The Unchangables - The Aussie team which steamrolled the Poms

Two months ago, a very few would have bet upon Australia regaining the Ashes, leave alone winning it 5-0. After a troubled spell under Mickey Arthur, no one gave Australians a chance. But a month an a half later, we have ended up witnessing one of the most one-sided test series ever. The Australian team absolutely smashed the poor English players,  who were just clueless as to how to face the Aussies.

One of the major factor behind the Aussies victory is their coach, Darren Lehmann. A player from Australia’s golden era in the early 2000’s, he had a vision to reinstate the fear amongst opponents like during the 70’s. And the very first thing he acted upon- scrap the rotation policy. The rotation policy was heavily criticized by former players, and Lehmann decided to take a different approach.

Forming a team with a majority of them in their ripe 30’s, he reinstated the self-belief and team-spirit amongst the Aussie team. And thus the unchangables were formed, the Australian team which was unchanged and whitewashed the English team. Such an instance of the playing 11 being unchanged for the entire series has been quite a rarity, and such is the whitewash they have inflicted upon the Enlish makes the team much more memorable. Here is the untouchables, and the role they played in regaining the ashes.

Chris Rogers : 463 Runs @ 46.3, 4 catches.
The old warhorse has been the highest run-scorer in the last 10 ashes test played, and the series down under was a great one for him. Going into the Melbourne Boxing day test, he was under pressure to perform as he lacked any big scores. But back to back centuries at Melbourne and Sydney has definitely stood out. He showed off his aggressive side, as both his centuries were scored with a strike rate of about 70.

David Warner : 523 runs @ 58.11, 4 catches.
The aggressive opener was not even assured a place in the playing 11 before the series, and what a turn-around has it been! The highest run-scorer in this series, David Warner’s aggressive batting dented the English bowling as early as the start of the innings. He is a definitely among one of the main clogs in the wheel for the Australians, and he has a good career ahead.

Shane Watson : 345 runs @ 38.33, 4 wickets, 3 catches.
The aggressive all-rounder was under scurnity for his temperament to play at the No3 slot. His notoriously low 50-100 conversion rate is one of the reasons. But he played a significant part in the teams victory. His aggressive century at Perth following it with an another excellent 83 while chasing has indeed been one of the performances of the series. He might have not bowled much throughout the series, but his 4 wickets have come in crucial instances of the match.

Michael Clarke : 363 @ 40.33, 8 catches.
He might have had a relatively below-par series with the bat, but his captaincy has been spot on. His centuries at Brisbane and Adelaide were a perfect exhibition of a mixture of aggressiveness with caution. He had a relatively poorer second half, but the 5-0 whitewash will do him more good than harm to his reputation as one of the Australia’s better captains.

Steven Smith : 327 runs @40, 1 wicket, 7 catches.
He had a similar series like his captain as far as batting is concerned. After a disappointing start, he made up with two under-the-pressure centuries at crucial points. Also, his fielding as been a definitely an asset. And for a person who can bowl a bit, he will be definitely a crucial asset for Australia in the near future.

George Bailey : 183 @ 26.14, 10 catches.
For a man who is termed to be the next Hussey, he had a disappointing start to his test career. Nevertheless, his fielding at short leg has been quite phenomenal, and his 28 off an over from Anderson’s bowling somewhat nailed the coffin for Anderson, who had a very-disappointing series.

Brad Haddin : 493 @61.62, 22 catches.
Personally, he is the man of the series. After being left out of the team in favour of Matthew Wade, Brad Haddin’s tremendous comeback has been a fairytale. Time and again, he has saved Australia from a critical position. The very fact that the Australian bottom order averages more than the top order tells us the contribution of Brad Haddin. His exploits will definitely earn him a place in the history books.

Mitchell Johnson : 37 wickets @13 , 165 runs, 4 catches.
The man who turned around for the Aussies, this has to be called as the "Johnson’s Ashes". Bowling with sheer pace and accuracy, he instilled fear in the opposition batting, and they couldn’t never cope up with it. Also, the movember-mustache has definitely made him look more menancing. Hopefully, this second coming will help him to be one of the greatest fast bowlers ever.

Ryan Harris : 117 runs @ 23, 22 wickets.
The Australian strike bowler had an exceptional series. He bowled with a nagging consisteny of line and length. Though he was not rewarded at many occassions, he did manage to finish off with 22 wickets, and as the 2nd highest wicket taker of the series. Ryno, who had various fitness problems, has come out with flying colors, and has shown that he still has a year or two with him.

Peter Siddle : 16 wickets @24.
The banana man has been as consistent as ever for the Aussies. Playing the third fiddle to the Mitchell-Ryno combo, he was expected to maintain pressure on the batsmen, and he has done it with perfection. Also, his continued rivaly with "bunny" Pieterson was entertaining to watch!

Nathan Lyon: 19 wickets @28.
None expected him to make a big impact on the tour. But Lyon outshone his expectations with some excellent spin bowling. His line and length was impressive, and he troubled the batsmen with whatever spin he got. Also, his partnership with Mitchell Johnson was excellent. Currently the song bearer for the Aussies, he has been not-out for the entire series with the bat too, a feat being repeated only for the 2nd time in history.

It was a complete domination from the Australian players. Will they carry forward their performance to all-important tour of SA? Let us wait and watch.