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Saturday, November 27, 2010

The Glacier vs. The Mountain

Day three of the Gabba Test has shown Australia doing to England what England can never seem to do to any opponent: grinding them under their heel.

Test cricket is fascinating for many reasons, but when it comes to winning a Test match, one method produces more results than any other - the slow, steady accumulation of runs. More often than not, this method works for the team batting first. Win the toss on a flattish pitch and bat your way to a strong position of 400+ runs. Then, as the days pass and the pitch deteriorates, you can count on the conditions (and your opponent's fragile mental state) to help you bowl out the opposition for less than your total and win the match.

But rarely do we see what seems to be happening at the Gabba.

England, batting first, reached a substandard 260. Strauss' 3-ball duck was the first failure, attempting a brash cut just a little too soon in an attempt to get the upper hand in the first session. Trott, normally a batsman lost in his own island of concentration, played all around a less-than-fearsome ball from the less-than-fearsome Watson. Pieterson, once again having to come in at a fragile point for the tourists, (3-117), needed to get his head down, get stuck in and help create a partnership to drag England back into the match.

Alas, that never happened.

England seem to have a knack for letting themselves get knocked mentally out of a match. How else can you explain what happened yesterday? After getting themselves out 10 times, Australia came in with resolve and mental toughness. Sure, 5 wickets fell for 143 runs, but it would end there. Hussey and Haddin came to the middle and singlehandedly delivered the Aussies from a shaky position to an undefeatable one in a matter of a few strong-willed and chanceless hours.

The mind wins Test matches as much as the body.

The world's number one spinner in Graeme Swann looked toothless in the face of Hussey's singleminded approach - block anything on a length, smash anything short for four. Haddin treated him differently - smashing him straight for a six to bring up his century.

This no nonsense, iron-willed approach is one that will serve Australia greatly in the coming weeks, if they can keep it up. 

And it's one that England better start heeding themselves if they want to leave Australia with the urn they brought just a few short weeks ago.
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