Ashes 3rd Test: Can England win without KP?

The 3rd Test starts today at Edgbaston, scene of England's remarkable Ashes victory four years ago, with the home team looking to build on their 1-0 series lead. However, excessive rain on the pitch looked likely to delay the start of the match.

England, who only avoided defeat in the first Test after batting heroics from James Anderson and Monty Panesar, have had all the luck so far this summer. But with their star batsman Kevin Pietersen (above) unavailable because of an operation on his Achilles tendon, the tourists will be buoyed.

Pietersen's replacement, Warwickshire's Ian Bell, is averaging 64 in the county championship this summer but he has a poor record against the Australians, averaging only 25 in 10 Tests .

Much of the debate in the build-up to the game has centred on whether Ricky Ponting should persist with his misfiring strike bowler, Mitchell Johnson. At his best, Johnson is explosive and a proven wicket taker, but he was extremely erratic during the Lords Test, which England eventually won by 115 runs.

The credit for that victory went to England's talisman Andrew Flintoff, who, in the game following the announcement that he would retire at the end of the series, defied his creaking knee to take five Australian wickets in the second innings. Captain Andrew Strauss is confident that he will take to the field at Edgbaston: "Barring anything happening overnight he should be OK and we are very optimistic."

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:

Duncan Fletcher, the Guardian: I would caution against writing off Mitchell Johnson. I was in Perth before Christmas with the South African team and we spotted Johnson in the nets. He spent 10 minutes there and bowled terribly. Someone said he'd never seen a more unproductive net session, but then he came out and took 11 wickets in the match. He can turn it on quickly and that makes him a very dangerous customer.

Mike Atherton, the Times: The England players enjoy Edgbaston more than any other ground because of the fervent, patriotic support. Ponting has been taken aback by the nature of some of the reaction, media and public, so far this summer and should steel himself for a particularly rough ride over the next five days. ·