| | Australia Vs England | |||||||
Venue :3rd Test Match, Edgbaston, Birmingham | ||||||||
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Steve Rouse, the Edgbaston groundsman, believes England should resist the temptation to call in Steve Harmison for the third Test on a wicket he predicts will be flat and sluggish. Rouse also forecast a torrid outing for the likes of Andrew Flintoff, with rain making for a heavy playing surface that will make "bowling 25 overs feel like 35 overs".
Harmison combined with fellow England squad member Graham Onions to force the only first-class result at Edgbaston this year; a ten-wicket win for Durham. The England pacemen claimed 16 of the 20 Warwickshire wickets to fall, and Harmison has continued his rich vein of form since with three further five-wicket hauls this season.
Some men fill a room with their aura as soon as they step into it, others seem to shrink when all eyes turn towards them. Kevin Pietersen, who has been ruled out of the rest of the Ashes after undergoing an operation on his Achilles tendon, falls emphatically into the former category. The challenge for Ian Bell, the man who will replace him at No. 4 in Thursday's third Test at Edgbaston, is to prove he does not belong exclusively in the latter.
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