For nigh on two decades, ever since Australia broke away from the pack to become the undisputed masters of world cricket, the Australian way has been the only way forward for teams in search of success. After a defeat of staggering magnitude in the fourth Test at Melbourne, that may not be the case for much longer, but nevertheless, the seeds of England's triumph can still be traced back to the lessons they themselves were handed out on this same campaign four years ago.
The whitewash series of 2006-07 is not a topic that England have been keen to address publicly on this trip, and with some justification, given the range of humiliations they suffered in each of their five Test defeats. Privately, however, the memories of those matches and the methods that the Aussies used to stifle England's ambitions have been taken on board and turned back on their tormentors, with a considerable degree of success. That is because England's planning for this campaign has been exemplary. David Saker, their Victorian bowling coach, not only knew the five Test venues with the intimacy that only a Sheffield Shield veteran could bring to the equation, he also instilled in his pace-bowling charges a discipline and determination to be ready for action at all times, and a trust in their own abilities that no bowling coach in England's history - not even the feted Troy Cooley - would have been able to match.
"The way David Saker has worked with them and made sure they are ready from ball one is exceptional," said Strauss. "Often when bowlers are not playing they lose rhythm, and the fact they are suddenly thrust into a Test match can affect them pretty badly, so credit to him and way they have worked as well. But there's no rocket science involved. We always look for secret formulas, but generally there is isn't one. It involves graft."
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