Headingley Test, Day 3, Lunch
Saturday, August 18, 2001

Today the pitch has started to deteriorate - it's become more and more uneven but it's fast as well. I don't think the Australians would enforce the follow-on now if that were an option. They won't want to bat last on this surface - they'd prefer to have England in the furnace on the last day.

It was a real interesting morning for England. They started in a level position because of all the hard work done by Nasser Hussain and Mark Butcher yesterday. So it was a question of whether they could capitalise on that. To lose both those batsman quickly early on was a real blow.

There was nothing Hussain could have done about his dismissal. It just kept low. I know there was a thought that it hit him outside the line - but I believe it was rightly given out. But the run-out was totally needless and Butcher must shoulder the blame, as it was his call. I think he underestimated Brett Lee's speed and the quality of his pick-up and release. He's probably the fastest man over the ground in the Australian side.

But Mark Ramprakash and Alec Stewart have recovered well. They've played some big shots, and that's what they must keep on doing. They shouldn't go into their shells. Ramprakash is looking particularly good. The blow on the arm seems to have kicked him into gear. He seems pretty intense, but also happy to be out there which is great to see.

Ian Healy made a record 395 dismissals in 119 Tests for Australia, and was on the winning side in the last six Ashes series. His comments will appear on Wisden.com at the end of every session for the rest of the series. He was talking to Camilla Rossiter

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