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Stokes v Ashwin R Ashwin dismissed Ben Stokes for the fifth time in the series. A batsman should worry if theres a pattern developing in the dismissals. Stokes has a tendency to plant his front foot down the pitch, thats why hes often been away from the line of the ball. The thinking behind the footwork could be to protect the front pad from the straighter ball, but that has caused him to play the wrong line to the delivery that turns away from the left-hand batsman. Most of Stokes dismissals to Ashwin have been when the bowler has come around the stumps, and that line should have dictated that the front foot come slightly across.Moeen against the bouncer Moeen Alis dismissal highlighted the importance of having a defensive technique against the bouncer. The trap had been set and Moeen knew it too, but he was unable to defend or avoid them, and so played into the hands of the Indian fast bowlers. Its almost impossible to hit your way out of a bouncer trap. Moeens dismissal also asked a critical question - why had the Indian quicks bowled only two bouncers at him on the first day?Ishants full lengths On the first day, Ishant Sharma dismissed Keaton Jennings with a full ball. On the second he dismissed Jos Buttler with a full ball. But Ishant bowled only four to five full deliveries in Englands 157.2-over first innings. Either he had success with the full ball because it was a rare surprise or there is a case for him to bowl that length more often. Im tempted to say he should bowl full more often - Ishants height and high-arm action pushes the batsman back and a full ball is likely to cause more trouble.Ishant and Umesh Yadav conceded only three boundaries in front of the stumps. With the lack of lateral movement and pace off the pitch, it is expected that a fair amount of runs will be scored in front of the stumps. The wagon-wheel, however, suggested that the Indian fast bowlers did not bowl lengths that brought batsmen forward.The difference between Ashwin and Mishra Amit Mishra and Ashwin bowl at a similar pace. Both have accurate pitch maps too. Why is it then, that Ashwin is vastly more effective than Mishra? The reason is fizz off the surface, which is a result of the extra rotations Ashwin puts on the ball. Mishra hasnt been able to put enough behind the ball and is therefore less effective. Without zip off the surface, Mishra is at his best when the batsmen are playing shots, and that explains his success in limited-over formats.Openers let-off by Cook The toughest assignment for opening batsmen is a seaming pitch on the first morning of a Test. The second toughest is opening after having fielded for 150 or more overs. Though conditions on the second day might not be as testing, the fatigue after fielding will challenge physical and mental strength. And there are only ten minutes in which to make the switch. Another thing you have to be wary of is believing the pitch is a featherbed because the other team has batted 150 overs. Every innings starts from scratch, so it was surprising to see the field set by Alastair Cook. For both KL Rahul, struggling for form, and Parthiv Patel, having kept wickets for 157.2 and a part-time opener, Cook had fielders at deep point and deep square leg. With 477 runs in the bank, Cook should have attacked more. The path towards the Magic Millions race day at the Gold Coast begins in a familiar place for Sydney sprinter Straturbo who makes his return at Moonee Valley.Straturbo is in Melbourne for Saturdays Montmorency FC Handicap which will be the third year in a row the gelding has kicked off his summer campaign in the corresponding 1000m open handicap.His trainer Gary Portelli will not make the trip this year to watch the seven-year-old, preferring to stay close to home with a runner at Rosehill but more importantly, to be close to stable star Rebel Dane who is preparing for an international mission.Rebel Dane, who won the Manikato Stakes last month, will fly to Hong Kong on December 4 for the International Sprint on December 11 and Portelli says the horse is in a real happy place ahead of the trip.Straturbo finished second at Moonee Valley two years ago while last year he finished fourth.Its our program we use to lead to the Magic Millions, Portelli said.But unfortunately without us really knowing when we did the program, Magic Millions has changed the distance of the big sprint from 1100 metres to 1200 metres which is a distance that he hhas never won over.ddddddddddddSo we might be aiming at a race were no hope in because of his form over the 1200 metres, but well still do our best to win as many races as we can on the way through.Straturbo won the Magic Millions Sprint in January 2015 while he finished seventh earlier this year.The gelding hasnt had a barrier trial this time but Portellii said he gave him a strong course proper gallop at Warwick Farm over 800m to compensate.He worked great, his recovery was good and hes had another little gallop in between on Tuesday, Portelli said.Hes spot-on.To be ridden by Dean Yendall. Straturbo has barrier six in a field of 14 and is at $13.He gets around the track which is a big plus, Portelli said.Hell be ridden aggressively from the gate to take up a forward position and I think thats a good spot to be in at the Valley.Hell present himself well on the day. Its an open race with probably half a dozen chances but it will come down to who gets the best luck and obviously whos the fastest on the day. ' ' '