short of Swann at second slip, and Clarke ducked unblinkingly into a Broad bouncer. From Clarke, in fact, emanated signals of some distress, which cannot help but be interpreted in light of his chronic back problems. He never achieved fluency in a fifty-ball stay, and set off without looking at the umpire when he nicked a half-hearted pull as though glad the interlude was over.
When Swann resumed after lunch, Hussey came down the track to shovel him back down the ground for six and rocked back to pull three early boundaries. It evinced less a concerted plan from the batsman than erratic length from the bowler, perhaps from an excess of sprinkler dancing. Actually slightly flattered by three overs for 34, Swann looked momentarily vulnerable. He perked up finally when able to bowl to the left-handed North, whom he dismissed for the fourth time in six matches. Suddenly his bowling acquired a little more loop and shape, a mix of speeds, and greater economy: after his early prodigality, he gave away just two runs an over.
In the on-going battle between man and machine that is the referral system, meanwhile, Aleem Dar was outdoing Garry Kasparov against Deep Blue. For the fifth time in the game, Tony Hill upheld his judgement when England appealed for a catch at the wicket against Clarke (then on 1). Snicko later detected a tiny, indeterminate click, although this said little â studying the Australian vice-captain's struggles, you half imagined the noise to have come from his creaking back.
Australia's backbone was Hussey. He was unbending, the slow pitch feeding the pull shot he favours, the bowlers' inconsistency of line allowing him the singles he likes. He found a trustworthy partner in Haddin, who belied his reputation for peeling off exotic 40s with a strait-laced 22 in 105 minutes. England were on the brink of a new ball at 4.20 p.m. when the heavens suddenly opened, finally reminding us that we were in Brisbane rather than the milder south. The forecast for the next three days suggests few further problems overhead; England have a few at ground level to dispose of first.
26 NOVEMBER 2010
MICHAEL CLARKE AND MICHAEL HUSSEY
Two by Four
Number four is the hinge point in any batting order. Think Tendulkar, Lara, Pietersen. In days bygone, think Greg Chappell and Graeme Pollock, David Gower and Colin Cowdrey. If your number four is making runs, your team is probably ticking over nicely. If not, his failures can reverberate down the order.
In England last year, Australia's number four Michael Hussey could barely buy a run until the Oval Test. It seemed to set his team-mates' teeth on edge. The tale of Australian batting in Brisbane today was accordingly bittersweet. Hussey made a sterling undefeated 81. The trouble is that he is now batting at number five; a version of his earlier malaise has enveloped his successor at number four, Michael Clarke.
First the good news â for Australia anyway. Early on, Channel Nine's protractor, which measures the alleged deviation of balls after pitching, and is studied as seriously as ballistics testimony before the Warren Commission, had little to do. By the time Hussey took guard, however, the game was in the balance at 100 for three. He propped forward to his first ball from Steve Finn, which arced from a tentative edge towards Swann at second slip. On a quicker deck, the snick would have carried comfortably; here it fell tantalisingly short. Some batsmen in this match will blame the slow pitch for their dismissals; Hussey is one who should bless it.
For the last eighteen months, of course, far less has been coming out of Hussey's batting than has been going in. A cricketer with a Stakhanovite ethic, he reminds one of the comment attributed to his former state team-mate Graeme Wood after he was advised to relax: 'I'm working really hard on this relaxation business.' But the dwindling dividends of that physical and mental investment have sorely puzzled him. In the middle, Hussey
When Swann resumed after lunch, Hussey came down the track to shovel him back down the ground for six and rocked back to pull three early boundaries. It evinced less a concerted plan from the batsman than erratic length from the bowler, perhaps from an excess of sprinkler dancing. Actually slightly flattered by three overs for 34, Swann looked momentarily vulnerable. He perked up finally when able to bowl to the left-handed North, whom he dismissed for the fourth time in six matches. Suddenly his bowling acquired a little more loop and shape, a mix of speeds, and greater economy: after his early prodigality, he gave away just two runs an over.
In the on-going battle between man and machine that is the referral system, meanwhile, Aleem Dar was outdoing Garry Kasparov against Deep Blue. For the fifth time in the game, Tony Hill upheld his judgement when England appealed for a catch at the wicket against Clarke (then on 1). Snicko later detected a tiny, indeterminate click, although this said little â studying the Australian vice-captain's struggles, you half imagined the noise to have come from his creaking back.
Australia's backbone was Hussey. He was unbending, the slow pitch feeding the pull shot he favours, the bowlers' inconsistency of line allowing him the singles he likes. He found a trustworthy partner in Haddin, who belied his reputation for peeling off exotic 40s with a strait-laced 22 in 105 minutes. England were on the brink of a new ball at 4.20 p.m. when the heavens suddenly opened, finally reminding us that we were in Brisbane rather than the milder south. The forecast for the next three days suggests few further problems overhead; England have a few at ground level to dispose of first.
26 NOVEMBER 2010
MICHAEL CLARKE AND MICHAEL HUSSEY
Two by Four
Number four is the hinge point in any batting order. Think Tendulkar, Lara, Pietersen. In days bygone, think Greg Chappell and Graeme Pollock, David Gower and Colin Cowdrey. If your number four is making runs, your team is probably ticking over nicely. If not, his failures can reverberate down the order.
In England last year, Australia's number four Michael Hussey could barely buy a run until the Oval Test. It seemed to set his team-mates' teeth on edge. The tale of Australian batting in Brisbane today was accordingly bittersweet. Hussey made a sterling undefeated 81. The trouble is that he is now batting at number five; a version of his earlier malaise has enveloped his successor at number four, Michael Clarke.
First the good news â for Australia anyway. Early on, Channel Nine's protractor, which measures the alleged deviation of balls after pitching, and is studied as seriously as ballistics testimony before the Warren Commission, had little to do. By the time Hussey took guard, however, the game was in the balance at 100 for three. He propped forward to his first ball from Steve Finn, which arced from a tentative edge towards Swann at second slip. On a quicker deck, the snick would have carried comfortably; here it fell tantalisingly short. Some batsmen in this match will blame the slow pitch for their dismissals; Hussey is one who should bless it.
For the last eighteen months, of course, far less has been coming out of Hussey's batting than has been going in. A cricketer with a Stakhanovite ethic, he reminds one of the comment attributed to his former state team-mate Graeme Wood after he was advised to relax: 'I'm working really hard on this relaxation business.' But the dwindling dividends of that physical and mental investment have sorely puzzled him. In the middle, Hussey
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