England completely outplayed Australia to batter them by 347 runs in 4 days. As someone who grew up watching England in the dark old days of the mid to late 90s, the nature of this Test win was all the sweeter.
I grew up listening to commentators, coaches and captains just wanting England to "compete". No real expectation of victory, just to compete with Australia and that would be a job well done. That was all we could realistically expect. It has gone full circle, as this time the calls were for the Aussies to show a bit of grit, to compete, to put up a fight.
But how do you compete when you collapse in such spectacular style to 128 all out in your first innings? Once the first wicket fell for 42 runs, the rest of the Australian order folded like a pack of cards to rack up a first innings deficit of 233 runs.
Tellingly, England were 28 for 3 in the first innings and posted 361 runs. Second time round they were 30 for 3 and went on to declare on 349 for 7. That demonstrates just how wide the gulf is between the top order batsmen of the two sides, and the depth that England possess.
Ian Bell seems to have the knack of being overshadowed when he scores a century. In the last Test, the saga of whether Stuart Broad should have walked overshadowed Bell's century. In this match despite a century in the first innings and 74 runs in the second, Joe Root will be taking all the headlines. Nevertheless, England will be more than pleased with the Warwickshireman's contribution so far in this Ashes series.
Just as a few murmurs were brewing questioning if 22 year old Root is the right man to open for England, he answers his critics with a sublime 180 runs at the Home of Cricket. In doing so, he became the youngest Englishman to score an Ashes 100 at Lord's. The baby-faced opener played with great composure and kept a very calm temperament. Root didn't let the situation get the better of him as he dug in for almost eight hours to rescue England from a potentially precarious situation.
The only chance Root offered was when he on 8. An edge neatly dissected Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin as neither moved for the catch. How they will be rueing that opportunity! Root took on every bowler and caressed the ball throughout his innings. Joe Root definitely has what it takes to be an opener for England for many years to come.
Just in case, Root's efforts with the bat weren't sufficient, he picked up two vital wickets bowling his off-spin. Clarke and Usman Khawaja had shown some character batting second time round, with both players scoring half centuries. However, the Yorkshireman dismissed them both in consecutive overs to soon put Australia back in their place.
When England set Australia an incredulous 582 runs to win the match, it was a declaration Steve Waugh would have been proud of. Again as a youngster, I saw Waugh captain Australia for many years and run England ragged in the field until there was no more left in the tank. The door was always slammed shut on England, never left ajar to find a way back into a match. Mental disintegration was what Waugh was all about. Grind the opposition down; and that's exactly what England did.
The inexperience and lack of control of Ashton Agar and Steve Smith meant they could not hold an end down. This resulted in the pace attack bowling longer and more frequent spells than desired by Australia as England built up their mammoth target.
Compare that to Graeme Swann who took 9 for 122 the match. Swann is a world class bowler and his consistency with the ball is a real weapon for Alistair Cook - especially on a surface like Lord's which had craters on day 4. This meant not only was Swann a wicket taking threat, but the pacemen could also be rotated to be used efficiently.
The only disappointment for England will be the left calf strain Kevin Pietersen picked up. There is a chance that he might miss the Third Test that starts in 10 days; which would be an interesting dilemma for the England selectors.
However, seeing England dominate and boss this game the way they did will be what is at the forefront of everyone's minds. England have now won four consecutive Ashes matches, can they make it five at Old Trafford? If Australia's batsmen fail to deliver again, it will be five.
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