Cricket: Quick swings into life

James Anderson's all-round value to the England team continues to rise.

When Anderson broke in to Nasser Hussain's side on England's ill-fated 2002-03 Ashes campaign, he was a fast bowler of immense promise and a useful fielder. As a batsman he was nothing more than a ferret, someone who went in after the rabbits - a shotless and rather inadequate tail-end batsman.

How that has changed. Anderson followed up last week's heroic match-saving batting display in Cardiff with an equally important innings in this test.

England were teetering on 370 for 8 when Anderson walked to the crease, having lost Andrew Strauss and Graeme Swann in the opening two overs of the day. Stuart Broad quickly followed, leaving Anderson with Graham Onions, who was yet to score a test run.

In the past, Anderson would have prodded and pushed for 10 minutes before missing a straight ball or edging a catch. Not any more. These days the left-hander goes for his shots and he is beginning to strike the ball well.

Yesterday's entertaining little cameo contained a couple of sumptuous drives, strokes Strauss would have been proud of.

When he was dismissed, he and Onions had added 47 valuable runs and taken the sting out of Australia's aggressive comeback.

Anderson's new positive style of batting highlights the confident frame of mind he is in, and he is now averaging almost 16 with the bat. When you consider that Darren Gough and Philip DeFreitas, two far more naturally gifted willow wielders than Anderson, had test batting averages of 12.57 and 14.83 respectively, it is a pretty good effort.

As a fielder he has become possibly the best Strauss, the England captain, can call on. In the deep Anderson is quick and athletic; he possesses a magnificent throwing arm and a safe pair of hands too.

The England management's confidence in his ability to catch was shown when Australia began batting and, between bowling overs, he fielded at gully.

But it is with the ball that Anderson's reputation is and will be made. Fortune went his way yesterday with three of his wickets: he strangled Phillip Hughes down the leg side with a wayward short ball, had Ricky Ponting given out caught at slip when the Australian captain failed to hit the ball and Marcus North bowled off an inside edge - helping England to have Australia reeling at 156 for 8.

Together with picking up the wicket of Michael Clarke, caught pulling to the boundary, Anderson deserved his luck because he bowled beautifully. Bowling fast can be a thankless task and there are many days when the reward/effort ratio has worked against him.

It has taken Anderson several years to work everything out but England are now profiting. When he was in and out of the England side, playing solely when there were injuries to Andrew Flintoff, Stephen Harmison or Matthew Hoggard, he felt under pressure to take wickets. In attempting to do this, he would go searching for an unplayable, wicket-taking delivery.

Australia did some fighting back of their own when the third day started. Nathan Hauritz and Peter Siddle fought on, taking the total from 156 to 196, and only 31 runs away from avoiding the follow-on.

Onions then persuaded Hauritz - playing as positively as Anderson had done with the bat - to force one away from short of a length but it only flew to Paul Collingwood in the slips.

Ben Hilfenhaus continued the defiance - getting off the mark with a four while Siddle slashed one over the slips off Broad and suddenly Australia needed only 14 to make the English bat again. But Onions cut off Australian hopes by swinging one away from Siddle and Strauss took the slips catch.

Strauss then decided not to enforce the follow-on. It seemed a good decision as he and Alistair Cook quickly raced past 50 runs in less than 10 overs, suggesting Australia will have to hang tough - as England did in the first test - to save this one.

Broad's struggles to remove the tailenders proved the old theory that the objective of every bowler should be to bowl well and trust that such an approach will, in time, bring the rewards deserved. Broad bowled too short to the tailenders and he is unlikely to find the consistency he desires at Lord's unless he begins to settle into a more simple game plan.

Broad was constantly tinkering. A ball from round the wicket would be followed by one from over and then a bouncer. The short ball got him two wickets, those of Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin, but there were other occasions when Australia's batsmen were far less generous - as with the tailend Charlies who defied him.

Scoreboard

Lunch, third day of the second Ashes test at Lord's.

ENGLAND
Second innings

Strauss not out 24Cook not out32

Extras (1lb) 1

TOTAL (0 wickets; 13 overs) 57

Bowling: Hilfenhaus 5-1-21-0, Johnson 3-0-17-0, Siddle 3-1-11-0, Hauritz 2-0-7-0.

First innings

Straussb Hilfenhaus161Cooklbw b Johnson95Boparalbw b Hilfenhaus18Pietersenc Haddin b Siddle32Coll'woodc Siddle b Clark16Priorb Johnson8Flintoffc Ponting b Hil'haus4Broadb Hilfenhaus16Swannc Ponting b Siddle4Andersonc Hussey b Johnson29Onionsnot out17Extras (15b, 2lb, 8nb) 25

TOTAL (all out, 101.4 overs)425

FOWs: 196, 222, 267, 302, 317, 333, 364, 370, 378, 425.

Bowling: Hilfenhaus 31-12-103-4 (4nb), Johnson 21.4-2-132-3, Siddle 20-1-76-2 (4nb), Hauritz 8.3-1-26-0, North 16.3-2-59-0, Clarke 4-1-12-1.

AUSTRALIA (Overnight 156-7)

Hughesc Prior b Anderson4Katichc Broad b Onions48Pontingc Strauss b Anderson2Husseyb Flintoff51Clarkec Cook b Anderson1Northb Anderson0Haddinc Cook b Broad28Johnsonc Cook b Broad4Hauritzc C'wood b Onions24Siddlec Strauss b Onions35Hilfenhausnot out6 Extras (4b, 6lb, 2nb) 12

TOTAL (all out, 63 overs)215

FOWs: 4, 10, 103, 111, 111, 139, 148, 152, 196, 215.

Bowling: Anderson 21-5-55-4, Flintoff 12-4-27-1 (2nb), Broad 18-1-78-2, Onions 11-1-41-3, Swann 1-0-4-0.

- INDEPENDENT