Hussey And Haddin Hammer England

Mike Hussey and Brad Haddin produced a record stand as England suffered on day three of the first Ashes Test.
Hussey (195) and Haddin (136) put on 307, a record for Tests at the Gabba, before England finally ended their mammoth sixth-wicket stand after tea.  The tourists had toiled for much of the day after early misfortune but Steven Finn took 6-125 on his Ashes debut to finally dismiss Australia for 481.
England then reached 19-0 in their second innings, still trailing by 202.  It was an encouraging return for Finn, the 21-year-old gentle giant of England’s attack, but four of those wickets came long after Australia had put themselves in a position from which they will expect to win the match.
England’s batsmen will have to produce something extra special over the final two days in Brisbane to avoid defeat, and captain Andrew Strauss, on a pair after a first-innings duck, almost fell first ball when shouldering arms to Ben Hilfenhaus.
Ricky Ponting called for a review when umpire Aleem Dar rejected the lbw appeal, but to the relief of the shell-shocked England fans replays showed the ball would have passed narrowly over the stumps.  Alastair Cook also survived an lbw shout, from Australia’s day one hero Peter Siddle, and England will hope batting on Sunday is an easier prospect against the older ball.
The day revolved around Hussey and Haddin, who joined forces before tea on day two, with Australia on 143-5 and having lost four wickets in a 90-minute period.
At that point England’s first innings 260 looked adequate, and they even looked a decent bet to hold a narrow lead in what was poised to be a low-scoring contest.
But, having already eased Australia’s worries by taking the score to 220-5 by the end of Friday, the duo produced an exhibition of fine batsmanship allied to supreme concentration to produce the highest partnership in a Gabba Test match.
It was also the fifth best for the sixth wicket in any Test, clocking in 39 runs behind Don Bradman and Jack Fingleton at Melbourne in 1937.
Haddin was brilliantly caught by Collingwood diving to his right at slip off Swann, and Hussey, who had pulled Finn to shreds during his brilliant eight-and-a-quarter hour innings, was ironically caught playing that exact shot.
Finn made short work of the tail, as Mitchell Johnson was bowled off his pads and extra bounce did for Siddle and Xavier Doherty. His efforts ensured there was no need for Ponting to consider a declaration, and England were left with 15 tricky overs to negotiate.

First Ashes Test, Brisbane:
England 260 & 19-0 v Australia 481 (day three, stumps)