Australia are now under ample pressure. Not only has the ignominious loss to Somerset upset skipper Ricky Ponting, but England also sent forth an unambiguous message of intensity and intention in the first one-day international of the NatWest Series at the refurbished Oval. While it came as no surprise that Bangladesh did eventually lose the match, theirs was a game that see-sawed, but not to dramatic enough propositions to really test England.

Just when it seemed Bangladesh had got off to a good start after being inserted by Michael Vaughan in overcast conditions, Jon Lewis struck off successive deliveries in the fourth over to send back Javed Omar Belim to a plumb lbw decision and Mohammad Ashraful nicking low to Andrew Flintoff in the slips. The rain, as if on cue, paid solemn respect but returned once more to bring more gloom to the Bangladesh dressing room. Lewis missed the hattrick, but was not too far away from picking up his third wicket before handing over the mantle to Steve Harmison.

While Lewis bowled out his ten overs in one spell, Harmison carried on where Lewis left off. None of the top-order batsmen appeared to able to cope with the bounce he was generating and Harmison was well rewarded with four wickets. His first three caused major damage as Bangladesh plunged to seventy-six for six as early as the twenty-first over.

But Bangladesh did eventually find their bearing through Aftab Ahmed and Mohammad Rafique, who used the long handle to good effect and put up a vital seventy-six run partnership for the seventh wicket that held the key to Bangladesh's recovery. While Ahmed struck some terrific blows, his dismissal after reaching a deserved half-century was through a run out. Rafique greeted Paul Collingwood with a towering six over the bowler's head and his thirty runs were invaluable. Bangladesh had one little flicker as well, in the form of the in the last-wicket partnership between Mashrafe Mortaza and Nozmul Hossein, which was worth thirty-one runs, the former remaining unbeaten on twenty-nine. Bangladesh were eventually bowled out for 190, losing almost five of their allotted overs, but it was a respectable score given their early plight.
 

Once again, it was the prolific duo of Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Strauss who matched each other stroke for stroke while making short work of the Bangladesh total. That the England innings lasted just about twenty-five overs showed the hosts in a strong light, albeit against a weaker side. The Bangladesh bowling lacked discipline in terms of a steady line and length, and paid heavily. Marcus Trescothick notched his ninth one-day international century with just five runs required for the victory. Fourteen hits to the fence in thunderous fashion ensured that he needed just seventy-six balls to complete his third century at the Oval. Andrew Strauss was only a shade behind his belligerent partner, having made eighty-two himself at less than a run-a-ball. England's comprehensive victory by ten wickets puts them certainly in a morale boosting mode ahead of a fascinating series involving the Australians.