England's attacking approach in Test cricket was set to face its sternest examination so far as they came up against Australia's all-conquering bowlers; the first Test continues Saturday on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from 10.15am, with first ball at 11am
Monday 19 June 2023 10:06, UK
There is an old physics paradox which has been pondered over for hundreds of years: What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object?
On Day 1 of this year's men's Ashes series at Edgbaston, there was a glimpse of what that might look like - if you consider Australia's bowling attack as the former and England's batters as the latter, that is.
Certainly, England opener Zak Crawley seemed determined to answer that all on his own when he hammered the first delivery of the morning from Australia captain Pat Cummins through the covers for four and forced the world Test champions' skipper to adopt a defensive posture in the field early on.
By the close of play, though, the old rivals were closer to a state of equilibrium with the tourists 14-0 after the hosts declared on 393-8 and with the question still, for now, unanswered.
What did emerge, however, was how England can adapt 'Bazball' - as we are duty-bound to call their approach to Test cricket under captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum - in the face of an opponent trying to cut off the flow of boundaries.
"They're not going to be patient around any of the lines or lengths Australia will look to bowl, they will look to score boundaries as we saw with that first shot from Zak Crawley," Sky Sports Cricket expert and former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said.
"They know if they dry out the boundaries, will England stay as patient and as disciplined to actually milk those singles with the bat, and not try to attack or be too reckless? The answer, so far, is yes.
"England have been able to adapt within the 'Bazball' philosophy and really play their style of cricket. It's interesting to see how both philosophies have adapted within their own strengths, and they've really assessed each other well."
That is underlined by the fact 54 of the 124 runs England scored in the morning session, having won the toss and chosen to bat first in pretty much ideal conditions, came from singles, with Stokes' side scoring at a rate of 4.69 runs per over.
That is a rate which would have been considered fairly brisk in red-ball cricket 20 years ago but almost seems pedestrian by the standards they have set with their attacking, aggressive approach to batting in the past 12 months.
Instead, with Australia going into a defensive setting early on, it was back to what might be the sort of traditional principles you would find in the MCC coaching manual: Take the singles when they are available and keep rotating the strike to keep pressure on the bowlers.
Aside from spinner Nathan Lyon, who finished with 4-149 and got through 29 overs, Stokes' opposite number Cummins kept himself and his fellow members of Australia's pace battery fresh by bowling in short bursts rather than extended spells.
By mid-afternoon, things were looking up for the holders of the Ashes as England had been reduced to 176-5. Crawley had fallen for 61 with the final delivery before lunch, and then a bizarre dismissal suffered by big-hitting Harry Brook (37) was followed by Stokes edging behind for one going for the big shot.
Yet Jonny Bairstow, back in Test action after recovering from an injury suffered on a golf course which saw him miss England's winter tours of Pakistan and New Zealand, blasting a run-a-ball 78 and Joe Root - more on him shortly - kept England on course, and former Australia captain Ricky Ponting was impressed by what he had seen.
"There has been all talk and hype about the way they [England] were going to play, the way they wanted to play, and it didn't matter it was the Australian bowling attack," Ponting told Sky Sports.
"[Stokes] is the one who has laid this foundation and come out with the way they want to play, so he's got to continue to carry on and play that way.
"He tried it, it didn't work today, but I love the intent in that. He's the leader, he's going to lead the way, and he's going to play a big shot early on regardless of if he gets out or not."
The returning Moeen Ali managing a cameo 18 from 17 balls on his home ground before perishing after tea, stumped by Alex Carey after dancing down the track trying to hit a big shot, and Stuart Broad being bowled in a similar manner after making 16 from 21 balls underscored the lower-order pair still had the freedom to go out and express themselves.
Root, however, once again put together a brilliant combination of fearless stroke-making, notably a few of those trademark scoop shots, which saw him hit four of the five sixes England scored in their first innings and some level-headed batting when under pressure to rack up his 30th Test century.
The former skipper would finish unbeaten on 118, coming off 152 balls at a strike-rate of 77.63, which might contrast with the wider expectation that England will now simply go and blast opponents out of the game with the bat, but Bairstow revealed the nuance behind their philosophy.
"We've got a huge amount of trust within each other to go out and do their own jobs individually, which collectively comes together as a unit," Bairstow told Sky Sports.
"Throughout the last 12 months, that's exactly what it has been about - it's about trusting everyone to play their own individual way.
"We're not machines, we're not all batting the same way. We're also very much human and we'll all make mistakes as well."
Watch The Ashes live on Sky Sports Cricket. Coverage begins at 10.15 on Saturday ahead of the first ball at 11am. You can follow in-play clips and text commentary on Sky Sports' digital platforms.
