Perth : Day 1 : All hail King Monty

They’re coming home, they’re coming home, they are coming….. Wait. Sorry. I was pre-empting the inevitable overreaction to todays remarkable events.

First things first, Australia were skittled in 71 overs for 244. The damage was done by Monty Panesar (5-92) and Steve Harmison (4-48). England were then 51/2 by the close of play, with Strauss not out 24 and Paul Collingwood not out 10. Far be it from me to point how extraordinary this was, as I saw posted on one forum “the debate over Giles and Panesar was decided in 7 balls this morning”. All eyes were on Monty Panesar. Would he buckle? Or would he shine? He most certainly shone, becoming the first Englishman and only the fourth ever to take a 5fer at Perth.

After Australia had declared that they would look to take Monty apart, it seems their plan backfired after a series of reckless shots led to the demise of their first innings. And let’s not overlook Harmison’s performance. He was without doubt a different man than the one we’ve seen previously in this series. Sharp, fast and bouncy, he did what all fast bowlers should do. He put the top order batsmen under pressure and then ripped through the tail. It was quality fast-bowling, despite getting the sense that he’s still nowhere near his former best. But it certainly reminded us all why he has been the number 1 fast bowler in the world. And Fletcher’s continued confidence in him certainly paid off, when Steve could quite easily have been one of the names on the chopping block. Mahmood bolwed just 7 overs and intriguingly Flintoff just 9. Their 4 run economy rates indicate why they might have bowled so few overs, but when you’ve got the likes of Panesar bowling at the other end, at one point having bowled 18 overs on the trot (maybe more) it’s no real wonder. To see Harmison have an extended spell was also great news.

How must Ashley Giles be feeling right now? Sick to the back teeth I expect. But, do we care?

Australia for the mostpart really helped the cause with most of the top order getting themselves out to questionable shots. Mike Hussey was the only man to really settle himself and was left stranded at the end of the innings on 74.

England have made a great start to this match, but we must not get carried away. It’s only Day 1 of a 5 day match and in the context of the series there are a further 10 days to be played after these.) England must look to win every day. The warning signs are there though. The pitch certainly seems to favour the bowlers, and Shane Warne on Day 5 could be a lot to handle. Additionally, each of Australia’s batsmen (with the exception of Ponting and Gilchrist) got a start and whilst no-one went on to score big runs, there was certainly the intent and the possibility of it happening. England have done well to bowl them out cheaply, but now they must capitalise on it. We need big hundreds from Strauss and Collingwood tomorrow and for England’s bowlers to do what they did today all over again. Should that happen, England’s plight might not seem quite so bad after all.