Harmison underlines importance to England

Having lost his rhythm in South Africa last winter, Steve Harmison has looked back to somewhere near his best in the early part of the summer and his form is likely to be important if England are to have any chance of stealing the Ashes from the all-conquering Australians.

Back up to 11th in the ICC Test rankings, Harmison has been a key factor in England's success over the past 18 months, and he will spearhead their attack this summer. In 30 Tests, Harmison has taken 121 wickets at 27.95, but that average falls to 26.02 at home, where has taken 71 of his 121 wickets. And if you take out his performances against South Africa, it comes right down 22.43.

He did struggle in Australia in 2003, when in four Tests he took just nine wickets at 50.55. In part, that can be put down to the fact that he went into the Ashes on the back of just one Test match appearance, and, like most of the England attack, took a pounding from a rampant Australia batting line-up.

Despite his poor record against the Aussies, Harmison is something of a lucky charm for England. Of the 30 matches he's played in, he's ended up on the winning side in 20 of them, including 16 of his last 20. Now obviously, that run does not stretch back as far as his series in Australia, but given the way things went then, he has a point to prove. His strike-rate is excellent at just over 54, though, and four wickets per Test is getting toward the level of a top strike bowler.

Those of you interested in individual match markets should probably concentrate their efforts on the Oval, where his record is far superior to any of the other Test grounds in use this summer. On a pitch with traditionally more pace than the rest, Harmison has taken 13 wickets at 17.46. At Lord's, venue for the first Test, he's managed just 18 wickets in five Tests, at 33.50. At Trent Bridge, it's 13 wickets at 24.38 while it's also decent at Old Trafford - 5 at 27.60. But at Edgbaston, in two Tests, he's taken just three wickets at 77.00.

Confidence is a vital part of every fast bowler's make-up and Harmison will at least go into the series on a high after taking 10 wickets at just over 20 against Bangladesh, though he can expect Australia's batsmen to be much tougher than their Asian counterparts.

Finally, don't rule out the odd decent contibution from Harmison with the bat. If England struggle as the bookies believe they will, Harmison will almost certainly find himself batting twice in each match. For a No. 11, he averages a healthy 11.03, with a top score of 42, figures that could come in handy in the performance markets.