Melbourne: England pacer Stuart Broad said they studied the Australian side throughout ahead of the match which paid off as they managed to all-out the Tim Paine-led side on 284 runs.
"We did some research on the Australians as a team and then we got a big document folder full of information on each player and a few of the plans paid off actually. We stuck to our plans today. There was a little bit of nip in the pitch early, particularly with the wobble seam. No swing, just couldn't buff that ball at all. We were delighted to make the breakthroughs we did," Cricket.com.au quoted Broad as saying.
In the first Test match in the Ashes on Thursday at Edgbaston, Broad took five wickets. Moreover, the visitors were reduced to 122 for 8 and it was Steve Smith's knock of 144 runs which helped Australia finish their first inning on 284 runs.
Broad eulogised Smith, who was playing his first Test match after serving his year-long ban because of his involvement in the last year's ball-tampering scandal.
"He has played beautifully today, there's no doubt about that. He has always been awkward to bowl at, particularly on slower pitches. He has always been awkward to bowl at, particularly on slower pitches. But I thought we bowled really well to him up until tea and then he capitalised on the ball going a bit softer and he played a bit more positively and took his scoring options," he said.
Broad even went on to compare Smith's inning with India skipper Virat Kohli's inning that he played last year when he smashed 149 runs.
"Virat Kohli did something similar to us last year, he got 149 I think out of a lowish total. The encouraging thing for us that we can take out of it, there's no real positives of Steve Smith getting (144) in the first game of the series, it shows that if we apply ourselves runs can be scored on this pitch particularly if you get in," Broad said.
The second day of the Test match will continue from England's inning, currently playing at 10 for no loss.
