England, August 09: In the annals of sport, choking is a common phenomenon. It is one of the elements that make games worth watching. Rarely, however, can it have been exhibited with quite the collective zeal of England in the past two days.
The finishing line in the Ashes was in sight, the home side were narrowly ahead by dint of good fortune, careful planning and two inspirational individual performances. Nothing was certain, of course, but if they held their nerve and remained disciplined, the terracotta urn – the object of all the fuss – would be coming home.
Instead, England arrived here and froze. The great prize seems as far away as it can ever have been. Their batting after winning the toss on the first morning was shambolic, their bowling was no less awry on both days so far and their batting crumbled woefully yet again in the late afternoon yesterday.
–Agencies