Have England really turned a corner?

Well, England finally beat Australia two days ago for the first time since the infamous fourth test at Trent Bridge in the 2005 Ashes. To say it's been a long time coming would be a massive understatement - but the way England simply brushed aside the Aussies in Sydney suggested they have moved on from the recent humiliating displays.

The question is though, is this England finally showing their Ashes winning form, or just a lucky game where Australia decided to take it easy? Indeed, it seemed the roles taken by England and Australia for the previous 3 months had been reversed - England were playing like, well, Australia. Ed Joyce was magnificent, scoring England's first century in a quite frankly, awfully long time - 15 matches to be precise.

Yes, England batted with spirit and bowled accurately. But let's not forget that it was most likely a poor Australian performance - not a fantastic English one - that gave the Poms victory. And because England have been so shocking up to this game - with the exception of the slender victory over New Zealand - they still need to beat the Kiwis on Tuesday to reach the best of three final. And even with rumours circulating that Michael Vaughan could return to lead the side out for the game, a win would be a big ask of England. So maybe optimism isn't quite the right word...

The win at least gives hope to those desperate English fans, like myself, who've been praying for a decent victory or two since the good ol' days way back in 2005. The form of Ian Bell, (the currently injured) Jimmy Anderson and of course Ed Joyce, among others, has been pleasing, but for the pieces to finally come together will have brought a smile to the face of all English fans alike.

Of course this blog is essentially dismissing the fact England beat New Zealand on the 15th of January at Hobart, but that victory was more down to the performances of individuals (such as Flintoff and Anderson) rather than a team effort. In Sydney everything just...clicked.

So back to the main point, and have England really turned a corner? Well obviously more time will be needed to answer that question definitively, but to achieve such a morale lifting win without Vaughan, Pietersen or Trescothick...it's no mean feat. Well done England is all I can say. Oh, and make sure you do that every game from now on lads. That'd be nice.