Australia was one of the sides which started the trend of lower-order frustration rather than a tail that could be pushed aside easily. From Shane Warne to Brett Lee and later Mitchell Johnson and the likes of Starc and Cummins, Australia has always had batters who could provide runs that are worth gold in the back end of an inning.

In the WTC Finals and later the first Test of the Ashes Australia seem to be having a new issue. The tail has struggled to contribute and with Mitchell Starc left out at Edgbaston, Australia have come in with virtually three number-eleven batters. At number eight they have Pat Cummins, who has not been at his best with the bat as well in the last five years.

Without Starc though, Australia have been left with Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland and Josh Hazlewood, who all average below 12. While the trio can hold the bat, as shown in the Edgbaston Test, Australia’s old style of finding batters down the order has gone missing. Australia though, with the Edgbaston test showed that their tail are no pushovers as Robinson thought they may be. With 50 odd left for the Final two wickets, Robinson and England were made to toil hard to dismiss Nathan Lyon, who was let off once, and Pat Cummins, who was the better batter of the two.

With a tail full of bowlers, England too have attacked them differently. They refrained from pitching it up, looking for swing to bowling it short in a manner to intimidate the bowlers, trying to get the ball to balloon to the short leg fielders. They continued to do the same on the Final day, but Nathan Lyon was unfazed as he picked up the bad balls. He batted really well, playing some courageous shots to get Australia over the line, while showing thaat this Australian tail, without the numbers can wag just as well as they need to do.