Ashes to Ashes

"Ashes to ashes, funk to funky
We know Major Tom's a junky
Strung out in heaven's high
Hitting an all-time low..."

Just like David Bowie's Major Tom, Australian cricket appears to be heading towards an all-time low, at least measured against the success of the past twenty years.

To suggest that this summer of cricket has been disappointing for Australia is like suggesting that it's a little sandy in the Sahara Desert, or a little salty in the Dead Sea.

For a nation that is used to success and domination on a global scale, to be upended by the 'bloody Poms' in our own backyard is humbling indeed.

Much of the criticism and blame has been aimed towards Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke, both for their personal form and for Ponting's perceived inability to get the most out of the squad he captains.

Looking at their individual scores this series, much of the criticism is deserved:

Ponting - 113 runs, average of 16.14
1st Test - 10 and 51*
2nd Test - 0 and 9
3rd Test - 12 and 1
4th Test - 10 and 20

Clarke - 148 runs, average of 21.14
1st Test - 9 and DNB
2nd Test - 2 and 80
3rd Test - 4 and 20
4th Test - 20 and 13

Perhaps most telling, these two batsman contributed just 37 combined runs in four innings in Australia's only win of the summer, the third test at Perth.

With the possible exceptions of Michael Hussey, Brad Haddin and maybe Peter Siddle, the entire Australian squad has been quite disappointing this summer.

Ponting has captained Australia now since 2003 (in tests; he got the ODI gig in 2002). While he cannot be held personally responsible for the relative decline of Australian cricketing talent, there is a worrying possibility he'll be remembered not for being the premier batsman of his generation, or for winning the World Cup three times as a player (and perhaps four times once February is over) but for being a three-time failure in the Ashes arena.

For a country that prides itself on being better than the 'whingeing Poms', that's all that matters. Granted, Ponting does have the 5-0 result in the 2006/07 Ashes to his name, although that was arguably more to do with the combined efforts of Hayden, Langer, McGrath and Warne, all of whom were lynch pins of the early years of Ponting's captaincy. None of whom grace the dressing room these days.

Australia has not held the ICC Test Championship since 2007. While it has its detractors who says it's nothing more than the brainchild of mathematicians (and don't forget, Duckworth and Lewis were mathematicians too!), the fact that India, South Africa and England are now ahead of Australia on this system reflects how far we have fallen since Steve Waugh's team were winning sixteen tests in a row - twice.

Let's not forget about Andrew Strauss and the rest of the English team though. They have been bloody-minded in their approach to winning the Ashes this summer and fully deserve their success. To beat Australia twice by an innings on their home soil is an achievement that should be recognised for what it is; an emphatic reminder of the relative rise of English cricket and the decline of the Australian team.

In a way, the history books would flatter Australia hugely should Michael Clarke inspire his team enough to get them over the line in the fifth and final test of the summer. For somebody who has the body language of a taxi driver with Alzheimer's on those occasions when he steps in Ponting's shoes on the field, I don't think I should hold my breath over an Australian victory in Sydney this week.

After the World Cup there should be a comprehensive and complete review of Australian cricket, beginning with the selectors and the processes at domestic cricket so that we can develop the next generation of Haydens, Langers, Pontings, Warnes and McGraths. Quite frankly, when our spin bowling stocks is placed into somebody who had not even seen the Sydney Cricket Ground until yesterday, it does not bode well for the future.