Cricket: WE'LL GO FOR THE THROAT

RELENTLESS aggression will be the key to our bowling strategy when the Ashes series starts at Edgbaston on Thursday.

We will leave England's batsmen in no doubt that they have a battle on their hands with every ball they face.

Some teams, like the South Africans, talk about "sitting in" at times during a game. They may use Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock at full tilt for a short burst, but then they will go on the defensive while the quicks recharge their batteries.

I have never seen the point of that, and this summer our feet will always be flat out on the pedal.

With only two bouncers an over, we will have to make sure we use them intelligently. My policy is to keep the bouncer as a shock ball and when I do use it to try to threaten the batsman physically, make him worry about his safety.

There's no point in just bowling short of a length and aiming for the ribcage. I like to go for the throat or head height.

Apart from unnerving the batsmen, that height of delivery also makes it difficult for those who think they will hit back with the hook shot to keep the ball down, and there's always the chance they will give a catch.

There are game plans already laid down for the more senior England players, who we know all about.

Mike Atherton is not the sort of player we will ruffle easily. But Glenn McGrath has enjoyed a lot of success against Athers in the past and he will be looking for him again. McGrath will probe on his off stump as usual and will be as aggressive as ever.

Alec Stewart is a different proposition. The last thing we want to do is give him any width or bowl short because he hooks and cuts so well.

But we feel Stewart doesn't move his feet a lot and gets cramped on the crease. Shane Warne will be itching to get at him after their previous battles, but for us quicker bowlers it will be a question of aiming at his stumps looking to bowl him or get an lbw.

We haven't seen much of Marcus Trescothick yet, but already he has given us the impression of being a batsman who has worked his game out and likes to keep it simple. He seems quite happy to take on the short ball and knows where his off stump is. My idea would be to bowl over the wicket, slant the ball across his body and draw him wider until we find the edge.

Damien Fleming could be useful bowling at him too, because he has the ability to cut the odd ball back to left-handers.

The biggest prize of all, however, will be Graham Thorpe - provided he's fit.

We've got as much respect for him as for any England man. In his case we have to be patient and we won't let him have too many short - he is so quick to seize on anything loose.

With Thorpe, as with Atherton and to a certain extent Trescothick, we'll be looking for the nicks to the slips.

The standard of our slip catching is little short of incredible with Mark Waugh and Shane Warne standing alongside Adam Gilchrist.

Looking back over the 21 Tests I have played, I think I have had only had one or two chances dropped in the slips. And it's amazing what that does for all the bowlers' confidence when we know any nicks will be snaff led up.

As for England's youngsters, to a certain extent in the first couple of innings we will be probing, looking for weaknesses that can be played on the future.

We gave Owais Shah a taste of what's to come in the NatWest series, now Ian Ward and Michael Vaughan can expect the same sort of treatment.

Clearly the obvious way to get all three of them rattled, when you have three quick bowlers in a team, is to see how they like the short stuff - and I cannot see why the laws are so one-sided in a batsman's favour.

They go out to the crease with a bat, pads, thigh pads, groin protectors, gloves, chest guards, arm guards and helmets, yet still we are restricted to two short balls an over.

Who says it isn't a batsman's game?

We know England will be a far tougher proposition in the Tests than they were in the one-day internationals.

But we are ready - and if our game plans work England's dreams of regaining the Ashes will still be just dreams.

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