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In your face, Australia!
After an agonisingly valiant attempt by England to manage to not win the second test, it's now 1-1 and game on for the series. Unfortunately, there's not much time for England fans to regrow their hair and nails for the third test. On the balance of things, England comfortably outplayed Australia except for the assaults by Warne and Lee with the ball in England's 2nd innings and with the bat in Australia's 2nd. So it's not like England didn't deserve the harrowingly narrow 2 run victory.
It's hard to say how the psyhcological battle will have played out. England may have the win tempered by the fact that what should have been a comfortable margin ended up a near defeat. On the other hand, 5-10 years back Australia would have won every close run contest and England have already shown in winning that there will be no lying down. They also gain the knowledge that they were generally the superior team. In some ways falling at the final hurdle, one ball away from victory or defeat, might be just that little bit more crushing for Australia.
That must be one of the finest test matches ever.
August 8 2005, 03:32:10 UTC 6 years ago
August 8 2005, 13:28:28 UTC 6 years ago
I wonder what the Australian press are saying about Bowden's last decision, and whether that will have any effect on the players. Obviously, professional sportsmen accept the umpire's ruling, and anyway it's possible that the ball nicked the shoulder of the bat, and every match has its close calls, and the next one will go their way, and all that stuff. But if they let themselves think that they lost due to an unlucky decision, that's got to be either motivating or absolutely gutting.
August 11 2005, 02:24:10 UTC 6 years ago