year old allrounder who rarely bowls because he's injured has also scored less runs than the man who was dropped. Indeed, with his Test batting average now less than 30, what is the justification for his place apparently being secure?
I applaud the selection of Sam Konstas. It is one that probably should have solved this problem by being done for the 1st Test rather than the 4th Test. He looks a long term proposition. We can only hope he is given longer to find his feet than they have offered the previous incumbent. And here is where the problem lies. The differing time players are given, and the number of chances they are offered.

We can talk more about this later. For today, I feel sick for Nathan McSweeney. He doesn't deserve to have had this happen to him, while the others around him, the experienced players who should have been performing better in order to support him, are again left untouched. If the selectors are serious about generational change, they are not showing it. Callum Ferguson's Test career was destroyed by the same sort of selection madness. So too Nic Maddinson. They were cast aside in the most heartless and thoughtless of ways without giving them a chance to settle into the team. Others seem to be given far more chances. It is a difficult thing to watch

Australia vs India. 3rd Test. Brisbane. 2024/25. Day Five.

While Brisbane's rain brought a damp end to a Test match that had the potential to be one that would be full of intrigue, the speculation will be rife over the coming days as we head to Melbourne and then Sydney to find a series result.

For India, to be at 1-1 after three Tests is a win. Despite a thumping victory in Perth, they have struggled severely with the bat. The celebrations in the dressing room when their tailenders managed to pass the follow on was indicative of their mindset. It seemed even India doubted they could see off a second innings blitz to save the Test. And while they would have been happy to rescue Australia to 7/89 in their second innings, despite all the posturing it is only Jasprit Bumrah who poses a major threat to decimate a batting line up.
KL Rahul has been excellent, but he had to survive one of the easiest dropped catches in history to make his 84. Rohit Sharma appears dead in the water, while the other bats have all had one innings in five that could be considered worthy.
So, India is well in the series and only requiring a draw to retain the Border Gavaskar Trophy, but with performances that leave you wondering just how they are in that position. Melbourne's pitch in the past 24 months has had far more life in it so conditions are likely to be similar to the first three matches, but Sydney may well be more to their liking. If they can win or draw in Melbourne they will be odds on to leave Australian shores with the trophy once again. Jaiswal, Rahul, Gill, Kohli, Pant and Sharma looks a top six that should excel in these final two Tests. Along with this, Bumrah, Siraj, Deep and Reddy have shown they are a handy bowling line up for these conditions, and Jadeja will be more dangerous with ball in hand in Melbourne and Sydney. Despite having been mostly outplayed for the last two Tests, India appear in the best position.

Australia should have been better placed to win in Brisbane, and if all things had been equal perhaps they would have been. Hazlewood breaking down - again - left them a bowler short, something the selectors assured us was why they had to pick an allrounder to share the bowling workload. That chosen allrounder bowled only two overs as India managed to creep past the follow on mark with Australia reduced to just three bowlers. Yes, the rain spells allowed the bowlers to remain fresh-ish, but it flies in the face of what the selectors and team management have insisted is a reasonable selection policy. Two scores in double figures in his past eight innings also creates a facade of his continued selection. Meanwhile the form allrounder in the country over the past 18 months is cooling his heels in the BBL, an allrounder who not only bowls seam up but off spin. You'd think that would be a handy thing for Melbourne and Sydney.
Hazlewood's injury that has now ruled him out of the rest of the series again highlights that, beyond Scott Boland who will no doubt replace him in Melbourne, Australia's reserve bowling stocks are very thin, especially in Test experience. Neser is injured, Jhye Richardson is perennially injured, and Doggett and Abbott have no Test experience. If either Starc or Cummins falls, suddenly Australia's bowling is well and truly exposed.
Australia's inability to finish off the tail of India to enforce the follow on is also problematic. True, if Smith had snared the dolly offered to him first ball of day four it would have been far easier, but tactically again Australia seemed wayward. The last four wickets put on 119 runs. The rain may well have won in the end anyway, but it was a missed opportunity to force an unlikely victory.

Australia's batting is bordering on tragedy and complete implosion. Yes, Bumrah has been exceptional, and the others very good, but at home our batters are usually imperious. Head has been wonderful, averaging 81.80 in the series, which with his injury on day five has sent shudders down the spines of Australians everywhere.
Why? Because this is where our other batters currently rank in this series. Carey 40.50. Smith 24.80. Labuschagne 16.40. McSweeney 14.40. Marsh 13.80. Khawaja 12.60.
The openers have the toughest gig in this series, and seeing off the new ball or a session of cricket is just as important on occasions as runs scored. McSweeney and Labuschagne did this in Adelaide, Khawaja and McSweeney here on day one. And no doubt the team will say they were doing the 'team thing' in the second innings.

There is little doubt the selectors will stick with the same team for Melbourne. They will roll out the same lines, the team spirit, the best six bats in Australia, we're unlucky not to be at 2-1... but it will be lip service. Even though Darren Lehmann had to have realised the irony of what he was saying when he said this week that the Chairman of Selectors George Bailey was 'too close' to the players when it came to selections, he was correct. It's very hard to drop your mates, and if you are mates with them all, and the coach and captain are of the same opinion, then that seems like a conflict of interest.
So as I said, Australia and India will likely go to Melbourne unchanged, apart from Boland in for an injured Hazlewood, and the injury watch on Travis Head. India will be in raptures if Head is out for the summer, and it would indeed tip the scales heavily in their favour.
McSweeney deserves time, Khawaja has simply earned that over time. Probably Labuschagne as well. Despite a Test batting average that has dipped under 30, Marsh will continue to receive the selectors blessings.

Change just has to be around the corner. Sam Konstas looks like an international player. He is ripe. If the selectors wait much longer it will be a criminal waste. Beau Webster is at the height of form, and should be given a chance at this time rather than waiting until he begins to slide, which does seem to be the MO of this selection panel. Lance Morris has waited for two years without getting an opportunity, Sean Abbott even longer. Todd Murphy and Corey Rocchicciolli are two offspinners with talent.
I've said it twice already this summer. If Australia lose this series then panic will hit and recriminations will abound. But if that is what it takes to get some regeneration in our Test team then perhaps it is the best thing that could happen. If Australia win, this same team will be there at the start of next summer, another year older, and again without any real succession plan. The future is here, and the time is upon us. I just wonder whether or not those in charge of that happening actually want that to occur.

Australia vs India. 3rd Test. Brisbane. 2024/25. Day Two.

"Send 'em in Nasser!"
It's a phrase that has become synonymous when visiting captains insert Australia first on the first day at the Gabba. It didn't work for Nasser Hussain 22 years ago, it doesn't appear to have worked for Rohit Sharma here.
Though the top three didn't do much damage on the scoreboard, they once again saw off tough periods of play - the openers on the rain shortened first day for 14 overs, and then Labuschagne the first hour of the second day. When he was dismissed with the score on 75, almost 34 overs had been bowled. The ball was getting softer, the pitch a tad more benign.

Enter Smith and Head.

Travis Head has his doubters, but he has proven to be a match changer. He does hit the ball in the air more than he may need, he does flash often outside off stump. He rides his luck, and when it's in he's impossible to stop. Game positions like yesterday are where he thrives, taking the hard work down by the top four and turning it into runs at a good clip, feasting on tiring bowlers and changing the momentum of the innings. It is what teams want from their numbers 5 and 6, and Head is in a good place at the moment. He rightfully won plaudits for Australia's win in Adelaide, and has set them on a similar course here. But he would be the first to suggest that it was that hard work done at the top of the order that gave him that opportunity.

Not the least by his partner in their 241 partnership. Steve Smith has been out of runs lately, but not out of form. He looked good in the ODI's. He got a good one first up in Perth, and a leg side strangle in Adelaide. He tinkered again, and went back to what has been successful in the past. His imperious batting is on the wane, as even the greats have happen to them in their final few years. Tendulkar, Ponting, Lara... they all became less productive, but continued to work their backsides off to contribute to their team. So too did Smith yesterday. He refused to budge. He had some fortune, without which he could well have been out LBW twice. But he deserved it. He fought with the same tenacity that he showed here at the Gabba against England 7 years ago with a first innings century that ranks as one of his best. Here it was nudges and pushes and swivels, as he stood fast as his teammate dominated at the other end. As he approached his century, we finally saw the cover drive emerge, the one that flies across the outfield along the ground, piercing the gap in the field to the boundary - the one always indicates that Smith is getting back to his best. A rare celebration on reaching three figures told how much this meant to him and how hard he had worked to get it. His disappointment at being dismissed shortly after showed he knew he'd left some runs out there, but perhaps also that there are more to come this series.

With the new ball taken India - or at least Bumrah - made some incisions, but the second best in form batter in the Australian line-up Alex Carey looked superb, and guided Australia past 400 by stumps. He will be hoping his bowling cartel can hang in this morning to allow him to cash in more.

For India, problems await, but having watched Australia they will surely assess that if you can see off the new ball, batting becomes easier. Bumrah and Siraj were wonderful in the first session, but even they couldn't stop Head and Smith once the shine had dispersed. India will need to play the same way in order to keep themselves in this Test. If Australia can manage another 50 runs the follow-on will be a tough prospect, and even though no one enforces it anymore, perhaps having lost most of the first day will encourage Cummins to go for the throat if he gets that opportunity late on day three or early on day four. It would certainly make for entertaining viewing.

Australia vs India. 3rd Test. Brisbane. 2024/25. Preview.

What can we expect at the Gabba over the next few days? Will it last more than three days? Which Australia and which India shows up?

The pink ball Test could not have come at a better time for Australia. They play more day/night Tests than any other team, and they've only lost one of them. They looked underdone in Perth but the change in format helped the home team. The pink ball is Starc's superpower, and he proved it again. But Australia won the game in the twilight session of day one, when McSweeney and Labuschagne refused to budge, and helped set up the home team's batting for day two, where Head took all before him.
Neither side is where it wants to be. Jaiswal and Kohli were superb in the second innings in Perth but have three low scores apart from that. Shubman Gill showed glimpses in Adelaide. Pant looks like he's counting. Rahul and Rohit have been terrific players who may or may not rediscover their best. Jasprit Bumrah is a magnificent bowler, and Siraj a useful lieutenant. They've tried both Sundar and Ashwin as their spinner for little success. Perhaps Jadeja gets a chance in Brisbane.

 
Australia has the same problems. Head is the talisman, but if he falls who is taking up the slack? Khawaja is looking his age, and McSweeney is still finding his way. Labuschagne and Smith have been the engine room for five years, but the engine is beginning to falter. There is no longer the confidence that no matter what the situation those two will rescue the team. Marsh and Carey promise much but deliver significantly less. The same four bowlers who have served Australia for the best part of seven years continue to be the ones charged with the duty of finding 20 wickets.

Who is under pressure? Everyone! Someone will leave the Gabba 2-1 up and in the box seat to win the series. And although the focus will be on individuals such as Smith, Kohli, Rohit and Labuschagne, it will still be the best team that comes away with victory. The one that puts together the consistent partnerships, with bat and ball. The one that shows patience, the one that fights to the end.

I don't know what is going to happen. I hope McSweeney builds on the promise he showed in Adelaide. I hope the bowling cartel attacks the stumps. I hope to see Steve Smith build on how good he has looked with the bat this season and gets the score that kickstarts his summer.

For Australia, this Test is everything. Lose, and they will likely lose a series to India at home for the third successive time. The elder brigade will come under even tougher scrutiny, and answers will have to be found. Win, and they keep those questions at bay for another week or so.

Across the ditch, England are building a team that is powerful, young and has a self-centred sense of belief in their ability. They believe they can take the Ashes next summer. Australia isn't even sure how many of its current 12 players will still be around next summer. A loss here will hasten that change. A win may not even prevent it.