England Fight Back After Warne Applies the Squeeze

In their pre-match team talk last night, England's dream scenario would have gone something like this: win the toss, bat first on a flat deck, see off a rusty Glenn McGrath, tuck in to Brett Lee and Shaun Tait, score at four an over. Simple. All their wishes came true in the first hour at The Oval - and then Shane Warne lumbered into the fray like the ultimate pantomime villain.

Warne, at his most majestic and magnetic, took four wickets to leave England tottering on 131 for four shortly, a below-par score on a belting pitch, after Michael Vaughan won an important toss. But then Andrew Stauss (92) and Andy Flintoff (39) steadied the ship to leave England on 213-4 at tea.

Warne was simply magnificent. The ball did not turn much but Warne did not need it to. He probed and schemed and lured Marcus Trescothick, Vaughan, Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen under his spell. Spinners aren't supposed to bowl before lunch on the first day, let alone take four wickets in double-quick time. Warne makes his own rules.

His splendour was needed after England got off to an absolute flyer. Trescothick and Andrew Strauss began with a policy of controlled aggression, but they were aided by the excessive aggression of Australia's new-ball bowlers. With their eyes widening greedily at a pitch offering plentiful bounce, Glenn McGrath, occasionally, and Brett Lee, frequently, were too short in their opening spells and allowed England to get away.

Trescothick justly survived a big shout for lbw early on when he played round a Lee inswinger, but other than that he was in princely form, timing the ball as sweetly as he has ever since his thumping 90 on the first morning at Edgbaston changed the mood of the series. His feet still don't move much, but nobody seems to notice anymore.

Within 12 overs, Ricky Ponting's finger was pressed pensively to his lips and the sweepers were back on the boundary. Not even they could stop the errant Shaun Tait haemorrhaging runs, however: whereas Lee was too short he was far too full, and his five overs went for 33 runs.

Predictably it was Warne who hustled Australia back into the contest with a wicket in his third over. Trescothick's crooked push off the back foot flew fast and low towards Matthew Hayden at slip, who jerked his body round to clutch a stunning catch just before the ball thudded into his left instep. Trescothick made 43, another charming yet ultimately unfulfilled innings to add to his series portfolio.

Warne was in amongst it again 15 minutes before lunch, taking the crucial wicket of the England captain for 11. Vaughan rocked back to whip through midwicket, but the ball popped a bit of a pitch and he could only find the diving Michael Clarke at midwicket. It was a poor stroke.

When Bell then went without scoring, transfixed by the Warne slider for the second time in this series and trapped plumb in front, and England had gone from riches to rags inside an hour. The lunch break came and went, and so did Pietersen - who played all around a straight one - before being bowled for 11.

At that stage England were rocking, but Strauss and Flintoff dug in. Helped by the pitch, which offered the Australians seamers very little as well as some stiff-collar-tight batting, they progressed slowly but steadily to 213-4 at tea. All England will be hoping they can kick on in.