Cricket: Ponting Comes Good

Lord's was suffering from overindulgence yesterday, dyspeptic on a surfeit of one-day cricket. Just over a week ago, in gloomier and considerably more challenging conditions for batsmen, England and Australia fought themselves to an impasse in one of the finest roller-coaster matches of them all. And now this, a series too many, which has a stale feeling to it as if it has been left on the shelf too long.

There was a full house of course, as might be expected for a contest between these two, and the spectators did their best to appear interested, as if duty bound to enjoy themselves come what may. So too the players, although it must be hard to maintain a true focus when all the talk is of the real contest to come.

Indeed, the biggest cheer of the day was reserved not for the batting of Andrew Flintoff or Ricky Ponting, nor for the fast bowling of Brett Lee, but for the Lancaster bomber that flew low over the ground late in the afternoon. And even that might be put down to an extravagant advertising stunt for the Thwaites bitter of the same name, now being endorsed by Flintoff, rather than VE day celebrations.

Australia won the match comfortably enough, by seven wickets with 34 balls in hand, just as England had cantered through the first match of the series at Headingley last Thursday, and the sides will meet in coloured clothing for the final time tomorrow, at The Oval, to decide who collects whatever piece of silverware they are playing for.

Already the new experimental rule in which substitutes may be employed appears, at this early stage, to favour hugely the side batting second, making the toss even more important, although thus far they have had so little impact - Vikram Solanki did not bat at Headingley and was not used at all yesterday, and Brad Haddin was not required for Australia - as to render them irrelevant.

At Headingley, it was England who batted first. Yesterday Ponting won the toss, saw his bowlers put in a more commendable performance in restricting England to 223 for eight, and then in glorious summer sunshine helped himself to 111, his 18th one-day hundred, from 115 balls with 14 fours and a six, before clipping a full toss to midwicket with the game all but home and hosed.

England were unable to recover adequately from the brake placed on the early part of their innings by Glenn McGrath, who bowled with his habitual miserliness and claimed the wicket of the England captain Michael Vaughan, and Lee, who hooped the new ball at high pace and generally discomfited the England top order. When Lee was replaced by Michael Kasprowicz it brought a wicket first ball, Andrew Strauss chopping on to his stumps, and another in his next over, Marcus Trescothick's ambitious charge down the pitch resulting only in an edge to the keeper, leaving England floundering on a good surface at 28 for three.

A change of ends for Lee brought further inroads for Australia when Kevin Pietersen dragged a wide ball on to his stumps. The two matches Pietersen has played at Lord's, the sternest test he has encountered in terms of expectation, have proved a disappointment. In the final it was Lee's pace which did for him.

Yesterday the fast bowler again claimed Pietersen's wicket cheaply, to his evident joy, although this time it was more down to the batsman's anxiety to assert himself. Pietersen is a fidget at the crease - a tug of each glove and of each shoulder between deliveries, a bend of the knees as deep as Robin Smith's and very pronounced trigger movements before the bowler delivers - as if he has been drinking too much Sunny Delight.

Such hyperactivity, if it translates into an urgency to score too freely too early, will not stand him in good stead against quality bowlers in Test matches. Yesterday's attempted drive was wild, away from his body and with a bottom hand punching in, his natural instinct still to work the on side irrespective of the line of the ball. He has no doubt that he can adapt his game according to the needs, but should he make the squad for the first Test he and Duncan Fletcher will have some serious talking to do.

That England were even competitive in this match was down to Flintoff - who with Paul Collingwood (34) added 103 for the fifth wicket and went on to make 87 with 10 fours and two sixes, before skying to deep extra cover with the innings in its final throes - and a late flurry from Geraint Jones (27). Lee though proved irresistible at the end, finishing with five for 41, the final wicket coming by way of a stunning one-handed catch at extra cover by Ponting.

The Australia captain was back to his best after a generally indifferent start to the summer. He was measured at first and clinical later, with his clip into the Grandstand off Flintoff a stunning stroke and the brace of cover drives to dispatch Steve Harmison as he approached his century just sublime.

A weary-looking Darren Gough finally claimed Ponting's wicket but not before he and Damien Martyn (39 not out) had put the result beyond question with a third-wicket stand of 120.