England wilts before McGrath

By Ted Corbett

NOTTINGHAM, AUG. 2. Unlucky England-that's its verdict so we'll assume it's true-suffered another misfortune this dark and dismal morning when Michael Atherton was given out for nought caught off his armguard from the second ball of the third Ashes Test. His partner Marcus Trescothick went on to score 69 in the next two hours but, inevitably, the moment of Atherton's departure marked the beginning of a struggle just to get on an even keel. Instead the masterful Glenn McGrath who took his 25th five-wicket haul and England was all out 185 in 53 overs and once again failed to bat two full sessions.

Almost two weeks of hot weather had left a dry pitch expected to provide turn before the end but normal temperatures were resumed today with overhead cloud and poor light. Ideal conditions for England to win the toss and bat which its stand-in captain Atherton did. If it thought that, after nine lost tosses its fortunes had changed it was soon disillusioned.

Glenn McGrath came in from the pavilion end and Atherton managed to avoid contact with his first ball around off stump. The next was one degree nastier as it nipped and rose around wrist and outside edge. The ball flew above second slip but Mark Waugh leapt to full stretch and caught it as grizzlies catch salmon and umpire Jack Hampshire nodded, leaving Atherton to troop off and spend a couple of hours staring into space from the players' balcony.

Television electronics whirred and whizzed and proved that (a) the ball had only struck Atherton's forearm and (b) that their own computer still registers an hysterical graph even if the ball has not hit the edge. Mark Butcher, who looks as if the No.3 spot suits him, began with more conviction than Trescothick but at 30, he received a McGrath delivery that would have bowled Bradman in heaven, turned him right round and had him caught at third slip.

Brett Lee had opened the bowling but when Jason Gillespie replaced him the runs began to flow even though Mark Ramprakash, whose failures we have written about before, was out for his seventh score of 14 against Australia. It may be regarded as a statistical curiosity but it is also not good enough like the whole of Ramprakash's Test career.

After a spell out for rain, Trescothick tore into Gillespie and raced to fifty in 68 balls with nine fours so that lunch came at 93 for three in 23 overs.

Trescothick was caught behind off Gillespie-whose first six overs cost 36-six overs into the afternoon session for 69 scored off 93 balls with 13 fours, an incredible rate in a Test. The applause when he left the field told its own story. It might have been the sympathetic acknowledgement of a man announcing his retirement or the sad loss of his dog.

For all his composure when he began two months ago, Ian Ward now looks tentative and lasted only half an hour for six before McGrath returned round the wicket and had him caught by Gilchrist first ball. In his next over McGrath had Craig White, another newly twitchy batsman, caught at short leg for nought: 147 for six. Three wickets had gone for 54 in 65 minutes since lunch and with each wicket came a screech from the Aussies voices in the crowd. England was not just outplayed, outthought and outguessed but it was outnumbered in its own ground too.

In his first Test innings since his 99 off the New Zealanders, Alex Tudor fumbled three in 17 minutes before he was lbw to Shane Warne and Robert Croft was snapped up at silly point, Warne's his 100th wicket against England. Alec Stewart alternated between a dazed defence against Warne and mastery against pace until his 46 in 90 balls ended when he half hit, half edged McGrath to third slip. Andrew Caddick kept the tea ladies waiting for two minutes before he was clean bowled. Only two-thirds of the first day had gone and, come rain, come shine, we knew the result already.

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