Ashes First Test : A feeling of Deja vu!!

After an electric first day, in which the honors were more or less even, Australia re-asserted their status as world champions and the storyline had a very familiar touch and feel to it. It is very clear that Australia's dominance over the last decade has been a function of the form of their two bowling superstars - McGrath and Warne. They have done badly or rather poorly by their own standards where these two have either been absent or have been rendered ineffective for some reason beyond thier control. One such series was India's tour of Australia a couple of seasons ago when both these gentlemen were absent injured. Their replacements (Williams, Bracken, Bichel and Macgill) and their current colleagues (Gillespie and Lee) were rendered toothless as India piled on the runs and never allowed Australia to dominate them.

It will be interesting to see what Australia's fate will be if any of these great bowlers is unable to play in the remaining tests. In my opinion, that would give England a real chance at winning a match. Until then, if they continue getting dismissed for less than 200 in both innings they stand a very small chance of threatening Australia in this series. A sense of deja vu is very ominous!