Daily Cricket News

2nd Test: Ponting insists Oz will be stronger

Adelaide: Skipper Ricky Ponting insists his Australian lineup will be stronger and more determined in the second Test against England after a disappointing series-opener that cost pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson his place in the squad.

Although the first Test on a flat Gabba wicket was drawn, England's superb second innings of 517-1 led to Australia losing favoritism for the Ashes and calls from critics for wholesale changes to the national team for the second Test starting here on Friday.

Australia had a potentially match-winning 221-run first-innings lead after bowling England out for 260 — including a rare hat-trick from Peter Siddle — and scoring 481 in reply, but failed to capitalize against resilient batting as Alastair Cook posted an unbeaten double century in the first Test. Andrew Strauss and Jonathan Trott also scored hundreds.

This is only the second time Australia has gone into the second Test without a lead since England's last series win here in 1986-87. The other occasion in 1998-99 was due to thunderstorms saving England from defeat in Brisbane.

Ponting insists any talk of a psychological victory for England is overstating the case but concedes more players have to perform at their maximum level if Australia is to win the second Test.

"If you want to take a look at the cold, hard figures of the game, they're in exactly the same boat as us," Ponting told The Australian newspaper. "If anything, I think our bowlers learnt a bit about how hard it is to take wickets on flat decks.

"Winning Test matches is never about one, two, three or four outstanding performances. We need nine or 10 or the 11 making an impact in Adelaide if we're going to win the Test."

Johnson, Australia's strike paceman in recent seasons, was dropped on Thursday, leaving Ryan Harris and Doug Bollinger vying for his place. Johnson's return was 0-170 in Brisbane.

"The bottom line is we've got to find 20 wickets in the game and we've got to pick bowlers who we think are best equipped ... to get the job done this week," Ponting said.

Australia vice-captain Michael Clarke insists he is fit to play and credits England's bowling rather than his back injury for his uncomfortable 50-ball innings at Brisbane which yielded just nine runs.

"I didn't play as well as I would have liked with the bat and in the field during the first Test, but I certainly can't blame my back for that," Clarke said. "I thought (England) bowled pretty well, there was a bit in the wicket and Jimmy Anderson was halfway through a pretty good spell, but in saying that my feet weren't moving as well as I'd like."

England have no selection worries and it would be a major surprise if there are any changes to the eleven who played in the first Test.

Four years ago Adelaide produced a memorable Ashes contest when, after England declared its first innings at 551-6, Shane Warne inspired a collapse to 129 all out in their second innings to set up an unlikely victory that kept Australia on course for its eventual 5-0 series whitewash.

Trott, who has posted centuries in his two Tests against Australia, insists there are no demons from the loss here in 2006.

"I don't think the guys will be worried about what happened four years ago," Trott said. "It's in the past and we're looking to come to Adelaide and win."

The one improvement England is aiming to make is to score runs in the first innings. England's below-par 260 all out total effectively ended any chance of them winning the Test and Trott said he and his fellow batsman are determined to put this right.

"We didn't get as many as we'd have liked. If we'd got a big score we'd have put pressure on them," Trott said of England's performance after winning the toss and deciding to bat. "As a batting unit, first-innings runs in Australia are very important. We don't want to give them a sniff."

Spin bowlers come into the game under some pressure. Xavier Doherty needs to show he deserves his spot in the Australian squad ahead of Nathan Hauritz, and Graeme Swann — rated the No. 2 bowler in Test rankings — to prove that he can be England's talisman in this series after taking just 16 wickets at an average exceeding 45 in six Tests against the Australians.

However, just as the Gabba wicket did not live up to its typical bouncy conditions, there is doubt as to whether the Adelaide Oval strip, traditionally a spinners' wicket, will play to type. Former Australia batsman and South Australia captain and stalwart Darren Lehmann predicts another flat pitch and a draw.

"I think this one game has got draw written all over it because both teams will bat well in one innings like the last game and will take up a lot of time," Lehmann said.

Ponting and Andrew Strauss were due to face the media after net sessions on Thursday.