Ashes 2013 - 1st Test Trent Bridge: Five things England can take away

England can take a sigh of relief now as they have taken a critical 1-0 lead at Ashes 2013 but Australia ran it pretty close. When Brad Haddin and James Pattinson walked out to play the post-lunch session on the fifth day of the match, it could have gone either way.

The media-bandwagon tipped this Australian squad to be the ‘worst ever’ to tour England, and if there was any similar opinions in the England dressing room, they would have been wiped away by the end of the first Test.

The victory at Nottingham might go a long way in deciding the eventual fate of this series but it was definitely a moral victory for Australia at the end of the day as they put up a fight at critical moments of the Test match.

Australia, however, still have plenty of areas to address before they turn up at Lord’s for the second Test of the series. The middle order failed to absorb the pressure that was built upon them by the English fast bowlers in both innings.

Michael Clarke and Ed Cowan failed to contribute to the team’s efforts in both the innings.

James Pattinson and Mitchell Starc did just enough to trouble the English batsmen but their inexperience was rather visible.

On the positive side, Australia have produced a huge talent in 19-year-old Ashton Agar from nowhere. Peter Siddle gave his 100% as usual whereas Chris Rogers proved that he can anchor the innings at the top of the order. They should take this loss in the best possible way and come back a better side at Lord’s.

That was, in brief, what Australia can take away from the test. Here’s a look at five things that the home side can take away from the first test played at Trent Bridge:

Peter Siddle exults after scalping Matt Prior in the second innings of the first Test match

5. Lower-middle order needs strengthening

Australia saved face in the first Test match on the strength of their lower-middle order’s contribution. It was Steve Smith who steadied the ship for Australia in the first innings and Philip Hughes who batted alongside the tail to move ahead of the English total.

Haddin dug deep into his reserves of patience in the second innings and almost chased the English target with the contributions of their tail-end batsmen.

England, on the other hand, looked vulnerable as Jonny Bairstow and Matthew Prior failed to make significant contributions with the bat. Stuart Broad deserves a pat on the bat for sticking it out with Ian Bell in the second innings but England will need more runs from their last five batsmen the way this series is shaping-up.