Pitch perfect for England at last

In the days of West Indies' dominance, touring sides in the Caribbean would be met by fast pitches and fast bowlers from the moment they arrived. Bowlers such as John "The Dentist" Maynard - nicknamed on account of his apparent fondness for removing the teeth of batsmen - would unleash an early bouncer and, if he didn't literally follow it up with the expression "Welcome to hell", at least made it clear the sort of challenge that the tourists could expect. It was, in short, a hostile experience from first to last.

It is not that way in England. This Australia team have prepared against opposition (Kent, Essex and Derbyshire) from the bottom six of the Championship's Division Two, who rested some of their key players for the tour game. Australia were given every opportunity to acclimatise in a comfortable, unchallenging environment.

More importantly, they played on surfaces at Cardiff and Lord's that had none of the characteristics of a pitch that might be described as typically English. Instead of testing them on tracks that offered seam movement, Australia were presented with conditions in which their batsmen could feel comfortable and their bowlers' height and pace were more beneficial than England's somewhat more subtle skills. The England team, bemused by the failure to utilise home advantage but reluctant to complain in public, rated the conditions as "subcontinental." Australia could hardly have been made more welcome.

That is not the case at Edgbaston. Finally, Australia know they are playing in England. Finally, they have been challenged in conditions in which they are less familiar. Finally, the term "home advantage" means something.

This pitch is no minefield. It offers decent pace and carry, it offers full value for strokes - the outfield is remarkably good bearing in mind recent rain - and it offers a little seam movement. There is none of the variable bounce we saw at Cardiff or Lord's and a much better balance between bat and ball. It is, by any standards, a good Test pitch.

But in terms of England's requirements in this series, it is an excellent pitch. It provides exactly what the home side required: decent but not excessive pace and some seam movement. It plays to England's strengths. Just as pitches in Perth or Kolkata generally aid the home side. It was, in James Anderson's words, a "very typical English pitch".

Edgbaston is hardly a cauldron of hate. But compared to Lord's or even Cardiff, it offered a far more hostile environment to Australia. The large stands - the capacity is almost 10,000 higher than Cardiff - help generate a more intense atmosphere while compared to Lord's (or Trent Bridge, where the next Test is held), where the Barmy Army and their trumpeter are not welcome, the support is far more obviously partisan. While there may be moments when this is not entirely positive, it does serve to remind Australia they are playing away from home. It does serve to prevent them from growing too comfortable. It does serve to encourage England.

One of the potential downsides of such a surface is that Tests can end early. And for grounds such as Cardiff and Edgbaston - heavily in debt and eager to squeeze every pound from their opportunity to host major matches - that can be a disaster.

But Warwickshire took the precaution of insuring all takings - including bar and catering - for just such an eventuality. So even if this game ends on Thursday, they will lose little more than if it finished on Sunday evening. The danger of preparing a "chief executive's pitch" is therefore taken out of the equation. Where Cardiff and Lord's did England cricket a disservice with their pitches, Edgbaston have done their duty.

But such conditions still need to be utilised. England's seamers still needed to hit the seam, they still needed to bowl a full length and their fielders still needed to take their chances. They squandered such conditions at Lord's against India last year. This time there was to be no mistake.

Michael Clarke's decision to bat first was not wrong. It was just Australia failed to negotiate the inevitably tricky 30-over period where conditions favoured the bowling side. Had they done so, they might have had the platform to dominate this game. England would also have batted first.

Whether it was the pitch, the crowd or a combination of both, Australia appeared unsettled by the environment. Few of their dismissals were the result of excellent individual deliveries as much as they were the result of sustained probing around off stump and the technical or temperamental failings of the batsmen.

Unsure whether to leave or play the ball moving laterally, three batsmen (Adam Voges, Peter Nevill and Mitchell Starc) fell attempting to play no stroke, while two others (Mitchell Marsh and Mitchell Johnson) were drawn into poking at balls they should have left well alone. Dismissed two deliveries more quickly than England were in their debacle at Lord's, it was an unusually poor batting performance. The leave remains arguably the most important stroke in Test cricket.

Anderson's figures were exceptional but he admitted afterwards he "can bowl better than that". Modestly suggesting that "there were a few poor shots", he credited the bowling coach, Ottis Gibson, for encouraging him to bowl with a bit more venom: "he said I was putting the ball there a bit at Lord's." His average speed was modest - 82.5mph - and he rarely moved the ball back into the left-hander (the wicket of David Warner with one that nipped in off the pitch was the obvious exception). He has probably bowled at least as well and finished with only a wicket or two.

Yet for a man with a reputation as a swing bowler to take his wickets almost entirely with seam was another demonstration of his skills. In such English conditions, he remains a bowler of the highest class.

But cricket is a team game and this was a team performance from the seamers. Stuart Broad, who has bowled wonderfully well all series without extravagant reward, and Steven Finn, who generated good pace - 93mph at one stage, quicker than any of the Australia bowlers - also maintained a full length and gained pleasing shape away from the batsmen. It was a hugely encouraging return from a man who has sometimes appeared to have lost his way over the last couple of years.

With no let-up in the quality of the bowling, an Australian line-up reared on flat, true surfaces became rattled. Unable to pay the ball simply on its line, as they could at Lord's, they became tentative. It was telling that it was a man stepped in county cricket experience, Chris Rogers, who looked by far the most comfortable. Many of the others were in relatively new territory and it showed. It was the first time since the Mumbai Test of 2012 that England have required just three bowlers to dismiss an opposition in a completed Test innings.

It was not a perfect day for England. Adam Lyth fell to what may prove to be a career-defining poor stroke while Ian Bell, as beautiful as he is infuriating, squandered his fine start with an unnecessary moment of bravado.

Still, England have a great opportunity. If they can fashion a lead of somewhere near 200, Australia will face a daunting challenge to claw their way back into the game. If they only manage a lead of 80 or so, they may have wasted their best opportunity of winning back the Ashes. Australia may not come to think of Edgbaston as hell, but they surely aren't enjoying it much.