We're a little bit concerned that Kevin Shine might be talking balls about Steve Harmison

Steve Harmison bowled loads of wides and other garbage during the first Test. Kevin Shine is England's bowling coach. It's his job to mend Steve. Here's what we just read in the Sydney Morning Herald:

According to Shine, a change of just two degrees in the angle of Harmison's bowling arm was the initial cause of the fast bowler's problems.
When bowling at his best, Harmison's arm is six degrees past the perpendicular towards his head. That, however, blew out to eight degrees at various stages at the Gabba, prompting him to lose all sense of direction and rhythm in his first few spells.

We'll be the first to admit that we know less about the technicalities of elite fast bowling that we do about 'applying ourself'. However, two degrees sounds like a mighty fine line between success and abject failure.

Kevin Shine might well be right, but we're worried that to the ears of Steve Harmison, this sounds like: "Steve. There is, quite literally, NO margin for error here. If you're out with one of your movements, by so much as a degree, you'll transform into Crap Bowling Man."

With this playing on your mind in front of millions of people, how would you bowl? We get a bit wobbly and uncertain when we think someone's watching us walk and walking's piss-easy.

Steve Harmison's been mended

Apologies to Kevin Shine. You weren't talking balls. You appear to have fixed Steve Harmison.

We were a bit dubious, but he bowled solidly today in taking 4-48. It's a massive relief for any Englishman. It was a good pitch for him, but that wouldn't have mattered if he'd been 'angling the ball down the leg side' - read 'inexplicably bowling the ball at the non-striking batsman'.

Hurray.

There could also be a case that the magic of Monty rubs off on Harmison. We should capitalise that, actually. 'The Magic of Monty'.

During the summer, we watched another day of cricket on a hard, bouncy pitch. Monty Panesar took five wickets and Harmison four as England tore into Pakistan. The crowd went mental. Let's pretend that the rest of the Ashes hasn't happened and that this match is just a continuation of that.