The Ashes 2013: Five talking-points from Day 1 at Trent Bridge

James Pattinson of Australia celebrates the wicket of Alastair Cook of England during day one of the 1st Ashes Test at Trent Bridge Cricket Ground on July 10, 2013 in Nottingham, England. (Getty Images)

5. Cook’s the difference?

Over the last two years, England have played some really good cricket and they briefly but deservedly climbed to the top in the rankings. A huge contribution to that cause was made by captain Alastair Cook.

He was the key man in the last Ashes that was played down under and ended up with a massive 766 runs in the five-Test match series. He emerged as the leading man in India as well scoring three centuries in four test matches. Does that mean that England are overly dependent on their captain and opening batsman?

It seemed to be the case on the first day of the Ashes Test. James Pattinson was struggling to find his radar in the first few overs and drifted onto his pads a couple of times. Cook characteristically made use of those deliveries. It seemed like Pattinson was targeting Joe Root going through a long way on his delivery side and snarling.

The entire discussion ahead of the series had been about the threat Mitchell Starc would pose to Cook, but it was a Pattinson, who managed to draw a casual drive from the captain and that ended his brief stay on the crease. The dismissal helped ease the pressure on the Australian bowlers and left the English middle order exposed to quality swing bowling in testing conditions.