Australia in Free Fall

Australia is falling faster than the acceleration due to gravity (which is 32 feet per second per second in case you are wondering). Mitchell Marsh's batting average is making baseball batting averages look like Don Bradman's. Australia is trying out players after players as if they have an entire army of tried and tested players to build. They are handing baggy green like a 2 dollar note. Australia is bad right now. Probably the worst they ever have been in their cricketing history.

Someone once said, "There are only bad options. It's about finding the best one."

Australia is unable to even do that. The whole team seems so fragile. They can't play spin, they can't play quality fast bowling, they can't bowl oppositions out when nothing is happening. They were pathetic in 3 of the 4 innings in this series.

Under Tim Paine, they haven't won a single match so far. They have been playing under Tim Paine for the last 6 months. An Aussie victory is rarer than watching Halley's comet nowadays.

A quick question: What are the things which Shaun Marsh and Mitchell Marsh have in common? a. Both play for Queensland. b. Both want to visit planet Jupiter some day. c. Both are bipedal human beings. c. Both can't bat when it matters.

Mitchell Marsh is the vice-captain of this current Australian team. Why? No human being knows the answer.
Mitchell Marsh is batting higher than Burj Khalifa (at number 5 in case you are wondering). Why? Again. No human being has the answer.

Mitchell Marsh has always been a waste of a plane ticket. Still, he keeps on getting opportunities as if failing to do so would anger him to burn this entire planet and humanity.

Shaun Marsh: Same story. Too many promises. Too little delivery. Mohammad Abbas made him look like a 5-year old kid who can't find his parents at the airport.
Shaun Marsh is a nicker.
Nickers should be dropped for they are the ones who provide fodder for the pouting lips of the slip cordon.

During whole series, Abbas could be seen punching the air celebrating a wicket as if he holds a personal grudge against it. He is number 3 bowler in test cricket right now in this galaxy.

Labuschagne made his debut in the first test. Labuschagne was picked to make bowlers tired.

During whole series, Labuschagne was seen mostly not with the bat in his hands, but with the ball.

Holland and Siddle: Not their fault. They have got each other's shoulders to cry on. They are angry with their parents for giving birth to them at such a time when the rest of Australia can't bat, bowl or field.

Starc: Can't do much when the batters are busy trying to find creative ways to get out and not give his quickly aging pair of legs some rest.
Lyon: The GOAT was fine. Should have been the vice-captain.

Other than Finch, Khawaja and Paine defiance in the first test and Lyon's brilliance in the second, it was a complete fiasco of a series for Australia. ICC rankings, for what they are worth considers them the number 5 team on this planet. It could get worse.

If you want to have a little chortle, listen to this at the end of the series from Australian captain:
"There's no doubt this has been happening for too long for the Australian cricket team, not just our Test team but probably domestically, there's a lot of collapses throughout our batting group.  A lot of it can be technical, some guys will be mental and other guys will be tactical or your plans not being right for certain bowlers. There's no shying away from the fact we've got a hell of a lot of work to do with our batting, and that's not just this team, it's throughout the whole country."

All I can mutter while watching this Australian team collapse from my couch, sipping a hot cup of tea is: "O Australia, Dear Australia! What happened to you, Sunshine?"

The rise of Moeen Ali and England's triumph

Old Trafford: There were so many things about this test match which caught so much attention. James Anderson bowling from James Anderson end, Pressure on South Africa to protect the streak of not losing a series in England since 1998, Faf under pressure to not lose his first test series as captain, Pressure on Root to start well in his first test series as captain, So many careers of newbies like Jennings, Malan, Kuhn, De Bruyn etc. on line and so on. There were so many speculations going on over the combination.

All the matches played in this series were quite similar in a lot of way. Team winning the toss (England on 3 occasions, South Africa on 1) chose to bat first, put a respectable total, gain a reasonable lead and then winning comprehensively defending in fourth innings. Despite the role played by toss, I firmly believe England were more consistent after a long time with bat and ball and always stayed ahead in 3 out of 4 games in this series. South Africa missed the services of AB, Steyn and Philander (in the last test) badly. Better team won at the end.

South Africa have a lot to think about their combinations. With AB almost certain to call it a day on red-ball career, they need to groom someone for number 4. Bavuma has been solid, but he is fragile as well. He gets starts and then throws it away. De Kock batting position has been very fickle and he needs to be given a healthy go at a fixed position. I would want him to bat at number 7. He can do a lot of damage coming down the order and taking the attacks apart. Hashim Amla's power seems to be on the wane, still he is the best they have at this moment. Faf just had a bad series. Elgar has been the biggest positive in last 3 years for South Africa. With just a little tweak here and there, there is no reason why they can't be a good test team.
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Let's talk about Moeen Ali. A person who believes in Cricket, faith and family. I can't imagine anyone who doesn't like him. Hating him is like hating nature, rainbows, sunny day in winter and cricket itself. He comes from a poor background in Birmingham and is a perfect example of how talent trumps every adversity thrown in the way. He is an epitome of humility and gentleness. England have found a gem in Moeen the test cricketer.

Moeen Ali is not very talkative. He is a silent achiever. He is humble and as honest a cricketer as you will ever find. He has picked up a test hat-trick. He picked up so many vital wickets in this series. He slams innings like 87 and 75* when England desperately needed it.  Moeen Ali is the only one to achieve 250+ runs and 25 or more wickets in a four-Test series. Since his debut, Moeen Ali has won 5 Man of the Match awards for Moeen Ali in Tests - the joint most for England, alongside Joe Root, in this period. Only Steve Smith has higher (6).

Statistics don't always tell the full story, of course. Moeen Ali and Ben Stokes give England enviable depth in the middle order. Combine that with the superb form of Johnny Bairstow and they have the best lower middle order in the world. Moeen Ali has been a catalyst in the making of this England side.

Moeen Ali's rise has been enormous. From a bowler who used to succeed because batsmen wanted to annihilate him, he has come such a long way. He has taken so many top-order wickets that it is fair to call him a proper bowler. He is not like other off-spinners. He bowls quick and gets drift and the ball skids through. It has been one of the reasons he has been so successful in English conditions. He picked up 18 wickets against India in 2014 who are adept at spin. He has made a double of 2000 runs and 100 wickets faster than Sir Botham, Hadlee, Kapil, Sobers, Kallis, Imran Khan. He is a bloody good cricketer.

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Final Words: It was surreal to watch James Anderson bowling from his own end. Marcus Trescothick has an end named after him in Somerset, but there is a big difference between hitting sixes to your end and picking up wickets from your end. Jimmy had a great test match by picking 7 crucial wickets. He seems to be certain to make the Ashes trip this summer and reach the summit of 500 test wickets against West Indies in the coming series. He still has a lot to offer to this English side.

England still have a lot of questions to answer. Who will replace Jennings and Malan? Should Dawson be given another go? How good will Toby Roland-Jones be in Australia? What is the ideal spot for Johnny Bairstow to bat? There are 3 holes in top 5 which needs to be rectified before Ashes in this summer.

This series win will boost their confidence and hopefully they find all their answers in due time.