Alastair Cook succumbed to Ryan Harris yet again at the Oval. Source: AFP
ENGLAND'S domination of this Ashes series has almost nothing to do with Alastair Cook.
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An unimaginative captain and struggling opening batsman, his team has performed in spite of him.
Decent, thoughtful and considered chap that Cook may be, his batting has been well below par in a series that England leads 3-0.
When he pushed at a ball sliding across him from Ryan Harris for another soft dismissal, caught behind for 25 on the third day of the last Test at The Oval, it reinforced Cook's series average of 27.
Everyone remembers the monster summer Cook had during the last Ashes in Australia, scoring 766 runs at an average of 128. Wally Hammond is the only Englishman to have had a bigger series against Australia.
Yet for Cook that big few months is increasingly proving an aberration.
In 15 other Tests against Australia across three series he has averaged in the 20s.
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Moreover Cook's strike rate is a painfully low 34 in this series as he has battled to find form which has constantly eluded him.
With Joe Root struggling to find his feet at the top of the order England have never threatened to bound away from Australia.
It took them to the first innings of the last Test to have England's only half-century opening partnership.
Root went past fifty for just the second time in the series just before lunch after more than three hours at the crease.
The 22-year-old has survived on the 180 he made at Lord's, scored after Brad Haddin failed to go for an edge which sailed through to the fence when Root was just eight.
Despite the frustration of trailing so badly in the series after some dreadful batting collapses the Australians will be heartened by Cook's continuing struggles.
Ruthless Australian teams of the past have targeted the captain to try and bring his team down around him.
The big stumbling block has been Ian Bell, the standout batsman in this series with 500 runs at 71 going into this Test. Cook has made fewer than half that many.
England's domination of the series has had nothing to do with its top order batting.
Five times in this series England has lost three early wickets, with the most galling collapses during the second Test at Lord's.
Australia's quality pace attack reduced England to 3-28 and 3-30 and yet the tourists still managed to lose by a staggering 347 runs, clearly the low point of the tour.
The Australians deserve credit for dragging themselves back up after that dreadful performance, when they threatened to fall off a cliff.
They would have won in Manchester but for rain and were in front at various stages during the fourth Test at Chester-le-Street before more inept batting cost them any chance of victory.
Now with another strong showing at The Oval, where the weather may again thwart a chance of victory, there is growing and not unreasonable confidence that Australia can beat England in Australia on pitches that will be far less dry and dusty.
That feeling is enhanced with a struggling captain.
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