Fearless Strauss and Cook get England back on track

Geoffrey Boycott is no stranger to the Ashes, having scored seven career centuries against Australia. And in his Telegraph column, he was full of praise for England openers Andrews Strauss and Alastair Cook after they rescued England's cause in Brisbane.

What a wonderfully uplifting day for England. Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook batted splendidly and showed there is nothing to fear from this Australian attack.

Strauss’s footwork and driving were terrific. During this innings Strauss cut the ball over gully, not at it, and the only time he looked like getting out was when he tried to hit the spinners over the top, which he shouldn’t have been doing in the first place.

Cook played a controlled innings which may have been steadier than his first innings but was much more valuable to England.

Yesterday all the good fortune went with Mike Hussey and Brad Haddin. Today it was England’s turn. When they played and missed an odd ball or a slightly false shot, Australia could not hang on to the catches. Even when Australia used the review system they got it wrong.

Mitchell Johnson was a shadow of the bowler he is has been in the past. He dropped a catch, he got nought when he batted and has taken no wickets for more than 100 in the match. His place is in jeopardy. Ricky Ponting’s field placings were also far too defensive for a team trying to win the match.

The pitch is still very good for batting and there is no reason why England should not save the game, which considering how many times we have lost at Brisbane in the past, is a good start to the series for England.