Ashley Giles: Graeme Swann is the key
Former England spinner Ashley Giles says that Graeme Swann will be the key England player for the winter Ashes series.
Giles played a role in selecting the 16-man England party that will travel to Australia to take on Ricky Ponting's side. Giles says there was no question over Swann's place and role within the team.
However, former Australian opening batsman Justin Langer retaliated a few days ago by saying that Swann may not have the impact predicted. He argues that only talented wrist spinners such as Shane Warne
have ever been successful in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746.
Swann is a very good bowler in his own right and has a number of tricks up his sleeve that will guarantee a few Australian wickets this winter. The test will be whether the rest of the England attack can
take the other wickets.
Swann strengths
There have been a few suggestions from some cricket pundits that Swann does not have enough variation in his bowling. However, he is deadly accurate and this has led to 113 Test match wickets to date.
Swann's variation comes more in terms of the flight of the ball through the air and the speed out of the fingers. These things are just as difficult to premeditate than any flipper or googly that a leg
spinner can bowl.
Swann does not get frightened off by batsmen easily. There have been numerous examples in the recent past where players have hit Swann for sixes. He has countered this by bowling in the same way and maintaining
pressure, which quite often produces wickets.
"Graeme Swann will play a lot bigger role than I ever played in Australia.
I think he's a phenomenal bowler at the moment.
Every time he comes on, whether you're watching him on TV or listening to him on the radio, you think something's going to happen straight away," said Giles.
Rest of the attack
There is a valid argument to suggest that far too much pressure is being placed on Swann even though he's now a very experienced Test match bowler.
The rest of the England attack has to take wickets because there will be times when Swann cannot attack and is forced to bowl in a containing role. James Anderson, Stuart
Broad and Steven Finn must all up their effort levels to compensate during these periods.
"And he's had a fantastic start now, but it's really only the beginning
of his Test career. And he's going to be a pivotal part, a pivotal player, this winter.
If he can stay fit, stay on the park, bowl well, he's going to be a massive part in us winning the Ashes.
I think it's the most realistic chance we have of going there and winning the Ashes in quite a while, including some of the trips I went on," added Giles.
Betting advice
There is little doubt that Graeme Swann is the most respected English bowler in world cricket at the moment. There is a lot of pressure on Swann ahead of the first Ashes
Test match on 25 November.
This is pressure that Swann should use positively. There is a good chance he'll take a lot of wickets over the course of the winter. Back him to be England's top wicket
taker and back him to take five wickets in any match he plays.
This will be a tight Ashes series that will probably go 2-1 either way. Winning the first Test will be crucial, so back England if Andy Flower's men start well in the warm-up
games leading up to the big event.
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