On the ball

It's official! Australia has reclaimed cricket's Ashes. And while the final ball will remain in the memory banks for years to come, for me there was another moment that summed up the series.

An attempted sweep by Geraint Jones made no contact. The ball rebounded off his pad and Shane Warne (aided by team-mates) launched into an enthusiastic appeal for LBW. While all this was going on, Ricky Ponting scooped the ball in the direction of the stumps. Jones, seemingly paralysed by the fear that the umpire's decision would extend his series of low scores, had not regained his ground. The result? LBW appeal - not out. Run out appeal - OUT!


It's moments like these that see Australia winning the series quite comprehensively. Whether taking crucial catches rather than dropping them, or reacting to momentary chances, the key to Australia's success is being on-the-ball and taking opportunities. It's not as if England don't know the rules - Australia are just more "keyed in".

Chatting with a friend about Jesus's "Love one another" statements, my friend commented that it's not exactly rocket science. I kind of agreed. With the exception of incredibly selfish individual, most people can grasp the concept of loving one's fellow human beings - after all it's simpler than the rules of cricket ;)

But it's putting it all into action that is the key. Just as in cricket, the challenge is to be alert - see the opportunities - and make a difference.

Out the Window

A few of the boys were throwing a few different games around in the changing rooms then, but they all go out the window as far as I'm concerned. That's the best test win I've ever been a part of.

This was the reaction of Australian captain Ricky Ponting after his side's amazing victory in the 2nd Ashes Test against England. I can understand his thinking. At the start of the day, a draw looked by far the most likely option, but somehow, Australia managed to bowl England out with enough spare time to score the required 168 runs to win.

However it must be said that England did not do a great deal to help their own cause. 10 runs from 13 overs in the first hour was incredibly slow, and it didn't get much better. By lunch another 20 runs had been cobbled together, and when the tenth wicket fell, the day's effort was a tedious 70 runs from 54 overs.

There are several theories as to what England were doing. Perhaps they were trying to secure a draw, or perhaps the Australian bowling was just to good. But at the end of the day it seemed that they just had no plan, no purpose and no direction. As a result, they went nowhere.

I think the same is true in life. There is a saying that "If you don't know where you're going, any road will lead there." But if we can work out what our goals are - and ways of getting there - we can achieve so much more.

Of course (just as in cricket) not everything is within our control. Things will change, and sometimes this means changing our plans. But it's better to have to adjust tactics than to not have any to start with.