2nd Test, Australia v England at Perth

by John Yarwood

PERTH, Australia, Nov 28 (AFP) - England's batsmen collapsed to a miserable 112 all out on the opening day of the second Ashes Test here Saturday as Perth-born express bowler Damien Fleming led a rampant Australian attack.

England surrendered in a shameful 39 overs to their lowest total in nine Tests at the WACA Ground as Fleming snapped up Test best figures of 46-5.

By the close Australia looked set to build a commanding lead, reaching 150-3 and setting themselves up to avenge the drawn first Test in Brisbane when an electrical storm came to shaky England's rescue on the final day.

Unbeaten at stumps were Mark Waugh on 19 and nightwatchman Jason Gillespie on five. Skipper Mark Taylor gave the Australian innings a firm foundation with 61 while fellow opener Michael Slater chipped in with 34.

A grim-faced England manager Graham Gooch was in sombre mood. ``We have been knocked over for 112 and we are not very happy about that,'' he said. ``That is not the score you look for in a five-day match.''

He was also depressed about England's fielding after two vital chances went begging in the Australian innings.

``The higher the level of the game, the less you can afford to give good players a second chance,'' he said.

Australia's start was in stark contrast to another woeful performance by England on tour, with the tourists' innings ending just an hour after lunch after Taylor had sent them in on the traditionally fast and bouncy WACA pitch.

England's batsmen were devastated by Fleming, born a cricket ball throw from the ground 28 years ago, who exploited the fast conditions to start the England slide when he trapped Brisbane centurion Mark Butcher for a duck in only the fourth over.

He followed up with the scalps of Dominic Cork for two, Mark Ramprakash for 26, Darren Gough for 11 and Alan Mullally for a duck.

Fleming was ably supported by Jason Gillespie (23-2) as well as Glenn McGrath, who finished on 37-3 including the wicket for the third time in this series of Michael Atherton, who fell for one.

McGrath has now snared England's former skipper 12 times in Test cricket. The only English batsmen to reach double figures were skipper Alec Stewart with 38, Ramprakash plus tailenders Gough and Alex Tudor, who made 18 not out on his Test debut.

England's atrocious batting was followed by some miserable fielding. Slater was missed at 15, when substitute Ben Hollioake muffed a chance in the gully off medium-fast bowler Gough.

Gough was also the victim when Taylor was missed by Graeme Hick, brought in to replace Graham Thorpe who failed a fitness test for his injured back, at second slip with the Australian captain on 38.

Hollioake was on the field as a replacement for Ramprakash, hurt earlier in the day when he was hit on the chin by a rearing McGrath thunderbolt.

Ramprakash was forced to leave the field for five minutes during the morning drinks break to be patched up before later having six stitches in a deep wound.

Battered but unbowed, Ramprakash set an example to his teammates by defying the Australian attack for almost two hours for his 26.

He and skipper Stewart figured in the only vaguely notable stand of the England innings, making 43 for the fourth wicket.

Stewart, determined to rebound from a poor run of scores on tour, whacked McGrath for three boundaries in the lanky right-armer's eighth over as he romped to an innings top score of 38 from 29 balls.

But McGrath had the last laugh, bowling Stewart with a searing off-cutter which cannoned from an inside edge into the stumps.

The Australian strike bowler also accounted for number three Nasser Hussain, who made six before he found an edge to give wicketkeeper Ian Healy one of his five scalps of the innings.

John Crawley went to a Mark Waugh catch off Gillespie while Hick, who only arrived in Australia a fortnight ago, left doubts about his ability against pace bowling still lingering when Healy caught him off Gillespie for a duck.

Tudor was unable to capture a wicket in his initial Test outing but the 21-year-old Surrey bowler, chosen ahead of the more experienced Dean Headley, generated plenty of pace and harried the Australian batsmen late on.