I Would Be Salivating Facing the English Team - McGrath
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The Australian team to fight back and win the first Ashes Test as decisively as they did, one questions what psychological damage will be left on the England team.
How will they respond for the rest of series?
Unexpected Turnaround
I do not think anyone expected what happened on the weekend. When you look at the number of overs required to finish the game, it was Test cricket on fast forward.
England were clearly dominant at lunch on the following day, leading by 105 runs with nine wickets in hand. The pitch was still doing plenty. It looked extremely difficult for Australia to re-enter the match.
Shot Selection Woes
From that point, England's shot selection was their major downfall. The Australian bowler put in arguably his poorest performance in an Australia shirt in the initial batting, then completely reversed in the second to be the catalyst for the recovery.
England's batters were out attempting to strike balls wide of off-stump, on the up, towards cover region.
Trying to score off those deliveries, with those strokes, is the one thing you just should avoid as a batter in Australia.
Adaptation Issues
It showed that England had not done their homework, are not able to adapt or are reluctant to adapt.
There is a lot of talk about England's approach, their attacking philosophy. I observed it up close during the 2023 Ashes in the UK. Under their captain and their coach, they can be pretty stubborn when it comes to adhering to that method.
It is fine on sluggish pitches. On the fast, bouncy pitches of Australia it is a method fraught with danger. If England do not reassess, they will struggle for the whole series.
Bowling Perspective
As a bowler, I would have consistently believed in the game against this England team.
I depended on my accuracy, backing myself to hit the same spot on or outside off stump, with a bit of bounce and nip.
Even if this England team was going well, I'd be licking my lips at the idea of facing them, knowing a single error could result in three or four wickets.
Quality and Mental Toughness
There are times when England can be a high-quality team. They have good players. Good players have ability, but great players have the mental toughness and attitude to be flexible enough for the conditions.
They would been stunned at the way events developed at the venue, crushed at the way they were beaten. Now we will see what they are capable of. Even as a loyal Australian, I somewhat wants to see them change, just to show they can improve.
Bowling Concerns
It was similar with their bowling. England's attack was excellent on the opening day, then lost direction when they were put under pressure on the second night.
In the longest format, all disciplines require a backup strategy. Frequently it feels like England have one method, then nowhere to go if that fails.
'Where has this come from?' - The dismissal as England lose third wicket in quick succession
Brilliant Innings
In defense to England's pace attack, they were confronted with one of the great Ashes innings by Travis Head.
His 69-ball hundred was the second quickest by an Australian batsman in the historic rivalry, 12 balls behind the legendary keeper at the Perth ground previously – a match I participated in.
My former teammate Gilly said the performance was the better of the two. I concur. Given the difficulty of the pitch and the context of the game situation, the innings will be remembered as a moment of Ashes history.
Tactical Moves
It was a courageous move for Australia to promote the batsman in the lineup for the follow-on.
Usman Khawaja has faced criticism for being failing to start in either innings. He had muscle issues after playing the sport the previous day the Test, but I don't think the two were connected.
When the batsman missed out on the opening day, Australia promoted their number three and got bogged down.
In moving the aggressive batsman, who has the experience of starting in limited overs, Australia were able to go on offensive to England.
Upcoming Decisions
Now there is the question of what Australia will do for the next match. I'd like to see them continue the approach of aggression at the top of the order.
That could mean continuation at the top, meaning a player such as the all-rounder enters the batting lineup, or Head could go back to number five and Mitchell Marsh or Josh Inglis could move to the opening. It would be tough on the batsman, but sometimes you have to do what the opposition would find most uncomfortable.
Tournament Perspective
After the first Test was controlled by the bowlers, some are wondering if the remaining series will be brief, low-run Tests.
Perth Stadium is essentially the quickest, liveliest pitch in the global cricket, so the batsmen should get a some relief from now on.
It is not all about the pitch. Credit has to be given to the pacemen for delivering the ball in the correct areas so often. Overall, batsmen on both sides will need to look at how they were dismissed.
Pivotal Match
Now we move on to the next venue, and the completely distinct day-night conditions for the second Test.
In the historic series, I was a member of the national side that overwhelmed England to win 5-0. The rivalry in this nation have a tendency of slipping from England rapidly.
At the moment, England are just one match down. There would be no coming back from two down, which is why Brisbane is such a massive game.
They must adapt, or the Ashes will be gone again.
