Cricket: 'We copped it in England, now it's their turn,'

England fast bowler James Anderson is a notorious sledger. Photo / AP

Peter Siddle has said that James Anderson brought the sledging upon himself in the first Ashes cricket test and that the Australians will continue to heckle the English batsmen when the second test starts in Adelaide next week.

Siddle said Anderson deserved to be targeted during the first test when he was threatened with a broken arm and described him as the most vociferous sledger in the England side.

"Anderson brought it on himself. So fair's fair," Siddle said. "There was a lot of other stuff going on and James Anderson was in the thick of it and a culprit for it all happening. He is one of the leading wicket-takers in the world so he is happy to have a chirp but as long as Mitchell Johnson keeps bowling them around his ears that will quieten him up pretty quickly."

England were dismayed yesterday when Cricket Australia decided not to punish David Warner for his outburst in which he described Jonathan Trott as "weak". Darren Lehmann, the Australia coach, expressed sympathy for Trott but said Australia would not be changing their aggressive tactics and would not be sharing a post-match drink with their opponents until the end of the series. The Australians feel they have been on the receiving end of English taunts for long enough and now they are playing in their backyard it is time for revenge.

"Jonathan Trott's gone home and I hope he gets well soon," said Lehmann. "But we're still going to play really hard cricket, and that's what we're about. We copped a lot in England, and we didn't shy away from that. You expect it when you go away [from home]. So I don't see what the difference is from England to here, considering we're on the other end of it.

"You don't share any beers until the end of the series - that's sort of what happens in this new age. But it was very respectful from both teams [after the first test], shaking hands, saying well done."

The vastness of Australia's red desert is a place to find solitude and a group of England's cricketers visited Ayers Rock.

England were harangued by television crews as they checked in at Brisbane airport for their flight to Alice Springs with Kevin Pietersen filmed claiming he could not hear the reporters' questions because he was listening to music through earphones.

Cricket Australia released footage of the incident on its website, and gleefully asked if Pietersen "really couldn't hear?" and also claimed England had gagged the players from talking to the media 24 hours after Trott left the tour. CA has played its part in stoking the fire on social media sites for the past week.

When the captain on the flight welcomed the team on board there was a mixture of boos and cheers from Australia supporters. As the team walked through arrivals two rubber ducks were placed next to an England sign, an indication that while they will be welcomed warmly by the Northern Territories Cricket Association, they can expect the usual goading.

Anderson should be rested this week and will not face any punishment from the International Cricket Council for his role in his bust-up with Michael Clarke which led to the Australia captain being picked up by stump microphones saying Anderson was going to have his arm broken by Mitchell Johnson, who was bowling at the time.

Anderson is alleged to have sparked the row by saying to George Bailey he is the person in the Australian team he would like to punch the most.

The nature of the sledging is no surprise and there is sympathy in Australia for Clarke, who was only fined because the host broadcaster, Channel 9, accidentally aired the audio. "It wasn't any different to normal," Siddle said of the sledging in Brisbane. "If it hadn't have been on the mic a lot people would not have said so much about it. The most disappointing thing is that it actually came up [on the broadcast]. It's not meant to at that time and it is very stiff for Michael."