The Ashes Remain Firmly Up for Grabs Despite England Taking 1-0 Lead

The look on Australian batsman Brad Haddin’s face as he was given out by the third umpire summed up what had been one of the greatest Ashes test matches in recent memory.

Led by an inspirational bowling performance from James Anderson, England secured a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series at Trent Bridge in a contest that served up controversy and surprises over five pulsating days of cricket.

Haddin’s feather through to Matt Prior behind the stumps was a very fitting way to end a clash that had been filling up the column inches, with the Decision Review System coming under severe scrutiny after a couple of contentious decisions, while Stuart Broad’s failure to walk sparked debate after his blatant edge to first slip was missed by on-field umpire Aleem Dar during England's second innings.

For some, it left a nasty taste in the mouth, as the Nottinghamshire speedster failed to follow the cricket etiquette of walking to the pavilion from a blatant dismissal, but it could be argued that he was well within his rights to stay put after Australia had wrongly used their two reviews earlier in the innings.

Before things got underway in soaring temperatures on Wednesday morning, all the talk was about how comfortable England would beat their Antipodean rivals, but the Baggy Greens showed their fighting spirit as they skittled the hosts out for a meagre 215 on what was supposedly a batting-friendly wicket.

However, England fought back with aplomb and had Michael Clarke’s men staring down the barrel of defeat when James Pattinson’s dismissal saw the visitors slump to 117-9. However, a 19-year-old debutant by the name of Ashton Agar became an Australian hero in the space of a couple of hours as he smacked some mediocre England bowling to all areas of the ground.

Agar, who was playing for amateur English side Henley Cricket Club a few months ago, was bludgeoning boundary after boundary and, along with Phil Hughes, propelled the visitors past England’s first innings total. On 98 runs, the debutant, who had already passed the previous world record for the final man, hooked one to cow corner and was caught by Graeme Swann.

Nevertheless, this had catapulted Australia on to the front foot, and it was England’s time to try and bounce back into the ascendancy, and Ian Bell’s spectacular century was full of guile and exquisite placing as he was the catalyst for Alastair Cook’s men posting 375 during their second innings.

Broad was watchful in a 138-run stand between the pair, and that swung the pendulum England’s way.

Needing 311 runs to win, it became a nail-biting last couple of days for a fixated Trent Bridge crowd and those watching on TV as the Aussies started the chase in stunning fashion.

Shane Watson and Chris Rogers’ opening stand of 84 was the perfect platform, but Darren Lehmann’s battling side were unable to live with the brilliance of James Anderson, whose sensational spell on the morning of day five saw England gain the upper hand.

It looked all but over when Peter Siddle was removed by Anderson with 80 runs needed to win, but James Pattinson joined Haddin at the crease and the pair survived until lunch with just over 20 runs needed to win. 

Unsurprisingly, It would be Anderson who completed the job for England, notching his 10th wicket of the match by removing Haddin with the Aussies 15 runs short of the required 311 need to win the test.

Amidst jubilant scenes, it just showed that test cricket is well and truly sparkling, and the Ashes juggernaut will now roll on to Lord’s for the second test on Thursday, where more of the same will hopefully await. 

One thing is for sure, based on their latest performance, anybody who underestimated Australia's chances of a series victory before the first test will have to reconsider just what the tourists are capable of. England may have a valuable 1-0 lead but with four tests to play, Australia will be confident that they can turn things around, starting in London later this week.