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Loading ...It’s worth a shot, isn’t it? England have a pretty slim chance of winning the thing, so we might as well throw Harmison in and see what happens. If he flops, so be it.
England depend on Harmison for the Ashes
By Will 2 years ago, mid-August Add your comment below
Harmison and Pietersen celebrate against South Africax
Forgive me. I was going to wait at least another week before mentioning the A word, but with the recall of Steve Harmison proving such a success, it’s high time I stated the bleeding obvious. The success of next year’s Ashes depends rather a lot on Harmison, and today was a case in point.
He led the attack, bowling a tight line to Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis, both of whom were dismissed by him. James Anderson supported him well. So too did Stuart Broad. But where was Flintoff? He was enjoying a well-earned break from leading England’s attack in the slip cordon. Only at 12.20pm was he introduced into the attack and, having been battered by Harmison and to a lesser extent Anderson, Flintoff – less pressure on him owing to Harmison’s earlier bulldozing – did what he does best: add a big bottle of Lancastrian tobasco.
Flintoff has occasionally managed to be England’s best bowler and their most fearsome and feared while Harmison has bottled it. But England’s attack is so better balanced with a firing Harmison that everyone else just slots in. Anderson swings it as Matthew Hoggard used to. Broad is still in his infancy as a Test bowler, but the signs are promising.
I fully expect Harmison to bottle it again – be it in India or West Indies. But I’ve been genuinely surprised how good he has looked in this Test. Perhaps after all these years, it’s finally kicked in: he must bowl, bowl and bowl. Who knows? He could yet murder Australia next summer, and England will cling onto that hope – however forlorn it probably sounds to our Aussie readers. I fully expect most of you to either disagree with me or, for the Aussies, to call me a pathetic pommy dreamer. And I may well be, but one thing’s for certain: if Harmison is at his best next year, England will regain the Ashes.
By the by, in exactly 12 months, we’ll be on the fourth day of the fourth Ashes Test. Will it be sealed already? Yes, probably, but let’s pretend Australia really are as fragile as we hope they will be. Which England side would you plump for?
Tags: andrew-flintoff, ashes, australia, steve-harmison, the-ashes |
18 Responses to “England depend on Harmison for the Ashes”
August 11th, 2008 at 12.20 am
August 11th, 2008 at 1.17 am
Don’t send him on tour – he does not like it and it does him no good. Any problem and the media will be onto him again, he does better out of the spotlight.
Keep him with Durham next year until the Ashes and drop him into the team then if he is fit. It is quite obvious that he can just slot into the team now, and bowl well. He does not need to be a permanent part of it just for the sake of it.
August 11th, 2008 at 1.18 am
Five seamers. Harmison, Anderson, Flintoff, Sidebottom, Jones. Broad can play as a batsman. BOOM.
August 11th, 2008 at 5.11 am
Here he goes again…I would love to see England beat India or SA first before starting to dream of Aus.
August 11th, 2008 at 9.00 am
I’m philosophically opposed to picking someone for home games only. You can’t have it both ways- if you want to represent your country, you should be prepared to make sacrifices, such as travelling overseas. If not, then there are plenty of players out there who are prepared. So I hope that from now on Harmison is willing to tour, otherwise I’d personally be loath to select him no matter what his form’s like.
Jonathon, do you think that five pace bowlers is a realistic alternative? If your top four pacemen can’t do the job, I don’t see what the fifth is meant to do. Panesar’s doing a decent job, and so is Broad, at least for this match. Except for a change of wickie, I’d keep the England team as it is.
August 11th, 2008 at 10.23 am
They need bowlers who can take wickets – so that is broad out I am afraid.
Drop Colly too.
I don’t know enough about keepers to suggest anyone but I would rather have someone who is best with the gloves than the best with the bat if you get my drift.
I would replace Broad with Jones, then you need a straight seemer.
Who else bar Harmy is taking wickets?
Having 5 bowlers should be okay in theory, as long as none of them are being carried (cough Broad)
yes sometimes you will get caught short in the batting but if you can’t rely on 5 batsmen consistently to stick 300 runs up for you then I suggest it is not about the bowling.
August 11th, 2008 at 1.15 pm
I was at the Oval yesterday, and Harmison’s morning session was the highlight of the day. Brutal, intense, and accurate.
Mav’s being too hard on Broad. Broad broke the 95-run partnership that risked to take the match away from England yesterday, and he finished with the best figures of any England bowler in the innings.
August 11th, 2008 at 1.33 pm
It would be very unfair to drop Colly after he scored 135 and 61 in consecutive Tests!
August 11th, 2008 at 2.10 pm
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August 11th, 2008 at 2.44 pm
Lets wait and make sure he doesn’t warm 2nd slip’s hands up with his first ball before we get too excited hey. There will be a lot more pressure on him during an Ashes test as opposed to a dead rubber against South Africa. And we all know Harmy thrives on pressure.
August 13th, 2008 at 12.22 pm
You, Harmison and KP won a dead rubber, Will. That’s all.
August 14th, 2008 at 9.54 am
To harsh?
I think Broad, Colly, and Harmy have done well in a nothing match.
What did Broad do in the matches that mattered? or Colly for that matter?
Everyone is waiting for Harmy to break down again.
to put it another way with the bowling – Jones deserves to be in the team, who would you drop?
August 15th, 2008 at 1.54 am
Harmison at his best leading an on-song attack up against the Australian batting line-up at their best is a very tough one to call indeed. I don’t think it’s at all certain what would happen, so I don’t buy your claim Will. I agree that if England’s bowlers fire and enough of Australia’s batsmen don’t, Australia is in big trouble. Our own bowlers aren’t looking too lethal right now.
August 15th, 2008 at 3.40 am
Mav
Collingwood scored a century in the thrid Test, which was still live. I take your point regarding the Jones/Broad situation, but Jones is at least a big of a risk of a physical breakdown as Harmison, isn’t he?
August 15th, 2008 at 5.24 am
12 odd years since england beat india.England is 1 of the worst ODI teams in the world.I’m pretty sure Sri lanka will climb the test ratings sooner rather than later.Maybe pakistan too.I’ve stated on various occassions ,perhaps the british media needs to concentrate on not slipping out of the top 5 in both forms of the game than this obsession with the ashes.Eng aren’t great,infact very poor at T-20 too.
Also, whenever india have played with england collingwood has impressed me greatly.I came to know he was dropped & is not in favour right now.I’m not sure the ECB’s priorities are right.They think too much about the IPL & work on rubbish statements which they release to the media in fragments every day.I’m sorry,but thats my view.
August 15th, 2008 at 5.27 am
Anywayz its olympics time isn’t it.I thought you guys would take a break from the cricket.
August 15th, 2008 at 6.06 am
Don’t worry Jatt- I have plenty of time for both the cricket and the Olympics. It just doesn’t leave much room for my studies. 
August 15th, 2008 at 5.33 pm
Don’t buy the claim that if Harmy fires England will win… I’d be happy to concede that if England play to their peak they’ve got a shot – but I’d moot that just like in ‘05 its more about the Aussie bats being a bit off the boil at the same time as an England fire.
Besides – Harmy’s pace won’t undo Australia. He’s just not that quick by Aussie standards (our top 4 quicks are all faster or the same – & I’m talking speed merchants not S Clark & the like). Aussie batsman are well aquainted with fast bouncy seam bowling – we grow up on it and hammer it around the park. What we struggle with is quick SWING bowling (hence the damage Hoggard and Flintoff inflicted in ‘05 – Harmy was fairly useless IMHO).
Soooo… for England to win – swing must be king. Fortunately, in this last match Harmy started to pitch it up a bit and was getting some movement.
Aussie bats are historically pretty poor against decent swing bowling as it just doesn’t swing that much at home. It will be their ability to adjust to the banana swing of England that will determine the serries…
Should be a cracker!
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