England close in on convincing victory

England were just one wicket short of winning the second Ashes Test at Lord’s on Sunday with visitors Australia precariously placed at 231 for 9 at the time of going to the press. Test match between England and Australia at Lord’s is the cricket fixture of all cricket fixtures, as it has been for well over a hundred years. This has not been the Test of all Tests, however, because England have been so vastly superior to their opponents. 

Never since the 1880s have England been so far ahead of Australia in batting as they are now, thanks mainly to Ian Bell and Joe Root, who trashed Australia’s bowling as it has never been trashed before at Lord’s. This is the 35th Test match between England and Australia here and only in 1930 have England scored more than 350 in both of their innings, as they will do if they bat on briefly this morning before Alastair Cook’s declaration.

Neither country has come from behind to win three Tests in a row in England, and the only case in Australia came when Tests were timeless. This Lord’s pitch is far too dry and worn to permit any other outcome than an England victory. At the outset it was ‘a day three pitch’, and on Saturday even Australia’s two apprentice spinners made some balls kick and spit out of the rough: Root might add to his enjoyment as Graeme Swann’s fellow offspinner, even if does not convert his overnight score into a double-century.

Extending an already large lead in the third innings can often be dull fare but Root saved Saturday from being an example, even if England added only 140 in the first two sessions. The Yorkshire batsman had to prove his credentials as an opener worthy to be Cook’s partner, and he did so utterly conclusively by seeing off the final fling by Australia’s pace bowlers before pummelling their spinners. Root is 22, only one year older than Bradman when he played what he later called the innings of his life here, and he sealed his place for years to come with his 178 off 334 balls.

Except perhaps for the next Test, if Kevin Pietersen’s calf strain proves serious: for such is Root’s versatility that he could easily slot in as Pietersen’s replacement at No 4 and allow Nick Compton to return as opening bat. Root’s shot-selection was disciplined when it had to be, the only question being whether he was too inclined to play back to full-length balls: but this trait is more likely to get him into trouble when the ball is swinging into him, not away as it did on Sunday.

The question for Australia in the rest of this series is which timbers are sound enough to be used to build their future.