Npower Ashes Tests

Npower Ashes Tests

By Laurence Gale MSc

With all the focus being on the players since England won the Ashes, I thought it would be appropriate for Pitchcare to congratulate the Head Groundsmen and their staff for all the hard work they put in to preparing and maintaining the wickets leading up to and during the Tests.

I am sure there were many long and stressful hours encountered by all the staff involved, particularly the Head Groundsmen whose skills and experiences were surely called upon during this series.

At the start, both at Lords and Edgbaston, the Groundsmen had to deal with a period of inconsistent weather. The fact that both Mick and Steve were able to produce consistent wickets during these two Tests was a credit to their skills, experience and commitment. The result at these two grounds certainty set the scene for a mouth watering series.

Even when the weather became more settled Peter at Old Trafford had to cope with a rain delay which resulted in the Australians getting a draw. The excitement never stopped, we saw a fantastic display of batting and bowling from both sides with the pitch providing a consistent surface for play.

It was the Fourth Test at Trent Bridge that set up the opportunity for an England Test winning series, putting Australia under pressure to win the final test. Steve Birks and his staff again produced an excellent pitch for play.

And finally it was left to Bill Gordon and his staff to produce the final Test wicket which continued to provide an exciting finish to this exhilarating Npower Ashes Series.

Reminder of the results:-

First Npower AshesTest, Lord's, (day four): Australia 190 & 384 beat England 155 & 180 by 239 runs.

Second Npower Ashes Test, Edgbaston, (day four): England 407 & 182 beat Australia 308 & 279 by two runs.

Third Npower Ashes Test, Old Trafford, (day five): England 444 & 280-6 dec drew with Australia 302 & 371-9.

Fourth Npower Ashes Test, Trent Bridge, (day four): England 477 & 129-7 beat Australia 218 & 387 by three wickets.

Fifth Npower Ashes Test, The Oval, (day five): England 373 & 335 v Australia 367 & 4-0, Match drawn.

Photograph of England's winning team courtesy of Empics.