Anderson can put England in the driving seat with the new ball

England’s mini-revival on the second day has gone some way to undoing the damage of a less than inspiring start to this Ashes series, but there is still plenty of work to do if they are to win this first test at 3/1.

All the talk may have been about Graeme Swann heading into the series, but with the pitch offering little in the way of turn, today is where James Anderson needs to take the new ball and continue his brilliant form.

The Lancashire man has been England’s most effective bowler so far with a respectable economy of 1.90 thanks to the wickets of Shane Watson and Australia captain Ricky Ponting – but that only tells half the story. Anderson was superb as time and time again his deliveries just missed an outside edge and can count himself very unlucky not to have added to his total.

Hussey is obviously the key wicket for England after his battling 81 yesterday, and with the Aussie’s lacking anyone down the order who can pile in with a decent total, taking the wickets of Hussey and Brad Haddin early on will be key. A good performance from Anderson could be the difference between victory or defeat for England in Brisbane

Australia are currently 220/5 and are at 5/6 to score both over 352.5 runs and under 352.5 runs – the match is that finely poised.

Hussey himself is under no illusions, he said: “We know the conditions very well and they stuck to their task very well. The game is very close. The teams are very close. The series may come down to one diving catch or something.”

It doesn’t look like you’ll need coffee to stay awake tonight…

A £10 bet on England to win the test pays out £30. New Ladbrokes customers can sign up here for a free £10 bet.