UK BOOKMAKERS DECLARE ENGLAND ODDS-ON TO WIN THE ASHES

You grow up supporting England and you get used to disappointment. No matter the sport it seems, besides rugby, the English just always find a way to muck up right when we all begin to believe. Today could very well have been just another big set-up before the inevitable fall... But what if? What if England dreamed so big that, facing a 126/1 scoreline at the opening of play against the best team in the world, they'd go on to bowl them out for 263 with two swing-bowlers sharing nine wickets between them.What if?What if England look, for the first time all summer, like they have a genuine shot at winning the Ashes? What if we remember the tried, tested and true maxim that's guided intelligent people for millenia- follow the money. Popular UK bookmaker William Hill lists England at 4/5 to win the 2009 Ashes. The draw is available at 9/4, while the Aussies have it all to do at 7/2. Ladbrokes, another benchmark UK bookie, confirms that England are now in the drivers seat. They list Andrew Strauss' men at 4/6 to bring the tiny urn back to English soil. The Aussies are 4/1 and the draw is at 9/4. Blue Square, an online betting site widely-known for its excellent cricket betting, lists England at 8/11 to win the Ashes with the Aussies again listed at 4/1 and a drawn series paying the (seemingly across the board) 9/4. Betfair boasts the highest price on the English side, at 1.91 against a 3.4 draw and Australia at 5.4. The bookies all seem to agree that this current test is headed for a draw with 1/3 being the general price. But what if?What if Strauss gets another century and Ian Bell exercises the ghosts of the West Indies, stepping up as Kevin Pietersen reluctantly limped away?Can the Australians pick up the pieces and take control early, perhaps with the new ball? Will Ricky Ponting step up with the bat in the second innings and lead from the front? A blank chapter seems to be waiting for Mitchell Johnson and if he can dominate play tomorrow it would be a tale that only the Ashes could write. What if?The bookies are fortifying their lines against an English onslaught. It is now time to back England to win the Ashes.