Warney will be raring to go after a day of weather watching

This is the position that the English players find themselves in as I write.

After failing to avoid the follow-on target, they are still 169 runs away from making us bat again.

Admittedly the Oval pitch is still a batting-friendly surface, but the pressure is now potentially suffocating for the hosts.

Early wickets, a spinning pitch and four well-rested world-class bowlers have us in a strong position to win this fifth Test and leave English shores with a four-one scoreline under our belts.

The rain delay allowed our weary bowlers to re-charge their batteries and with the reward of a long rest after the final day's efforts, they will be charged up for a final attack on England's batsmen.

We have everything to play for because a final push will result in a Test victory, whereas England only have a draw to play for.

'Athers' is as difficult to remove as a grass stain on your cricket pants

Justin Langer

'Athers' - head bowed and bat raised

From an opposition's point of view we will be happy to see the back of 'Athers' as he is often as difficult to remove as one of the grass stains on your cricket pants.

From an international cricket viewpoint, it is always sad to see the final curtain drawn on a great player.

The loss of Mike Atherton will be a major blow to English cricket.

His experience, skill and courage are assets that need to be passed on to the future generations.

Now we face only one more day in what has been a hard fought summer.

Although there will be 44 tired legs and 22 fatigued minds doing battle at the Oval, the last two miles of our marathon will prove significant to the pride of our two nations.

The Ashes is already won and lost, but the final act of this drama will unfold in six hours on Monday.

Weather permitting of course!

From London

JL