Australia’s victory in the first Ashes Test of the summer in Brisbane was emphatic, with only a glimpse of English resilience occurring when Captain Joe Root and Dawid Malan constructed a second-innings 162-run partnership.
Outside those hours, Pat Cummin’s men sweated on and exposed every weakness they were able to identify in the touring eleven. The consistency in their bowling rarely wavered, catches were held and the psychological impact of such a dominant performance not only damaged the Englishmen at the Gabba, but could also reverberate through the remainder of the series.
In essence, the Australians confirmed the view held by many that they are by far the better, more rounded and threatening cricket team. It is a stark reality the English must now face and somehow combat, as both prepare for the day-night test in Adelaide beginning tomorrow afternoon.
A key factor in Australia’s performance was a clear intent to dismantle left-arm spinner Jack Leach. With Leach out of Test cricket for the last ten months, it appeared a well-considered plan, one that resulted in his entry into the top ten list of worst economy rates in the history of the international long-form of the game.
After conceding 103 runs at 7.84 runs per over off just 78 balls, the 30-year-old was embarrassed and made redundant. Captain Root and his selection panel are now confronted with a difficult decision as to whether Leach is once again sent out to face Australia’s top order left-handers, the type of batsman against whom he has always struggled.
If not for Root, the test could well have been something of an embarrassing massacre for the English and the Australian’s will no doubt be focussing on building immense pressure on him in Adelaide. The effect of cracking the confidence of one of the most organised and proficient batsmen in world cricket could be series-defining.
Without a substantial contribution from Root a 5-0 whitewash for the locals looks highly probable, with the remaining top-order batsman unlikely to consistently muster enough runs.
Applying immense pressure to a besieged captain is something Australia has done successfully in the past. Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh excelled at smelling blood in the water and mounting a campaign of relentless pressure that saw good men crack and eventually crumble.
Mike Atherton and Nasser Hussain both felt the blow torch as English skippers through the 1990s and early 2000s. Hussain averaged just 34.94 in matches against Australia, whilst at the helm and Atherton fared worse at 32.13.
Across the 46 innings both men played against the Australians as captain, neither made a century, with the opposition’s keen sense of their importance to the overall result never allowing them to break the shackles.
It's a trend which has continued against other nations over the years, with Australia seemingly always targeting opposition skippers and placing high value on their wickets.
Joe Root had best expect similar attention over the remainder of the series, with the Australians well aware that a run restricted English captain translates to a comfortable Ashes win and that he could be the only meaningful barrier in their way.
