I Would Be Salivating Bowling to England - Glenn McGrath

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The Australian team to fight back and win the first Ashes Test as decisively as they did, you wonder what psychological damage will be left on the England team.

How will they respond for the remaining series?

Surprising Comeback

I do not think no one anticipated what happened on Saturday. When you look at the number of overs required to finish the game, it was the longest format on fast forward.

England were well on top at lunch on the following day, 105 ahead with most wickets in hand. The playing surface was still doing plenty. It looked extremely difficult for Australia to get back into the match.

Batting Mistakes

From that moment, England's choice of strokes was their big undoing. The Australian bowler put in arguably his poorest performance in an national colors in the first innings, then turned it around in the second to be the driving force for the recovery.

England's batters were out attempting to strike balls wide of off-stump, in the air, through the covers.

Attempting runs off those bowls, with those strokes, is the precise action you just should avoid as a batter in Australia.

Adjustment Problems

It showed that England had failed to complete their preparation, are unable to adjust or are unwilling to adapt.

There is a lot of talk about England's approach, their attacking philosophy. I witnessed it up close during the recent series in the UK. Under their captain and their coach, they can be quite rigid when it comes to adhering to that strategy.

It is fine on slow, low pitches. On the quick, lively pitches of Australia it is a method full of danger. If England fail to reconsider, they will struggle for the whole series.

Pacer's Viewpoint

As a paceman, I would have consistently believed in the contest against this England team.

I depended on my precision, having confidence to hit the identical area around off stump, with a bit of bounce and nip.

Even if this England team was performing strongly, I'd be licking my lips at the idea of facing them, knowing a single error could result in three or four wickets.

Quality and Mental Toughness

There are times when England can be a top-class team. They have talented individuals. Competent cricketers have ability, but great players have the mental toughness and attitude to be adaptable enough for the conditions.

They would been shellshocked at the way things unfolded at Perth Stadium, devastated at the way they were beaten. Now we will see what they are made of. Even as a loyal Australian, I somewhat wants to see them change, just to show they can improve.

Pace Attack Issues

It was almost the same with their bowling. England's attack was excellent on the first evening, then lost the plot when they were attacked on the second night.

In the longest format, all aspects require a backup strategy. Quite often it feels like England have a single approach, then no alternatives if that fails.

'Where has this come from?' - The dismissal as England collapse in six balls

Brilliant Innings

In fairness to England's pace attack, they were hit by one of the great Ashes innings by Travis Head.

His 69-ball hundred was the second quickest by an Australian man in the historic rivalry, two overs behind the legendary keeper at the Perth ground 19 years ago – a game I participated in.

My former teammate Gilly said Head's innings was the superior of the two. I agree. Given the difficulty of the pitch and the situation of the game circumstances, the innings will go down as a highlight of Ashes history.

Tactical Moves

It was a courageous move for Australia to elevate the batsman in the lineup for the second innings.

Usman Khawaja has faced criticism for being failing to start in both attempts. He had back spasms after playing the sport the previous day the Test, but I do not believe the two were connected.

When the batsman missed out on the opening day, Australia advanced their number three and got bogged down.

In promoting the aggressive batsman, who has the confidence of starting in white-ball cricket, Australia were able to take the attack to England.

Future Considerations

Now there is the question of what Australia will do for the second Test. I'd like to see them stick with the approach of aggression at the beginning.

That could mean Head remains, meaning someone like Beau Webster enters the batting lineup, or return to number five and Mitchell Marsh or Josh Inglis could go to the opening. It would be tough on the batsman, but occasionally you have to do what the opposition would find most uncomfortable.

Series Outlook

After the opening match was dominated by the bowlers, questions arise if the rest of series will be short, low-scoring Tests.

The venue is pretty much the fastest, bounciest pitch in the global cricket, so the batters should get a some relief from now on.

It is not all about the pitch. Credit has to be awarded to the pacemen for getting the ball in the right place so often. In general, batters on each team will need to look at how they were dismissed.

Crucial Next Test

Now we progress to Brisbane, and the vastly different twilight conditions for the following match.

In 2006-07, I was a member of the national side that overwhelmed England to win 5-0. The rivalry in this nation have a tendency of slipping from England quickly.

At the moment, England are just one match down. There would be no recovery from 2-0, which is why the venue is such a crucial game.

They must adapt, or the Ashes will be lost again.