England learn nothing

Interest in the Ashes is running so high that England’s opening tour match was shown on television back home. Half-way through this afternoon’s highlights, the signal went on the blink, before packing up altogether. As a comment on England’s performance, it was eloquent.

The game could have gone worse, but only if a senior player had fled the ground in distress. England lost to a virtual Australia A side by a margin that was not so much wide as insulting. More importantly, not a single selection issue was cleared up.

The only man to make runs was Andrew Strauss, one of the two batsmen (with Kevin Pietersen) who are certain starters on November 23. Nobody took wickets; nobody was even economical, and Saj Mahmood was comically expensive. Geraint Jones held a great catch, but dropped a straightforward one, and when he batted he settled for survival, facing 41 balls without locating the boundary.

England’s handling of the game raised questions which Andrew Flintoff doesn’t seem to have been asked in his post-match interview. Why did Monty Panesar bowl only three overs? Spinners, more than most bowlers, need plenty of bowling. Yet Paul Collingwood, who is unlikely to play in the first Test, let alone bowl, was given a full ten overs.

Why didn’t Ian Bell, a near-cert for the Tests, play ahead of Collingwood? Why did Jimmy Anderson, a relative long shot, play ahead of Steve Harmison, who urgently needs to find some rhythm, and Matthew Hoggard, who hasn’t played for two months? We had been told that all those who missed the Champions Trophy would feature in Canberra, but Hoggard and Liam Plunkett didn’t.

On the plus side, Flintoff managed ten overs at good pace, and only got carted in the last one. Ashley Giles managed eight overs. Collingwood mounted another of his clean-up acts – though this one, paradoxically, muddied the waters. Mahmood showed gumption with the bat, which is becoming a habit. And nobody broke a bone.

The defeat isn’t a big problem in itself, but it cranks up the pressure on England for the two remaining warm-ups, which could be a blessing in disguise. They need at least six players – ideally Flintoff, Trescothick, Pietersen, Hoggard, Harmison and one of the keepers – to do well against New South Wales in the match starting on Sunday. And as England are planning to use all 16 of their party, the first challenge will be to make sure that those six are on the field for long enough to make an impact.