Michael Vaughan believes England’s fast bowling cartel has already left “scars” on Australia’s batsmen after a harrowing first day of the Ashes Series in Perth.
England were grateful for their five-point pace attack after they were bulldozed for 172, with captain Ben Stokes leading the way by collecting five for 23, as Australia closed at 123 for nine on a spirited delivery.
Brydon Carse claimed a couple of wickets, as did Jofra Archer, who shared an electric new ball spell with the hapless Gus Atkinson, while Steve Smith withstood a few elbow blows and the fiery Mark Wood clattered Cameron Green on the helmet.
2005 Ashes-winning captain Vaughan was impressed enough to suggest the Australian hierarchy could already be considering changes to their batting line-up after a thorough overhaul.
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AUSTRALIA V ENGLAND: FIRST TEST SCORECARD
Intimidating
“You need bowlers to get out of trouble and England had an attack today where all five fast bowlers bowled with skill and pace and they were intimidating,” Vaughan told the BBC’s Test Match Special.
“You’ve seen how top-notch this offense has been. If you’re a tailender and you see someone incredibly talented like Cameron Green hitting the side of the grille… I wouldn’t want to suffer that attack on this field.”
“There were plenty of scars I saw from the way England bowled to the Australian batters.
“Australia held on, they were really on the ropes. England made a few small cracks.
“If I was an Australian selector and looked at the way Australia batted against those kinds of attacks I would say, ‘oh dear’ and sometimes you have to react quickly.”
(Robbie Stephenson/PA)
Influence
Mitchell Starc claimed a career-best seven for 58, setting up a 19-wicket day – the highest total on day one of an Ashes Test since 1909 – by catching Zak Crawley in the very first over.
But the left-hander, who has excelled in the absence of injured Australia captain Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, was forced to share the top spot with Stokes, who was playing for the first time since suffering a shoulder injury in July.
Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook told TNT Sports: “If England want to win this series, (Stokes) almost has to be the man of the series – he is that important.
“He balances the scales, he delivers when other people might be struggling. He’s fantastic. Just for him to come into the series today and have an impact will make him feel so much better.”
“The best thing about today is that England know they can hurt Australia’s top flight even if they don’t win this game – and they are in a great position to do that – in the next four games they can really hurt Australia.”
(Robbie Stephenson/PA)
Freak
Justin Langer, who was Australia coach when Stokes scored an unforgettable 135 in the 2019 Headingley Ashes Test to seal a famous one-wicket win for England, also praised the touring skipper.
He told TNT: “He’s a freak. If I could have one player in the world it would be Stokes.”
“I just love how fit and strong he is. When a captain walks out with that presence and does what he does, he gave me the worst day of my cricketing career and I think he’s just a brilliant cricketer.”
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