The Urn: 1st Test, Day 1

England (215) lead Australia (75-4) by 140 runs.

For a 70 minute spell of a frenetic days play at Trent Bridge on the opening day of the Ashes series, it looked like Australian veteran Chris Rogers was going to provide some calm and a level head in among the school playground cricket on show in Nottingham.

Shane Watson and Rogers

Bespectacled in the field and sporting a grey armguard nicked from lost property when at the crease, the opener looked somewhat like a PE teacher on his return to the national fold after his five year absence from his single outing in 2008.

Back then, Aussie spinner Ashton Agar was only fourteen years old, but he was thrust in to the limelight and handed his debut cap ahead of first choice Nathan Lyon.

Agar couldn't make hay with the ball and it will be interesting to see how Darren Lehman handles an inexperienced bowler and the aformentioned Lyon, whom it can be presumed will be quite disillusioned even this early on in the piece.
 

Rogers was diligent on a day of elementary mistakes until Jimmy Anderson trapped him LBW for sixteen runs.

Anderson was the epitome of the England fightback as he also removed Captain Michael Clarke with, in the context of the day’s play, a rare moment of quality after they had been skittled for 215.

Clarke could do nothing about the delivery which was in every way textbook. It pitched on a good length, kissed the top of off-stump and sent the Lancastrian past Fred Trueman's total of 307 test wickets. How ‘Fiery’ would have approved of being overtaken with a ball that good.

What Trueman would not have admired was the general nature of the bowling throughout, though.

Yes, Peter Siddle picked up a five wicket haul and, while not wanting to take anything away from him for using his nous and variation, England are better than that.

Though Joe Root (30) was bowled with a sumptuous Yorker, the middle order fell cheaply and Jonathan Trott (48) will be most displeased. His frustration was there for all to see as he briefly thought about demolishing his stumps in the aftermath of dragging on a very wide Siddle half volley.

So errors aplenty already and we’ve still got four more days of this opening test to go. From a competitive angle, it’s nicely poised, but from a technical perspective it has been rather poor.

The Australians could not have done more from a bowling viewpoint, they looked pumped and even when most of England’s batsmen had made starts, they upset the rhythm somehow.

Alistair Cook will take flak for winning the toss and electing to bat when all conditions suggested otherwise, but with his side slightly on top after a late resurgence, he should reap the rewards from not having to bat last on this pitch.