The Aussies have made a clean sweep: 5-0. It was against the prevailing wisdom, and against the result of the last series only a few months earlier. It was not just the wins, but the extent of the wins. The closest match was won by 150 runs after the Aussies declared at the end of an over in which Bailey equalled the record for the most runs in an over (28). Then there was the fact that, unlike the previous whitewash in 2006-2007, the Aussies were relatively inexperienced at test level, and England was the team with the proven champions in every department of the game. It was an amazing series for the Aussies. However there are still areas to work on as will be seen below:
Batting:
The batting was a mixed bag this series. The team scored an impressive 10 centuries and 15 fifties, with only Lyon and Siddle failing to pass fifty in the series. However no one went past Clarke's 148 in Adelaide, and six of the centuries were in the second innings after England were already down. The most troubling statistic is that of the 52 completed innings by the top six, 18 were at 10 runs or below, and 26 (or half of them) at 20 or below.
Team Batting Grade: C+
Chris Rogers (5 Matches, 10 innings, 0 not out, 463 runs@46.3, 2 hundreds, 3 fifties: 4 Catches)
Finally he is starting to feel at home in the test arena. After a slowish start, he ended the series with scores of 54, 61, 116, 11 and 119 to take him to the most runs of any batsman across the two series. Rogers faced more balls more than any of the other Aussies with Warner's 703 balls second to his 945. The openers did their job this series in blunting the attack, absorbing 1648 deliveries between them. Both of Rogers' hundreds came in the second innings and he scored almost two thirds of his runs (307) in the second innings. He will want to convert some of his late form into first innings runs in South Africa.
Grade: B
David Warner (5M, 10I, 1NO, 523@58.11, 2x100, 2x50: 4 catches)
Showed a good start to the series when the Ashes were still in play, but tailed off in the last couple of matches as Rogers got going. He displayed a bit more maturity with his batting than he has done any time previously (with the exception of Hobart a couple of years back). He scored over two thirds of his runs in the second innings (360). Like Rogers he will want some more runs in the first innings going forwards.
Grade: B+
Shane Watson (5M, 10I, 1NO, 345@38.33, 1x100, 2x50: 3 Catches) {4wickets@30.5}
Another frustrating series from Watson. He scored a hundred in the second innings in Perth, but ended the series with only Bailey of the top seven averaging less. This was one of his best series for a while but still averaged under forty. The frustrating bit was that he looked as good as he has for a long time, but still didn't quite manage a very good series. Hopefully this is the start of Watson the Improving. His bowling was useful, with his knack for breaking partnerships and keeping it tight, though he was not needed that much.
Grade: Batting: C, Bowling C+, Overall: C
Michael Clarke: (5M, 10I, 1NO, 363@40.33, 2x100, 0x50: 8 Catches) [5 Matches, 4 Tosses, 5 Wins]
Started the series with a bang scoring hundreds in Brisbane and Adelaide. However, apart from these hundreds, Clarke failed to pass 24 in the rest of his innings. However, he scored more than half his runs in the first innings, and over 300 runs while the Ashes were still up for grabs. His captaincy was astute, and his team performed well above expectation.
Grade: Batting: C+, Captaincy: A Overall: B
Steven Smith: (5M, 9I, 1NO, 327@40.87, 2x100, 0x50: 7 Catches) {1@58}
Smith started slowly, but picked up his game in Perth. He scored two hundreds in impressive fashion - both of them in the first innings, and both when Australia were in trouble. However his 31 in the first innings at the Gabba was his only other score over 20. He scored 282 runs in the first innings across the series compared to only 45 in the second innings. His bowling was barely called on, but he still contributed with a wicket. He is also a fielding asset. His first innings contributions get him a better grade than his totals might otherwise have warranted.
Grade: B
George Bailey (5M, 8I, 1NO, 183@26.14, 0x100, 1x50: 10 Catches)
He has benefited from the fact that the Aussies were winning, and so were able to pick and stick. However he has by far the lowest totals of the top seven, and is the only one not to score a hundred. Furthermore, well over half his runs (119) were scored in the second innings in spite of the fact he only batted in three of them. His highlight was one over where he tore apart Anderson in a spectacular way. However he will be lucky to keep his spot in South Africa. His fielding, especially his close catching, has been his main contribution this series.
Grade: D
Brad Haddin (5M, 8I, 0NO, 493@61.62, 1x100, 5x50: 22 Catches)
For my money Haddin was the player of the series, though it was close with Johnson. He set up every win by rescuing Australia in the first innings of each test match and giving the bowlers something to work with. For this reason he is being classed as a batsman rather than a separate category of wicket keeper. More than three quarters of his runs (307) came in the first innings. He had another great series behind the stumps, taking some blinders, and generally being reliable.
Grade: Batting A+ Keeping: A Overall: A+
Bowling
The bowling was really what won the series. The team took all 100 wickets on offer - a feat that is apparently unique in the history of the game. They bowled to plan and with great discipline. The times when England's batsmen were on top were few and brief. Furthermore the bowlers operated as a team. Harris did not take a wicket in two innings, and Siddle missed out in the last innings of the series, but otherwise the four main bowlers each took a wicket or more in each innings of the series. Lyon and Johnson took at least one wicket every innings - and were regularly bowling in tandem when England collapsed. Watson and Smith were required for less than 60 overs between them, but picked up 5 wickets and generally kept the pressure on.
Team Bowling Grade: A
Mitchell Johnson {37W@13.97} (5M 8I, 2NO, 165@27.5, 1x50: 4 Catches)
Named man of the series, and though I would have just given it to Haddin, he deserved it. He bowled with pace, hostility and the most amazing of all, accuracy. It yielded 37 wickets, often in bursts with Lyon. More than that his bowling seemed to put England into a bit of shell shock from which they never fully recovered. His batting, especially in the first innings at the Gabba, was also important.
Grade: A+
Ryan Harris {22@19.31} (5M 6I 1NO, 117@23.4, 1x50: 4 Catches)
A class act. One of the best bowlers going around, and has finally been able to string together a full series. He is quick and accurate, and moves the ball just enough to cause trouble. The perfect foil for Johnson. His enthusiastic batting (his strike rate was the highest in the team) was also worth watching at times.
Grade: A
Peter Siddle {16@24.12} (5M 7I 1NO, 38@6.33: 0 Catches)
A quiet series compared to the other bowlers, and also with the bat. However he often took an important wicket to break a partnership, and his bowling to Pietersen was an important contribution to the team. He had the best economy rate of all the bowlers - keeping the pressure on.
Grade: A-
Nathan Lyon {19@29.36} (5M 6I 6NO, 60runs no average: 5 catches)
Easily the best performed spinner in the series. He took a large percentage of top order wickets (11 batsmen, 3 wicketkeeper batsmen), and was the bowler at the other end when Johnson ripped through the English on several occasions. He was also a reliable fielder, and the undismissable batsman.
Grade: A
