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Rain at The Oval lifts England's hopes of a draw
Kate Laven - 26 August 2001
Following days of endless sunshine and absorbing cricket, the fourth day of
the final npower Test match was lost to the rain clouds today to reduce
Australia's chances of victory and boost England's hopes for a draw.
The forecasters predicted more sun but less than two hours' play was possible
before bad light intervened at the AMP Oval. Light rain started to fall and
as the afternoon progressed, it became heavier, the puddles deeper and the
crowd thinner. Play was finally called at 4.40pm when the outfield was
deemed too saturated for any further action.
Australian captain Steve Waugh enforced the follow on after dismissing
England for 432 which was tantalisingly close to the required target and
when Mark Butcher and Marcus Trescothick were offered the light, they were
still 169 runs shy of Australia's first innings total.
They had also lost the services of their opening batsman Mike Atherton, who
was caught behind off Glenn McGrath's bowling for nine and, judging by
Atherton's gestures as he walked off the field, England have lost them for
good.
Atherton has spent months keeping everyone guessing over the timing of his
retirement. The deals concluded with his new employers in the media are said
to have flexible starting dates, giving him the option of starting now, or
next year. But as he walked towards the pavilion, he raised his bat in what
could have been taken as a farewell gesture to the crowd.
And when he climbed the steps to the dressing room, there were his long time
England colleagues Nasser Hussain and Alec Stewart waiting with warm
embraces. But still no announcement from the 33-year-old Lancastrian who
seems determined to exit the game without fuss or fanfare.
Twenty minutes into the day's play, McGrath brought Mark Ramprakash's epic
innings to a close, after he had added nine runs to his overnight total. It
had been a magnificent performance, raising England's hopes of saving the
match but when he left, the job was still not quite complete, England
needing another 18 runs to make Australia bat again.
He was out to a rash shot, a wild slug outside the off-stump which sent the
ball flying to wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, and responsibility fell to
Darren Gough, who had resumed on 18, and new batsman Phil Tufnell.
Gough survived a rare error from Steve Waugh when he was dropped at second
slip but after a couple of robustly-struck shots from Tufnell, the innings
came to a close. Gough was stumped by Gilchrist for 24, giving the
Australian keeper his 100th Test dismissal, a remarkable achievement given
that he has played only 22 Tests.
It also gave Shane Warne his seventh wicket, allowing him to claim his best
figures against England in this country with 7-165 after another captivating
display of leg spin bowling in what is expected to be his last Test
appearance here.
The dismissal left England trailing by 209 runs and by the close that had
been reduced by 40 runs, with Trescothick not out 20 and Butcher looking for
another big moment, this time on his home ground, with a start of 11 runs.
© CricInfo
Teams
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Australia,
England.
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Players/Umpires
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Steve Waugh,
Mark Butcher,
Marcus Trescothick,
Mike Atherton,
Nasser Hussain,
Alec Stewart,
Mark Ramprakash,
Adam Gilchrist,
Shane Warne.
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Tours
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Australia in England
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Scorecard
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5th Test: England v Australia, 23-27 Aug 2001 |
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