Edgbaston Test, Day 4
Sunday, June 2, 2002

That was all over a bit quicker than we'd expected. We reckoned we'd probably have to dig in for a day and a half or so and see what happened, but to see them off shortly after lunch was a huge bonus. And on Jubilee day as well - it's a shame the [other] England boys couldn't hang on for a win this morning. They were 1-0 up when we started, so it was almost a great day for the country.

We were very content with our efforts in the morning session - there were no big chats at lunchtime, we knew we just had to keep being patient and hang in there.

The new ball was coming up and that was obviously going to be crucial. This wicket is quite abrasive and we could probably have counted on about eight overs of genuine shine before the ball got scuffed up, so we had to use that time well. Frankly I'd have been happy with two wickets - we were prepared to sit in and twirl away with Gilo [Ashley Giles] and wait for the reverse swing to kick in. Five wickets was totally unexpected.

But they were quite humid conditions today, so Caddick and Hoggard found a bit of swing and bowled really well. Everyone's been talking about the length they bowled today, but there's no point in getting carried away about it. There's a bit of an English cliché doing the rounds these days, that you have to pitch the ball up at all times. That mindset will get you into trouble on days when there's no swing to be found, and you'll just get picked off by the batsmen. On some days you have to be prepared to adapt and push them onto the back foot, play with their minds a bit. Today though, everything just fell into place.

I singled out Andrew Caddick for praise in the post-match interviews, because of the way he's risen to the occasion since Darren Gough's injury. We've got a young and inexperienced bowling attack, and he has led them admirably since the New Zealand tour. For some reason, he gets a lot of stick in the press. I don't know why. But it's time to give credit where credit's due.

Matthew Hoggard had a good game as well. He's a fine exponent of swing bowling, who bowls a good full length and gives his all. By his own admission, he's not been at the absolute peak of his form recently - he's got a bit of work to do on his action, and he needs to clear up his no-ball problem, but he was a worthy man of the match today.

So, now it's on to Old Trafford. You never know what to expect up there. There's never a whole lot of grass on the wicket, and you don't get much sideways movement for the bowlers, so it's going to be a tough challenge. Their offspinner knows the ground like the back of his hand, and Sri Lanka will have pencilled that match in as their "can win" Test. We need to be on our guard.

But for now, we've earned ourselves a day and a half off. I've not got much planned. We've got a team dinner tonight, so I'll probably get one or two beers in, then next week it's off to Worcester with Essex for an important semi-final.

Nasser Hussain's thoughts appear on Wisden.com, other duties permitting, at the end of each day of international cricket that England play.

More Nasser Hussain
We kept plugging away

A bloody good day

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd