Australias cricket team have had a horror start in there first innings to be all out for 98 in the start of the fourth test at the MCG. England were 0-58 in response. 2009,2010 has been one of the worst years in recent history in Australian cricket with losses to India, Srilanka and now struggling it seems to win back the Ashes urn who it lost to england in the UK in the 2009-2010 ashes series,the 2007 Ashes series was won by Aus 5-0. Australia also lost to the UK in 2005, an event that caused english celebrations in the streets of england, as they had lost the previous 9 ashes series to Australia in the biennial series . Critics say Australias string of recent retirements of cricket greats is to blame for the lowered standards of the Aussie team who in previous years had a record winning streak of continuous wins over the best cricketing nations, including 2 world cups .

This England team's problem in Perth was a mental issue rather than a technical one – it was a complacency issue

When I was England's coach, one of the biggest difficulties I had was making sure the team kept their foot to the pedal. Strange as it seems, the occasions when I used to get most nervous about how well England would perform followed on from their best wins. So often, in my early years in charge, they would veer from highs to lows in the space of a match or two. One good result and then, bang, the team would crash. This England side have the same problem. We saw it at Headingley in 2009, at Johannesburg in 2010, and now we have seen it at Perth.

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Australia played well, and Mike Hussey in particular deserves huge credit. His was a display of true Aussie grit. But which team made the bigger turnaround in that match? Was it Australia? They only made 268 and 309. You are not going to win too many Tests with that kind of score in the first innings. Or was it England? They collapsed twice in the space of under 100 overs. For me the answer is obvious. They lost because they were not able to repeat the ruthlessness they showed in the first two Tests. We have known for a long time that England can capsize when they are batting. And not just on faster, bouncier pitches like the ones we saw at Perth and Johannesburg.

The key period of the match was the hour before lunch on the second day, when Mitchell Johnson took four wickets for seven runs in four overs. Johnson's work with Troy Cooley has obviously paid off. He started to swing the ball back in to the right-handed batsmen. But England's middle-order should have had the technique to be able to cope. They face swing bowling all the time in England, and it is often said that one of the reasons their batting averages tend to be lower than those of other Test nations is that they play their home games in conditions that offer bowlers seam and swing.

During his spell late on the first day Johnson was moving the ball away from the two left-handers, Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook. As soon as England spotted that, word should have gone around the dressing room: "Hold on boys, this is what he is doing with the ball." The team should have immediately started thinking about how to adjust. But they did not seem to be able to switch to plan B. Instead they got stuck like rabbits in headlights.

This was a mental failure more than a technical one. It was a complacency issue. Which is not to say that they were so naive they that took victory for granted. But after winning so well in the second Test they were not able to stay sharp for the third. They needed to keep their finger on the pulse for every single moment of this match. They did it in Adelaide but not in Perth.

As I say, this is a familiar problem. I used to wonder if England suffered from a "cup final" mentality. They were under such pressure from the media that players would celebrate victories as though they were cup final wins. Do that and it becomes very difficult to isolate the next match from what has come before it. You have to make sure you are entirely focussed on replicating the approach that won you that game in the first place.

A great example of a team who did this well were the All Blacks under Sean Fitzpatrick in the 1990s. If they were playing a top team and they won a penalty in the first 15 minutes, they would put it through the posts. If they won three penalties in the first 15 minutes, they would put them all through the posts. If they were playing a weaker team the next week, they would do exactly the same thing.

Other sides would take those three points in a match against New Zealand but if they found themselves in the same scenario against a weaker team they would suddenly decide to kick for the corner or try to run the ball. That inconsistency meant they might win one week, but they would only scrape home the next.

For two years, between early 2004 and late 2005, the England team got it right. They were almost unbeatable. Michael Vaughan made sure that the team's mind-set stayed the same no matter who we played. But we had a lot of self-driven characters in that side. It is not an easy thing to instil in a team. There is only so much the management can do. They can help provide the glue, but they still need to have the right parts in place.

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The Waca: what to do if you win the toss

"To bat or not to bat, that is the question for the Ashes Test in Perth," reports PerthNow:

Ricky Ponting faces one of the most crucial decisions of his career if he wins the toss at the WACA Ground this week, with curator Cameron Sutherland preparing a grassy strip for the third Test.

Down 1-0 in the Ashes and needing to attack to get back on level terms, the Australian captain must decide whether to give his pace battery first use of what is expected to be a bouncy, seaming wicket on Thursday.

Ponting has not sent the opposition in since the infamous Test at Edgbaston in 2005, which turned the series England's way, choosing to bat the past 30 times he has won the toss.

But in the back of his mind will also be the knowledge fourth innings targets can be chased down at the ground, after South Africa's stunning second highest successful run chase in Test history of 4-414 to win in Perth two years ago. The West Indies posted 323 in its unsuccessful fourth innings run chase last year.

England has posted 1-517 and 5-620 in its past two innings and Australia's best chance to gain the ascendancy might be to send England in and attack on the first morning.

Sutherland said he believed it was possible the third Test could be over inside four days.

"We're going to aim for a fair bit of grass on top this year," he said. "Certainly we want a result and we're confident we'll have a pitch that will produce a result."

(Via jollyhangman)

Hauritz sells up

10.32am:
Rejected Aussie spinner Nathan Hauritz has been giving away his Test gear in a yard sale, reports the Herald Sun:

Dumped Test spinner Nathan Hauritz - his disenchantment with Australian cricket complete - has given away his cricket gear

In a bizarre scene, the New South Wales spin bowler was sitting in front of a cardboard box at his Sydney flat as he gave away his kit on Saturday.

Just weeks ago he was lining up with his Test teammates at the Ashes squad announcement at Sydney Opera House. As those players prepared for the third Test in Perth, Hauritz had a garage sale, selling unwanted items along with the Test jumpers he gave away.

Heavy wool, long and short-sleeved, and training gear, some with the tags still attached, were mixed with New South Wales and generic gear.

Hauritz didn't need a sign. He simply said: "I don't play for them any more."

The Coogee yard sale was a typical scene. People wandered in an out looking at old video recorders, a couple of bookshelves and an array of cricket books including a Viv Richards biography, cricket histories and a couple of Max Walker numbers.

Bowlers for Perth

10.15am:
We suspect that the Andys, Flower and Strauss, already know who will be taking Stuart Broad's place in Perth, but they still haven't let us know. So David Hopps runs the rule over the contenders: Tim Bresnan, Chris Tremlett and Ajmal Shahzad.

Parson Hopps describes Bresnan as the "solid" option, Tremlett as "the pundits' choice" and Shahzad as the outsider.

Meanwhile Michael Beer has been talking about his possible debut, and reminding England that he has in fact already dismissed five of England's top seven within the past few weeks. In the England v WA warm-up game Beer dismissed Trott, Bell, Pietersen, Collingwood and Prior.

Said Beer:

I think it will definitely help being in the same surroundings. I'll take a fair bit out of that contest with them. I enjoyed that and learnt from it.

Shane for Australia?

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland today dismissed talk of Shane Warne coming out of retirement to rescue Australia's Ashes campaign as "fanciful".

Meanwhile Shane Warne and Liz Hurley have used this weekend to pronounce that neither of them are married. Nothing more, nothing less. Shane's personal blog contains this statement, while Liz's twitter feed featured this tweet.

Anyone would think that Shane had a new TV show to promote. Read more about "Warnie" here. My favourite detail on "the chat show for everyone" is about its international team: "over in Old Blighty the fast-bowling, fast-talking Darren Gough will be the show's UK correspondent".

Updates

Further Ashes coverage will appear here through the day.

This blog aims to keep you up to date with all the latest Ashes developments, linking to Guardian stories and blogs, but also to the best of the world wide web.

Please comment and/or leave links to other interesting Ashes coverage below the line. Or email steve.busfield@guardian.co.uk.

You can also keep up to date via Twitter.

The instinct that rendered Australia's cricket invincible for so long will most likely save it from the current mess

Dancing on the tomb of Australia's greatness has been the week's favourite jig. Beneath baggy green caps we see the "mental disintegration" inflicted by Steve Waugh's teams rebounding on its creators. Are Ricky Ponting's lot the new West Indies: an ex-superpower with a diminished lust for the great five-day game? Pray it ain't so.

Australians are asked to forgive the condescension of English commentators pining for Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath. Adelaide, with all its echoes of Bradman, was no place for Australia to implode. One-sidedness is oddly unsatisfying, even when you are the victor.

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The Ashes, in their perfect state, would stop the clock in 2005, when the stomach heaved with each new direction as England reclaimed the urn and then rode, sloshed, on their bus. Mismatches are common in Ashes history. Not since the 1980s, though, have Australia been the ones in need of rescue from a ruthless predator.

There were 43 Ashes Tests between 1989 and 2003 and Australia won 28 of them, with England taking seven, often in dead rubbers. In those years cricket achieved an evolutionary leap. There was a terrible, violent splendour to the new speed of run accumulation, an overwhelming brilliance about much of Australia's bowling. Teams who change the game itself (Barcelona now, in football) command special respect, even if that shift means having a boot on one's own skull.

Four winters after Australia whitewashed the Freddie Flintoff-led England 5-0, the question smacks into Ponting's faceguard: is this a cyclical drought or an obituary for Australian supremacy?

Only the most excitable will extrapolate from England's crushing win in the second Test the end of empire for a sport that helps form the Australian identity. True, Aussie rules has fanned out across the vast continent with impressive vigour. Australia's ethnic minorities appear not to have added their energy to grandstand and academy. And Australian youngsters are as likely to be turned off a five-day contest as information-addled youngsters everywhere; but there are too many precedents of crises overcome for the coroner to take an interest.

Gideon Haigh, Australia's leading cricket writer, observed after the Adelaide collapse: "The whole of the Australian ascendancy was designed with results in mind. Aggressive batting; aggressive bowling; aggressive aggression, with its kitbag of verbal abrasion, extrovert body language and 'mental disintegration.' "

Anyone who saw Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden or Damien Martyn in their prime will never forget the sound of the ball being brutalised. This confident belligerence at the crease was supported by the precision of McGrath and the unplayability of Warne.

To appreciate these masters we have to settle every now and then for a Xavier Doherty or a Marcus North. Without intervening mediocrity there is no context in which to appreciate how lucky we were to have had Warne, who took 197 wickets in Ashes Tests, or McGrath, who scalped 157 Englishmen, only 10 fewer than Dennis Lillee.

For the home crowd there is no comfort in nostalgia – not with Perth approaching. The insufferable Pom, victorious at The Oval last year, is on course for a first Ashes series win down there since 1986-87. The Australian talent for self-renewal has broken down. They scour an outback of human resources. This is what will scare the locals most: the idea that their team fell apart because the whole culture has.

In the last series there was much talk of Australia's declining "aura". The phrase was all the rage. One of the beauties of Ashes combat is that it constantly inverts the hierarchy. On the 2002-2003 tour the Sydney Daily Telegraph ran the headline: "Is there anyone in England who can play cricket?" Schadenfreude is a boomerang.

"The opposition players who did well against Australia during my career were the ones with a combative spirit, who weren't submissive but rather enjoyed the gamesmanship and unrelenting pressure," Waugh wrote. Too much is assumed about the power of sledging and bouncing down the pavilion steps with a puffed-up chest. Without the golden tide of talent from 1989-2003 the Waugh doctrine of strategic obnoxiousness would have seemed risible to its intended victims.

After England's 1986-87 win Wisden had bemoaned "the parlous state of Australian cricket", so we have been here before. The malaise had roots in the Packer affair and the rebel tours of apartheid South Africa. Now there is a more ominous constriction in the flow of talent. The English, so often bamboozled by Aussie strength, experience an inexplicable hankering for the days of torment; or for 2005 or 2009, at any rate, when the spectator would stumble from a day's play exhausted by the closeness of the contest and the impossibility of foretelling the outcome.

The instinct that rendered Australian cricket invincible for so long will most likely save it from the current mess: an ability to identify a problem and then solve it, however brutally, rather than sink into paralysis and introspection, which is often the English way.

The opening Test will show if England are ready to exploit Australia's problems at their favourite fortress

This Ashes tour has been like no other in living memory. While England have gone on their serene way in Test match preparation, with scarcely a hiccup to upset the progress, the Australians have been floundering with issues of form, fitness, and confidence, each as yet not fully resolved.

Cricket Australia, the governing body, seems to be in turmoil, with a marketing department that appears to be ruling the roost. The chairman of selectors made his initial squad announcement from beneath the railway arches by Circular Quay in Sydney, and latterly, when the squad was reduced, could be interviewed by the luggage carousel at Adelaide airport. Few players have managed any performances of substance in the state cricket they have played, and two days ago their reserve wicketkeeper Tim Paine, himself pushing strongly for a Test spot, broke a finger playing in a hit-and-giggle promotional Twenty20 match at The Gabba, and is out for the duration of the series. It has been calamitous.

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Even the phoney war, that period when local comment bounces between the barbed and the patronising, has been powder-puff stuff, done for the sake of it rather than with any real malice. So Mitchell Johnson is going to "target" Andrew Strauss (he is an opening bowler: who else is he going to target? Kylie Minogue?), Matthew Hayden says that England have been "hiding" and have had "a sleepy start so far", which shows what can happen if you club yourself over the head with your own Mongoose, while one newspaper's risible go at baiting England – headlined "10 reasons why the Poms are duds" – would have been fine if you could not have substituted Australia for each and every one. It just hasn't been the same. If not actually an air of resignation, there is apprehension in the wind. Even the majority of local pundits appear to be tipping England to win the series.

But everyone knows that when the teams arrive at The Gabba tomorrow, none of this, not England's controlled build-up or Australia's flapping, will count for a hill of beans. In Australia, there is no such thing as an uncompetitive Australian cricket team. At The Gabba, that charmless, characterless concrete bowl, with its dressing‑room bunkers, they have been nigh on invincible. And they know that since Len Hutton's 1954-55 England side lost by an innings but won three Tests thereafter, no visiting side has come unstuck at The Gabba and recovered to win the series. They play here at this time of year for climatic reasons rather than to exert early authority, but the fact remains that this is their fortress.

In order then to win the series, or even draw it, England need to overturn history for unless the weather interferes in its tropical intensity, The Gabba does not do draws. Andy Flower is a keen student of statistical analysis so will be aware of the most fundamental of these: that Australia have lost only three of the past 26 matches played between the sides in Australia since Mike Gatting's 1986-87 triumph and each of those after the destiny of the Ashes had been decided; that indeed Australia have won 10 of the past 11 Ashes matches in this country; and that no visiting team has won a Test match in Brisbane since Viv Richards's great West Indians 22 years ago.

All this of course is part of the intimidatory factor of an Ashes series. It extends further: to the notion that the series will be decided on the first day, or the first hour, first over or even first ball and that beyond that, should they not come out on top, there can be no comeback. This is to underestimate the resilience of the England team under Flower and Strauss who between them coaxed an Ashes win at home (winning at Lord's on the way, the first time Australia had lost there since 1934 and following Cardiff where they were heavily outplayed but survived), and a drawn series in South Africa against the odds. Somehow captain and coach raised the team performance to such an extent last year that they overcame the debacle at Headingley to win at The Oval. So an Australian win at The Gabba would not, and should not, be regarded as the end of the matter, any more than would an England win (although the clamour for change in Australia would be considerable in the event).

Crucial to the game is the pitch. A recent Shield match and a one-day international appeared to indicate the possibility of a capricious surface. But those games were following unseasonably heavy rain which hampered pitch preparation. In the past few weeks the heavy rain has been replaced by afternoon showers only, which enables proper preparation.

This promises to be a typical Gabba Test surface, with good pace and carry, some help for the seamers early on, but settling down thereafter. Later, as Shane Warne's record here would suggest, it can help spin. The toss, of course, will be a big factor, although there appears to be one rule for Australians and another for the opposition. Not since 1985, when New Zealand were here, has a visiting side put Australia in and won. Since then, of 11 winning tosses, the visitors have fielded first on nine occasions without further success (although they may well not have won even had they batted first: fielding, as Nasser Hussain clearly thought, would give them their best chance).

Against this, Australia have won 13 tosses and batted first on seven of them. Since his blunder at Edgbaston in 2005, Ricky Ponting has always batted when winning the toss, whatever the circumstance: at Headingley this year, against Pakistan he did so and the side were bowled out for 88. It is fundamental to England's strategy that they create scoreboard pressure with first‑innings runs, so it would be astounding, given the reasonable weather forecast, if given the opportunity, they did anything other than bat first.

The biggest stumbling block that England may come across is the Australia captain himself, a driven man and supreme batsman, but one who stands on the brink of becoming only the third captain of his country to lose three Ashes series. Of late, Ponting has had a lean time with the bat, but he excels at The Gabba averaging more than 66, with four hundreds (two against England) against a career average of almost 55. He is, they say, fitter than he has ever been, lean and hungry and on the verge of 12,000 Test runs. There is a massive burden on him, however, and it will be a huge test for him to see whether he can shoulder it should he not get support from the rest of the Australian batting. Conversely how will they cope in the unlikely event that Ponting has a bad series?

England's bowling is key. All four bowlers, with Test experience in Australia limited to Jimmy Anderson alone, will take on a heavy workload. They will be well drilled in the lengths and lines to bowl (which fundamentally means a fullish length to encourage taking the edge, with a preparedness to be driven down the ground) and now have only to carry out their plans.

The performance of Anderson, one of the most improved bowlers in world cricket, will set the standard. If he swings the new ball he can be devastating. But Graeme Swann will have a crucial role, too. Doug Bollinger's lack of match fitness means that Australia will field only the single left-arm paceman to create rough for him to exploit outside the right-hander's off‑stump. However the fact that Australia recognise his threat and will certainly attempt to get after him, may play into his hands for he is too canny to be belted out of the attack.

The possible absence of Michael Clarke, the most adept Australian against spin, will just make it more difficult for the home side. On a seamers' pitch Swann can still play a part. He will benefit too from the extra bounce and the use, for the first time in an Ashes series here, of the Umpire Decision Review System. So too will the batsmen. Last time, England felt strongly that they were on the receiving end of too many bad decisions. There will be fewer excuses this time.

A duffer's guide covering the key Ashes terms you'll need to become acquainted with before that first morning in Brisbane

Australian conditions n. adj

Parallel cricket dimension where nothing is quite the same: alien-strength sunshine, pitches made from concrete, flies the size of crows and humidity equivalent to living at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. No Englishman has ever mastered Australian conditions. To do so would be against nature.

Baggy green n

Tearfully revered badge of the Australian Test cricketer. Emblem of sporting nationalism. Piece of Ashes iconography. Also, slightly frumpy flat cap with amusing nobble on top.

Ball of the century n

Legendary Ashley Giles delivery to Damien Martyn during 2005 series that turned from leg to hit off, signalling start of period (18 months) of English dominance. Apparently there was a similar one in the last century too.

Barmy Army n

Supporters movement formed by backpacking England fans during 1994-95 series in Australia. Since co-opted into commercial juggernaut that provides a front for paunchy sunburnt drunken men with urge to conga everywhere.

Bodyline n. adj

Intimidatory leg-side fast bowling tactics employed by Douglas Jardine's England during 192-33 Ashes tour which, if Aussies were whingeing types, might have caused a great deal of whingeing in the intervening years.

Boot camp n

Aussie innovation involving pre‑series character-building tasks such as abseiling, bog-snorkelling and anything that involves being shouted at by a middle-aged man with a whistle. Comes complete with unprecedented opportunity to look extremely silly three months later.

Boxing Day Test n

Famous occasion in Australian calendar as hordes of slightly frazzled men escape their families in order to take up sacred festive duty of lolling around watching cricket for eight hours drinking fizzy lager.

Can't bat, can't bowl, can't field

Label attached to Mike Gatting's touring party of 1986-87. Gatting's team went on to win the Ashes because fortunately Australia also couldn't bat, field or bowl, as well as being unable to win the toss, warm up properly or tie their laces without getting muddled up.

"The Colossus" n

Fashionable Ashes wicket celebration pose, involving spreading arms and legs to demonstrate supreme 100% physical prowess. First employed by Andrew Flintoff. Then by Brett Lee. Both of whom have since retired from Tests due to injury.

Comfort break n

Brief retreat to pavilion employed with great frequency by England bowlers during 2005 series. One such rest stop coincided with Durham whippet sub fielder Gary Pratt decisively running out Ricky Ponting at Edgbaston. He seemed upset.

David Hasselhoff n

Swaggering, small-screen legend who, according to Shane Warne, Graeme Swann is going to be "walking around like" during the current series. Apparently a compliment.

"Doing a Harmy" vb

Moment of disastrous nervous implosion while delivering opening Ashes blow on That first morning in Brisbane (see below). A career-defining moment for any cricketer. Compensations include YouTube superstardom and lifelong tenure of boozy corporate speaking circuit.

Fanatics n

Laughably contrived Aussie imitation of the Barmy Army, complete with unfortunate, politically sensitive moniker.

5-0 whitewash n

Standard Glenn McGrath pre-series result prediction. Always an amusing diversion. Right up until the moment it actually happened.

Fremantle Doctor n

Fabled Perth-based wind possessing unusual qualities of swing-assistance. While the Doctor is blowing Australians are advised not to fly or drive due to risk of "doing a lot" or "getting off the straight" in favourable conditions.

Hill, The n

Notorious Sydney fans' section known for badinage with opposition, bottle-lobbing, V-signs, harmless banter etc. Previously a grassed liquid-picnic-spot-cum-urinal. Now the cheap seats.

Kookaburra n

Australian version of a cricket ball. Much-discussed due to enigmatic properties, difficulty in bowling with and specialist technical skills required. All of which essentially derive from the fact that it falls to bits after half an hour.

Lucky red hankie, Steve Waugh's n

Aussie cricket holy relic, famously kept poking out of former captain's trouser pocket throughout seven winning series. Employed for magical properties, intimidatory value and mopping tears of joy on accidentally catching glimpse of own baggy green while batting.

MBE n. abbrev

Part of Warne's infamous sledge of Paul Collingwood in 2006-07. Warne asked Collingwood, who played only one Test in 2005, if his resultant gong stood for Must Be Embarrassing. After Cardiff 2009, Collingwood could reply that it stands for Manages to Block Everything.

Reverse swing n

English method of cheating involving making the old ball swing by impregnating it with sugary saliva, voodoo or as-yet-unidentified unfair dinkum substance. So strong is the Aussie sense of outrage on this topic their bowlers have flatly refused to master the skill themselves.

Sherminator, The n

Ian Bell. Until he finally scores a match‑shaping 150 in Australian conditions (see previous).

Spirit of cricket n

Famous Australian-led principles of fair play. Makes up part of the world's tiniest box set when bundled together with Australian Rules Of Etiquette and The Australian Guide To Not Talking Too Loudly In Public Places.

Targeting n

Australian tradition whereby leading bowler "outs" English batsman he intends to install as personal whipping boy (usually captain, star man, or chief posho). Warning: only appears to work properly when employed by men with names like "Glenn McGrath" or "Shane Warne".

That first morning in Brisbane n

Famed moment of truth as Ashes series commences. Go hard, come to the party and step up to the plate. Alternatively, simply relax and Do a Harmy.

"Under the Southern Cross I Stand" n

Aussie dressing room victory song. May or may not still be in use. Hard to be completely sure these days.

Urn, The n

Small plastic tourist replica traditionally waved around vaguely by victors at end of Ashes series. Still perhaps the least photogenic major sporting trophy yet devised.

• Bell and Bresnan pile pressure on Australia A
• Mike Selvey: Beanpole bowlers deliver big advantage
• Catch up on yesterday's Fighting Trousers debate
• Please comment or leave links below or email or on Twitter

More Ashes memories

12.09pm:
Or for a more Australian collection of Ashes memories, you could try ABC Grandstand Sport's 50 Memorable Moments.

You can even have your say, by emailing them.

(Hat-tip to Aussieinexcelsis btl)

We're on our way

12.01pm:
My favourite tweet of the night, from @VaughanCricket: "See ya everyone... http://yfrog.us/64tjjz."

Not the Ashes: England women win again

11.40am:
England Women comfortably beat Sri Lanka in the first 20/20 international by 8 wickets with 4.2 overs to spare.

Ashes Joy

11.33am:
Now here's a real treat: The Joy of Six: Ashes memories.

There's Andy Bull on the Oval 2005, Barney Ronay on Sydney 1987, Rob Smyth on Adelaide 1994, Vic Marks on Trent Bridge 2005 and David Hopps with an hilarious tale of Headingley 1977. Oh, and me, on Headingley 1981. Joy. Unconfined.

Holiday tips

11.27am:
Our travel team has produced an Ashes fan's guide to Brisbane for all those who will be lucky enough to be in Queensland for the first ball of the Ashes. Such as My Mum. (Thanks to karlinlondon for his Singapore airport tips too)

Not the Ashes: Windies and Sri Lanka draw

10.59am:
The match in Galle has ended in a draw, with Chris Gayle unsurprisingly made man of the match:

It's good to be in the same class as the great players (who hit two Test triple centuries).

(That list again: Lara, Bradman and Sehwag).

Ashes aggro

10.52am:
At last, the Australian sledging has begun and an attempt to work on The Fear of the English has begun. The Mercury in Tasmania today carries "10 Reasons why the Poms are Duds."

1. Over-rated
2. Kevin Pietersen
3. No genuine speedster
4. Over-analysis
5. Passive captain
6. No depth
7. No superstars
8. Chokers
9. Warm ups
10. Scars

(Via @Aggerscricket)

A poll

10.41am:
As there has been much discussion below the line about the best technique for Ashes watching - stay up late for the first session, get up early for the last, drowse through the night with the radio on or a combination of all of the above - we have a poll: "Will you phone in sick for the Ashes?"

Small talk: David Gower

10.03am:
Andy Bull talks booze, Christmas and, well, a bit more about booze with the former England captain and bon viveur.

Overnight form

9.44am:
While England were doing a thoroughly professional job in Hobart, the Australian test players were getting their final workout before the First Test, with Mike Hussey coming good at just the right time with a century in Melbourne.

Meanwhile Shane Watson took a five-for in a thrilling, but low-scoring, match between NSW and Tasmania at Sydney. (Tasmania won by one wicket). Nathan Hauritz, however, bowled just one over in the match. It would be hard to judge his form - or lack of it - from that.

But that lack of bowling may be to Hauritz's advantage, because, as he was being chronically underemployed, few Australian A players managed to apply any pressure to the senior squad. Phillip Hughes is the only one with any credit against his name, unbeaten on 58 overnight.

The TV commentators on England's game spent most of the evening worrying that Ian Bell had scored TOO MANY runs. But below-the-line this morning, Palfreyman points out that 192 was actually 8 too few: "the lad has a concentration issue - just when he was set and looking good for a big score, he fluffs it 8 runs short of his double."

Collingwood too fell short of a major mark, out for 89.

But Bresnan claimed the first three wickets, just in case he's needed, including bright new hope Usman Khawaja first ball.

The Guardian loves Swanny

sathish1 asked a couple of days ago: "What's with the Guardian's love affair with Graeme Swann?"

Well, watch this video, the third installment of his Tour Diary, and tell us that he isn't entertaining:

Not sure why Mushy allows him to take such liberties though.

Not the Ashes

At teatime in Galle, Sri Lanka are 39 runs ahead with 6 wickets remaining, so it will require an almighty push from West Indies to claim victory. There was much debate below the line after Gayle scored his triple hundred about whether such a thing was ever useful to a team, as triples usually led to draws.

Updates

Further Ashes coverage will appear here through the day. You can keep up to date with those via Twitter.

Please comment and/or leave links to other interesting Ashes coverage below the line. Or email steve.busfield@guardian.co.uk.

• England should beware fired-up Australia
• Naming 17-man squad has increased uncertainty

Adam Gilchrist has conceded that Ricky Ponting and Australia will be in the unfamiliar position of going into a home Ashes series as underdogs in Brisbane next week. But in the unlikely event of that breeding English over-confidence, he followed up with a timely warning: the Aussies were pretty worried on the first morning of the last Ashes Test at the Gabba, before Steve Harmison bowled the infamous wide that set the tone for a 5-0 drubbing.

"I think England are probably the favourites at the minute," said Gilchrist, who was such an influence as Australia's wicketkeeping all-rounder in the last two Ashes series down under. "They seem to have had the smoother and more fluent build-up.

"But that certainly doesn't guarantee the Ashes. Come the Gabba, where Ricky's played in so many Ashes Tests and other series, and with a number of good allies around him who'll be firing up, Australia could get a roll on.

"In 06-07, pre that first delivery I think everyone was very nervous and very uncertain as to which way it could go. A lot of the boys coming out from England had just won their first Ashes in 2005, so I was thinking they're going to be chockful of confidence.

"If Australia get on top in Brisbane they could deflate that England team very quickly. All the build-up for the last 18 months doesn't mean anything then. Australia will realise if they can get on top of some of the players who have toured here before and open up a few wounds, then anything is possible."

However Gilchrist admitted that the selectors' unusual decision to name a 17-man squad so far in advance of the first Test added to the feeling of uncertainty currently troubling the Australian game.

"Naming a squad of 17 would indicate they're not certain, but I believe it was a marketing decision to raise the profile of the event," he added. "I'm not sure you need to do that ahead of an Ashes series – I don't think there will be any dramas with ticket sales. In terms of preparation it's not what an Australia team over the last 15 or 20 years had been through in trying to finalise that last 11.

"But we're out of that era, and we're in an era where there's been a few changes. It's not what we're used to, but maybe it's something we've got to become accustomed to."

Adam Gilchrist was speaking ahead of Sky Sports' coverage of the Ashes Tour, live and in high definition from 11pm on Wednesday 24 November on Sky Sports HD1. See www.skysports.com/ashesanywhere

• Former Test batsman presses for left-hander Usman Khawaja
• Andrew Strauss is linchpin in England's batting, says Waugh

Mike Hussey is the most striking name on a list of four batsmen who will start the Ashes series with their places under threat, according to the former Australia strokemaker Mark Waugh – who is also worried by the form of Mitchell Johnson and Nathan Hauritz, two members of the Australia attack.

Hussey has been a fixture in the middle order since making his debut in 2005, and still averages more than 50. But he has made only two centuries in his past 28 Tests – one of them in the team that conceded the Ashes at The Oval 14 months ago when his place was last the subject of similar conjecture – and Waugh has joined his former Australia team-mate Michael Slater in urging the selectors to promote a younger man.

He is also unconvinced by Marcus North, but he believes that a greater depth in bowling makes Australia narrow favourites for a tight series, especially against an England batting line-up in which Alastair Cook and Paul Collingwood are weak links. South Australia's Callum Ferguson is generally thought to be the next in line should Hussey or North struggle early in the series.

Waugh has been pressing the case of Usman Khawaja, a 23-year-old New South Wales left-hander who was born in Islamabad and could become the first Muslim to play for Australia, since he hit a double century in a Sheffield Shield match in Adelaide last month. "He's a very talented up‑and‑coming player, and why not strike when the iron's hot?" said Waugh.

"Michael Hussey is a very good player with an excellent record, but for the last couple of years in Test cricket he's only been averaging 30. He likes to occupy the crease rather than score at the moment. I think the selectors will go with him and Marcus North in the first Test, but there are some young guys like Khawaja and maybe Callum Ferguson who could come into the reckoning."

Waugh believes that England's batting is generally more vulnerable than Australia's, with the scratchy recent form of Cook and Collingwood leaving them dangerously reliant on Andrew Strauss. "There are a few little question marks about their batting line-up. A few players will be under pressure ... Collingwood and Cook have been a bit out of touch. A lot is going to depend on Strauss and how he holds things together at the top."

Despite claiming that Australia have a stronger bowling attack, Waugh concedes that Johnson and Hauritz have been anything but impressive. "Johnson's not been bowling particularly well, very similar to when they went to England last year. He can't get that seam straight and although he still gets wickets he does leak a few runs. He's under the microscope, that's for sure, and he's going to have to bowl better than he has for the last few months.

"The guy I would like to see come into the team is Jason Krejza. I know he's not got a lot of wickets for Tasmania, but he bowled well in India a couple of years ago, and he's more of a wicket-taking off-spinner than Nathan Hauritz. I think Hauritz will start but I've got a big question mark on whether he can get the wickets than can win you a Test match."

Sky Sports' live and high‑definition coverage of the Ashes tour this winter begins at 11pm on Wednesday 24 November on Sky Sports HD1. Go to www.skysports.com/ashesanywhere

• Pressure grows on Australia captain ahead of Ashes
• Vaughan: 'If he loses the series he will go'

Michael Vaughan has added to the pressure on Ricky Ponting ahead of the Ashes, saying Ponting will not survive as Australia captain if his side lose again.

England arrived in Perth on Friday with captain Andrew Strauss adamant that his side has what it takes to win Down Under for the first time since 1987.

Pressure on Ponting is mounting following his side's recent series defeat against India and this summer's failure to beat Pakistan in England. While being regarded as one of the most talented batsmen of his generation, Ponting's record is blemished by the fact that he has lost two Ashes series.

Vaughan, who beat the Tasmanian to win the Urn in 2005, recognises that Ponting's record on home territory is something he should be proud of, but says losing a contest with England for the third time will cost him his job.

"If he loses the series he will go," said Vaughan.

"He has lost the Ashes twice and hasn't won an Ashes in England either. Obviously he won the 06-07 Ashes 5-0 but he had a better team to manage those days but now he has a team that is almost back in the ranks of normal cricket teams.

"His record in Australia is phenomenal but he will have to be at his best, both as a captain and as a batsman to put England under pressure."

Strauss has won many plaudits since he took charge in 2009, leading the team to victories over West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Australia in last summer's 2-1 victory on home soil.

Winning in Australia would make Strauss one of the greatest England captains of all time, and Vaughan believes that he will benefit from the absence of a number of Ashes veterans who have recently retired.

"It's harder being a captain when you don't have the ammunition in your bowling attack that includes the likes of Warne, McGrath and Gillespie," said Vaughan.

"He doesn't have the X-factor bowlers who can change games. That puts your batsmen under a lot more pressure because they know that you have to get lots more runs to give your bowlers something to bowl at.

"If they'd have got 300 a few years ago, they knew that Warne and McGrath would get them back in the game but now they need 400 plus to really put England under pressure."

Vaughan, who missed out on England's humiliating 5-0 whitewash in 2006-07, believes that Strauss can match the achievement of Mike Gatting's team, who won in Australia 23 years ago.

"They can win it. It's our most realistic chance since 1987. For so many years it seemed that they didn't know how to lose but they do now."

"The likes of Graeme Swann, Kevin Pietersen, Stuart Broad and Andrew Strauss are real match-winners and we therefore have a great chance."

Vaughan believes that the outcome of the first Test at Brisbane, where England have not won since 1986, could be crucial.

"I see whoever wins that match in Brisbane going on to win the series. Australia have a great record in Brisbane. They haven't been beaten in 23 years.

"They will probably go in with four seamers because that's how conditions will suit. Hauritz won't play and the likes of Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle will come in. They will be key to the outcome of the series too."

• Former Australia coach sees Pietersen as weak link
• Buchanan says Pietersen's strength and unity will be tested

John Buchanan, the former Australia coach, believes Kevin Pietersen could be a "major problem" in England's Ashes campaign if he fails to rediscover his batting form.

Buchanan, who was the coach when Australia lost the Ashes in England in 2005, said: "Pietersen is a quality player and he could be an incredible strength for them but, if he's not scoring runs, he could become a major problem for the batting line-up and the entire team. Andy Flower has been trying to work on that."

Pietersen's maiden Test century five years ago was against Australia at The Oval in the drawn match that secured England their first Ashes winning series since 1987. In the 12 Tests he has played against them he averages more than 50 with the bat. Buchanan, though, is not sure that will matter when the sides meet again this winter. The first Test of the Ashes series starts in Brisbane on 25 November.

"Pietersen hasn't done himself or the team any favours with his recent Twittering," he added in the Wisden Cricketer. "Two of the things that will be tested in Australia are strength and unity and clearly he hasn't understood his role within the team yet."

Despite his misgivings over Pietersen, Buchanan believes England can be "world leaders within the next three years" and possess mental strength missing from previous sides.

"They seem to have a new mental toughness and they are more consistent, except for the odd glitch, which is mainly Kevin Pietersen. They need to retain this united spirit and sense of purpose. England teams in the past would often be beaten before the Test started. They didn't believe in themselves, even when they were ahead, but they are better at handling that now."

The batsman played through a bad back to inspire India to a dramatic first Test win over the men in baggy green

In the Indian dressing room, VVS Laxman is Very, Very Special. In Australia's they probably think of him in very different terms – Very, Very Sickening. In crisis situations that paralyse others, Laxman manages to bat with a composure and elegance that must be soul-destroying for the opposition. Others cramp up with nervous excitement. He strokes the ball into the gaps. As Zaheer Khan, an odd choice as man of the match following India's single-wicket win over Australia, said afterwards Laxman brings calm to the dressing room.

He and Australia have history. In January 2000, Laxman was a makeshift opener when he scored his first century, a galloping 167 in a losing cause at the SCG. None of his team-mates made more than 25. A year later, now batting in the middle order, his 281, which gets a mention each time you discuss the greatest innings ever played, thwarted Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie and Michael Kasprowicz at Eden Gardens. In the next Test, with the series on the line, he eased the tension from a final-day run chase with a stroke-filled 66.

He's seldom look back since when confronted by those in baggy green. Six of his 16 centuries have come against them and he averages nearly 60. "Even with a bad back, he showed what sort of class player he is," said a rueful Ricky Ponting after this game. "He played very well, got the tailenders to stick in there with him, and he had a knack of finding the boundary late in the innings. He has been a bit of a thorn in our side, there's no doubt about that."

The chances are that this unbeaten 73 from 79 balls, having come in at No7 after back spasms kept him off the field for most of the match, will be cherished as much as any of those feted hundreds. Make no mistake, Australia had this game won. That they lost with India on the mat and gasping for breath will rankle for a long time. "I think I was a bit delirious by the end of the Kolkata game, so I can't remember too much about that," said Ponting when asked to compare this defeat to that of 2001. "This one probably hurts more. I'm captain of the side. I wasn't then. Eight down today with 80 to get, it was a game we should've won."

India's overnight position (55 for four) was precarious enough, but when Sachin Tendulkar fell, trying to bunt the ball over gully a first defeat at Mohali since 1994 appeared a near certainty. MS Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh could do nothing to halt the slide and when the beanpole figure of Ishant Sharma marked his guard, the scoreboard showed a forlorn 124 for eight.

Fate, though, had more twists in store. Doug Bollinger, who had dismissed both Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, went off with an abdominal strain and Ponting's frustration was palpable. He had been unhappy about the fast bowler's late arrival from South Africa, where he had been part of the Chennai Super Kings' Champions League-winning side, and when he didn't emerge after lunch, the burden was squarely on the shoulders of Ben Hilfenhaus and Mitchell Johnson. Hilfenhaus got Australia back into the game on the fourth evening, but his strength is beautifully controlled outswing with the new ball. Johnson, despite a five-wicket haul in the first innings, has an action so erratic that he's prone to inconsistency. Nathan Hauritz, anointed as Australia's frontline spinner in the build-up to the Ashes, was so ineffectual that Ponting couldn't trust him, and it was left to Marcus North, after another wretched game with the bat, to give the ball a tweak.

Sharma may have bowled poorly of late, and will miss the Bangalore Test, starting on Saturday, with a knee injury, but he showed diligence with the bat, making an important 31 runs from 92 balls. By the time he was out the ninth-wicket partnership was worth 81. His back may have been stiff and his footwork severely restricted, but Laxman kept giving the fielders the runaround.Inevitably in a series being played without the Umpiring Decision Review System, the pivotal moment came with a decision that would had been referred had the technology been made available.

From where I sat, right behind the umpire, Pragyan Ojha appeared to be struck in front by Johnson. But Billy Bowden, who had earlier given Gautam Gambhir leg-before despite a thick inside edge, ruled that the batsman hit it. As Ojha and Suresh Raina, running for Laxman, scampered the single, Steven Smith picked up and had a shy at the stumps. He was close, but with no one backing up, the ball went for four overthrows. Two balls and two leg byes later, the game was over. The Indians embraced Laxman, Ojha and Raina, while the Australians looked shattered, like kids who had seen Father Christmas turn into the Wicked Witch.

Ponting put on a brave face afterwards, stressing the positives, but admitted that the defeat was one of the most painful of his 147-Test career. At Edgbaston in 2005, it was Australia that nearly pulled off a stunning come-from-behind win. Here, with roles reversed, they again fell just short.

"This is a tough loss for us", said Ponting, who answered a slew of questions with great dignity. "It's no good hiding from it, this hurts all of us. I'm sure it's hurt a lot of people at home who've been watching as well.

"There's no doubt we're bitterly disappointed with the result going the way it did. The dressing room is very, very quiet at the moment, but we have to bounce back from this." How they do or don't could well decide Australian cricket's immediate future.

He came to be known as 'Freelance Fred', but Andrew Flintoff's determination to cash in on his celebrity can be forgiven – just

In Ricky Ponting land they waved goodbye to Andrew Flintoff as if he were an honorary Australian. "He's just a guy that has given his all, who has been great for world cricket, and his sportsmanship is just second to none," Brett Lee eulogised. "He's an absolute beauty."

When the news of Flintoff's retirement reached Australia a story once told by Lee was rolled back out. Remember the iconic photograph of His Fredness consoling 'Bing' at the end of the second Ashes Test at Edgbaston in 2005? According to Lee, Flintoff was saying: "One-one, you Aussie bastard."

"That might have been thrown in there," Lee admitted to reporters in Sydney on Friday as the Flintoff retrospectives rolled into print.

England's supporters will be pleased to know the series was won with reverse taunting as well as reverse swing. Englishmen often express empathy through banter. But here in the shires, Flintoff's profile as yeoman super-hero was not painted in syrup.

Some in English cricket had waited a long time to declare that Flintoff was less of a professional cricketer in his later incarnations than an industry, all set up for the day when his ravaged knees were beyond saving by a surgeon's knife.

If Ian Botham was the first rock star cricketer, Kevin Pietersen has tried to claim that role in pop, which leaves Flintoff in category limbo. Not that the average Test spectator has much difficulty in placing him. He was the missing link to club cricket and pints after stumps. He was the raw English spirit bouncing down the steps of the village pavilion to wipe out the mob from the next parish. Like Botham he guaranteed himself an inviolable status in the affections of the paying public because he pulled off the greatest trick. He made Australians cower.

Around the English game – or among English commentators – there were more subtle ruminations about Flintoff's commercial obsessions, his political power in the dressing room and the briefness of his glory years.

In a generally affectionate appraisal, Michael Vaughan, England's leader in 2005, wrote: "He was hard to captain at times, especially after 2005. Before then he was a gem. But after 2005 his celebrity status rocketed and he became a brand in himself. I guess that was hard for everyone to manage."

Mike Atherton, another England captain, wrote in the Times: "There has always been a special bond between those supporters and the man they saw as the heart and soul of English cricket throughout the first decade of this century. Partly this was because they saw in Flintoff something of their best selves: a down-to-earth northern lad, unchanged by success, popular with all, quick to smile, slow to anger and quick to enjoy the fruits of his labour. No matter there was as much myth there as reality."

Atherton went on: "'Freelance Fred' they called him and he saw himself charting a new course, independent and free from control of cricket's governing bodies. A contract here, a contract there."

These are the sounds of cricket wrenching away from its old moorings. It was surely right for so many observers to chafe at the timing of the final bow: the last day of the County Championship campaign, which his declaration overshadowed. The Mail's cricket correspondent, Paul Newman, wrote: "It was Flintoff's slavish devotion to his sponsors that rankled. Holding the bat up on reaching a landmark, to give full exposure to his backers, was the act of a calculated operator, not an acknowledgment of the crowd's applause. Placing a certain energy drink in front of him when he was waiting to bat was the act of a man who seemed to be thinking more of the cameras than the challenge awaiting him in the middle."

It is a fair guess that the cognoscenti have been lambasted in the blogosphere for their conscientiousness in pointing out that Flintoff made a commodity of his aura. When the Observer interviewed him last year it was at the invitation of Volkswagen, one of his backers (a common arrangement in football, these days), but the unspoilt essence of him was easily visible. He was in no way a PR glove puppet and his magnetism was authentic.

After this flurry of awkward-truth telling the reviews will grow kinder again because Flintoff has a fine body of work to sustain him. Not a long one, but a body all the same. His move to Dubai was framed as an attempt to achieve equidistance between the world's big cricket centres, but the country's zero tax rate may also have had something to do with it. He is already a "sports ambassador" for the emirate's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed, which doesn't sound too arduous.

Nowadays the household name cricketer takes a book deal, ascents to write a newspaper column and lowers his rear into a seat in the Sky TV commentary box: home of the best expert analysis in all of British sport. But Sky already have their folk hero all-rounder in Botham, and Flintoff is not thought likely to chase coin as a short-sleeved sage. Instead the dread phrase "reality TV" is mooted. Managed celebrity, on his scale, is self-renewing, but he will find that even the biggest names become silted over with history and with fresh exploits.

"His highlights reel will make glorious and wistful viewing in years to come, no doubt, but the bald truth is that in 11 years at the highest level, he was immense for precisely three," wrote Andrew Miller, Cricinfo's UK editor. "His halcyon days stretched from the summer of 2003 to the spring of 2006. Either side of that, however, Flintoff drifted off into mediocrity."

Miller also took his chance to cough up a hairball: "Like cricket's version of David Beckham, Flintoff's undoubted gift for his chosen sport has been superseded by a penchant for self‑promotion – to such an extent that the myth is now of greater significance than the fact, or indeed the stats.

"Flintoff is, after all, Britain's first bona fide celebrity cricketer, and in the current climate that means he is better placed than most to rake it in. Whereas Mark Ramprakash, Darren Gough and Phil Tufnell are known to the wider British public as reality TV-show champions who also happened to play cricket once upon a time, Flintoff's heroics in 2005 were the reality show of choice in that remarkable summer. And the knock-on effect is still relevant five years down the line. As [Graeme] Swann remarked, tongue mostly in cheek: 'Thanks to Fred, I'm loaded!'"

With these resentments exorcised, each witness to the Ashes triumphs of 2005 and 2009 will return in memory to his five-wicket haul at Lord's last year, and the primal force of his bowling at Australia four years previously. Walking around Lord's as he bowled one especially vicious spell in the 2009 Test, his snorting runs from the Pavilion End felt like national theatre. Here was England, in one-man's form, carrying the weight of Ashes history and being thrilled to his bones by the experience.

This is Flintoff's insurance against people forgetting or seeing him now as a mere brand ambassador who 'retired' long before the confirmation. He looked like a country when he went about his work in those Ashes Tests. He sent electricity through our homes.

Steven Finn is a keen writer as well as cricketer. Here is his first published effort – about his hero Glenn McGrath

With a Test career starting in 1993 and spanning 14 years, Glenn McGrath has always been regarded as a batsman's worst nightmare, ever since he first graced the field against New Zealand all those years ago. He has come to epitomise the very essence of a "nasty fasty".

During my youth, Glenn McGrath was the best fast bowler in the world. I clearly remember that in the build-up to every series McGrath would target an England batsman. First Michael Atherton, then Michael Vaughan were on the receiving end of pre‑Ashes sledging from McGrath.

McGrath saw off Atherton 19 times in his international career. Not afraid of predicting how a series might turn out, as well as how a batsman might fare against him, before England's Ashes win in 2005, he postured: "I think I was saying 3-0 or 4-0 about 12 months ago, thinking there might be a bit of rain around. But with the weather as it is at the moment, I have to say 5‑0."

A confident man. Blessed with unshakeable belief in his own ability and an unerring trust in his team-mates, he showed aggression in everything he did – even in his manipulation of the media. These reasons make this incredible fast bowler my icon, the role model every young fast bowler should aspire to emulate.

I have only ever seen McGrath bowl live once, at the Walker Ground in Southgate in 2004 against Yorkshire. McGrath donned the blues of Middlesex in three national league games that summer. I remember perambulating round the ground, taking in the performance of my idol from as many angles as possible. From side on, I could see the incredible carry that he was getting, sending the ball firing through to the wicketkeeper. From behind his arm I could see the "shape" he was getting on the ball, taking it consistently away from the right-hander. The rhythmic run‑up and the unique and individual way he jumps in towards the stumps at release of the ball – just as every coaching manual says you shouldn't! This all added to the magic of the moment I was caught in. It showed he did it his way and also gave me something to relate to as a cricketer. Because I was doing a similar thing when I was bowling.

In one of his final overs of that day at Southgate he bowled a dreaded no-ball. In a close encounter a free hit could prove one of the game's turning points. However, his ability to hold his nerve in pressure situations shone through. He produced a perfect yorker that cartwheeled leg‑stump from the ground. The ball was a dot ball. The experience of watching a master in action strengthened my passion to play professional cricket – and wanting to be a hero in a pressure situation now feeds my desire to succeed.

Adapted from Steven Finn's article in issue 54 of All Out Cricket magazine. Steven Finn is set to debut as the magazine's latest star diarist, following current guest editor and England team-mate Graeme Swann.

In 2005 Bangladesh were twice embarrassed by England; just by winning the Lord's toss and claiming Alastair Cook's wicket they have shown improvement

The hunt for signs of improvement in the Bangladesh Test team was not enhanced by the scoreboard as tea approached: England 230 for three.

But the tourists were starting from a very low base. For a true comparison it is imperative to look at Bangladesh's performance here in 2005, because conditions are so different to those in the subcontinent. For their batsmen especially Lord's and Old Trafford are just about the polar opposite to Chittagong and Dhaka. Here the ball stays harder and bounces higher, one reason why Shakib Al Hasan was happier to bowl first.

But the captain could not have had many realistic hopes of bowling England out cheaply. As the runs flowed on the Augusta-style outfield at Lord's, the headline of my first day of first-class cricket came to mind. "Taking A Thrashing Like Gentlemen" thundered some broadsheet in the days when cricket filled the columns of the sports pages, as Sussex piled up the runs against Oxford University at the Parks in the mid-70s.

Respectability is one of the realistic goals of Bangladesh in this series and, simply by winning the toss, Shakib increased his chances of acquiring some. In 2005 Bangladesh lost both their Tests inside three days by an innings. At Lord's and Chester-le-Street they were bowled out within 40 overs on the first day.

By bowling first Shakib enhanced the likelihood of the game lasting longer than either of those Tests, especially in an age where captains are so reluctant to enforce the follow-on. Moreover no England batsman failed at Lord's in 2005 (unless you count Andrew Strauss's 69), but here Alastair Cook, no doubt craving the umpired decision review system, was back in the pavilion within half an hour.

Before the game the players huddled to give Eoin Morgan his first Test cap. If a student of history Morgan would have been sanguine about his chances of making a big impact on the Test match scene. In 2005 England's No6 – Andrew Flintoff – never got to the crease. There was no guarantee that Morgan would get there. While Strauss failed to reach three figures (that's three failed attempts against Bangladesh in England – something of a record), Trott, who may be feeling a little fragile about his Test place, gorged himself expertly.

But how do we gauge runs against Bangladesh in England? Ian Bell scored 227 undefeated runs in 2005 but that was no guarantee of a prolific Ashes series later in the summer. Graham Thorpe hit 108 runs without being dismissed but never played for England again. For some reason they decided to give Pietersen K a go against Australia instead.

Thorpe shares that dubious distinction of having his international career end against Bangladesh with Gareth Batty, who played those two Tests in 2005 (no chance to bat, 15 overs bowled and the wicket of Mohammad Ashraful).

So there was some pleasing stroke-play at Lord's and some earnest fielding and bowling: a gentle thrashing of gentle men but only a fool would draw too many conclusions from it all.

Email any thoughts, musings or general opinions on whether 8am on a Sunday morning is a good time for sport to simon.burnton@guardian.co.uk

It's the fourth one-day international between South Africa and England and the series stands at one win apiece. Simon will be here at 8am with over-by-over coverage but in the meantime read why Paul Weaver reckons South Africa's Wayne Parnell is the new Wasim Akram ...

In South Africa they think he could be the next Shaun Pollock. Rob Key, the captain of Kent, says he might be the next Wasim Akram. But everyone is agreed that Wayne Parnell is one of the most exciting young cricketers in the world.

If you look at his figures you may ask what all the fuss is about. After all, at 20, he has played 19 first-class matches and averages 20.76 with the bat, while his 49 wickets cost 33.24 apiece. Unsurprisingly, he has not played a Test match. But look at his ODI stats. When he took a career-best five England wickets for 48 runs yesterday evening he took his record to 22 wickets in eight one-day internationals at 19.63 each.

In his last four matches he has taken three wickets against Sri Lanka, five against New Zealand, three against England in September and then five more at Cape Town, when he and Morne Morkel gave a new cutting edge after South Africa's defeat at Centurion last Sunday.

When he plays in the fourth ODI at St George's Park in his home town of Port Elizabeth tomorrowthe England players will have discussed him in detail. A left-armer, he bowls at a whippy pace (around 90mph) and can swing the ball late both ways. He did not swing it much yesterday evening but still troubled the England batsmen with his speed and angle of delivery.

He was not an outstanding success for Kent last season when, in five championship matches, he took 17 wickets at 31.11 but when he played against Essex, Geraint Jones, the Kent wicketkeeper, said it was the fastest bowling he had kept to since Steve Harmison in the Ashes series of 2005, when the Durham fast bowler was still at his peak.

Key has no doubts about his quality. "I think he could become one of the leading bowlers in the world," he said. "He reminds me of Wasim. He's got a very quick arm. He trots up with these short little steps and suddenly he's on you. He's a complete natural. He just puts the ball in his hand and runs in and bowls. There are so many theories and opinions with young English bowlers that they all probably have a paper prepared on how to bowl. Parny's not like that. He says that as long as his head is moving towards the batsman he's happy.

"He's a bit of a freak, really, inasmuch as there's not much of him. He's a skinny little lad who can bowl at 90. But he's a winner, he plays without fear and the bigger the occasion the more he enjoys it."

At Grey High School in Port Elizabeth, where his left-handed batting and leadership qualities also impressed, he was coached by the former Derbyshire left-arm spinner Fred Swarbrook. He has captained every Port Elizabeth age group team since he was 13. He captained South Africa in the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia last year and led from the front, taking his side to the final. He took 18 wickets, the most in the tournament, and against Bangladesh in the quarter-finals he scored 57 and took six for eight. "His weakest suit is the longer game," says Key. "He didn't have the patience for it. But he has played so few matches and that could change.He was 12th man in the last Test South Africa played in March and this winter he could face England in an all Kent attack, with Morkel and Ryan McLaren."

Meanwhile, former captain Graham Gooch will help England prepare for the Test series, which starts on 16 December. English cricket's managing director, Hugh Morris, said: "Graham is rightly regarded as one of the best batting coaches in international cricket and we are delighted to have secured his services."

Despite a modest first-class record the young left-arm fast bowler is tipped to emulate Wasim Akram

In South Africa they think he could be the next Shaun Pollock. Rob Key, the captain of Kent, says he might be the next Wasim Akram. But everyone is agreed that Wayne Parnell is one of the most exciting young cricketers in the world.

If you look at his figures you may ask what all the fuss is about. After all, at 20, he has played 19 first-class matches and averages 20.76 with the bat, while his 49 wickets cost 33.24 apiece. Unsurprisingly, he has not played a Test match. But look at his ODI stats. When he took a career-best five England wickets for 48 runs yesterday evening he took his record to 22 wickets in eight one-day internationals at 19.63 each.

In his last four matches he has taken three wickets against Sri Lanka, five against New Zealand, three against England in September and then five more at Cape Town, when he and Morne Morkel gave a new cutting edge after South Africa's defeat at Centurion last Sunday.

When he plays in the fourth ODI at St George's Park in his home town of Port Elizabeth tomorrowthe England players will have discussed him in detail. A left-armer, he bowls at a whippy pace (around 90mph) and can swing the ball late both ways. He did not swing it much yesterday evening but still troubled the England batsmen with his speed and angle of delivery.

He was not an outstanding success for Kent last season when, in five championship matches, he took 17 wickets at 31.11 but when he played against Essex, Geraint Jones, the Kent wicketkeeper, said it was the fastest bowling he had kept to since Steve Harmison in the Ashes series of 2005, when the Durham fast bowler was still at his peak.

Key has no doubts about his quality. "I think he could become one of the leading bowlers in the world," he said. "He reminds me of Wasim. He's got a very quick arm. He trots up with these short little steps and suddenly he's on you. He's a complete natural. He just puts the ball in his hand and runs in and bowls. There are so many theories and opinions with young English bowlers that they all probably have a paper prepared on how to bowl. Parny's not like that. He says that as long as his head is moving towards the batsman he's happy.

"He's a bit of a freak, really, inasmuch as there's not much of him. He's a skinny little lad who can bowl at 90. But he's a winner, he plays without fear and the bigger the occasion the more he enjoys it."

At Grey High School in Port Elizabeth, where his left-handed batting and leadership qualities also impressed, he was coached by the former Derbyshire left-arm spinner Fred Swarbrook. He has captained every Port Elizabeth age group team since he was 13. He captained South Africa in the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia last year and led from the front, taking his side to the final. He took 18 wickets, the most in the tournament, and against Bangladesh in the quarter-finals he scored 57 and took six for eight. "His weakest suit is the longer game," says Key. "He didn't have the patience for it. But he has played so few matches and that could change.He was 12th man in the last Test South Africa played in March and this winter he could face England in an all Kent attack, with Morkel and Ryan McLaren."

Meanwhile, former captain Graham Gooch will help England prepare for the Test series, which starts on 16 December. English cricket's managing director, Hugh Morris, said: "Graham is rightly regarded as one of the best batting coaches in international cricket and we are delighted to have secured his services."