Radio Australia Today Editorial

Freddie Flintoff takes five, and we flail

21 July 2009

This time yesterday I was so sure.

There was going to be no way that Australia was going to lose the Lords cricket test. We only needed 209 runs, and we had a full day and 5 wickets left, including two batsmen sitting on huge scores already.

Was I being too optimistic? Was I just silly?

Well I’d be the one laughing if it wasn’t for a guy called Flintoff. The retiring English test bowler (and one-time captain) knocked over the remaining Australian batters like ten-pins, and in the process made himself an English national hero.

Australian fans are bemoaning the drawn first test, where the biaised English weather denied the team of a certain victory, and then again in this test when three umpiring decisions appeared to wrongly give Aussie batsmen out. But folks, this is cricket. There are bad decisions on both sides. This time the ledger worked for England. Australia lost the test and that’s that.

There are still three tests to go, and thanks to Freddie, and a very smarting Ricky Ponting, they will be corkers.

– Phil