Who has the edge in the Ashes?

By Martin Gough

The score in the most competitive Ashes series in over 20 years is 1-1 with two Tests to play, but that only tells half the story.

After three of the most thrilling Tests of the modern era, does the balance of power lie with England or Australia ahead of the next Test at Trent Bridge?

For the rest of this week, BBC Sport looks in depth at the issues facing both teams, and the matches to come, to assess who might come out on top.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNT SO FAR?

After a decade of almost unchallenged dominance, the biggest surprise in the series has been, simply, that Australia can be beaten.

WHO HAS THE ASHES EDGE? Wednesday: What have we learnt so far? Thursday: What can the teams do to improve? Friday: How to win mind games Saturday: Who has the edge?

England had not won an Ashes match that mattered - a Test that had a bearing on whether they won the series or not - since the opening game of the 1997 series.

They have not come from behind to level an Ashes series since 1981, when some bloke called Ian Botham made some runs at Headingley.

England repeated both feats in the second Test of 2005, although the two-run margin was a little close for comfort.

In the process they put to good use the confidence gained in winning 14 and losing just one of the last 18 Tests before this series.

The star of the show at Edgbaston was Andrew Flintoff, a man who had never faced Australia in Test cricket before the series began.

That heroic rearguard 73 is his best score so far but it is with the ball that he has really impressed, regularly topping the 90mph mark that sees a bowler designated truly fast.

In the process he has helped expose a massive weakness in the Aussie side - their inability against short, fast bowling.

Australia have arguably not faced a concerted pace battery since the Pakistan sides of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis a decade ago.

Most other sides in world cricket now boast just one truly fast bowler. England have three in Flintoff, Steve Harmison and Simon Jones.

Gilchrist has struggled against England's pace battery

All are capable of exposing the dubious shot-selection and footwork of the Aussie batting order.

Adam Gilchrist is the most successful wicket-keeper/batsman ever, with 4572 runs at an average of 53.78. So far in this series he has 120 at 24.00.

England's batting has been exposed too, twice in the opening Test and again at Edgbaston.

But the signs of recovery are already there, best illustrated by the recovery from poor form of both Michael Vaughan and Andrew Strauss for centuries at Old Trafford.

The selectors took some fearful flak for combining Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell in the middle order.

England are applying immense pressure and Australia are finding it very hard to cope From MS Have your say on TMS

But Pietersen has been one of the stars, with three half-centuries, and, after a worrying start at Lord's, Bell has demonstrated the temperament needed at the top level.

It is not all doom and gloom for Australia, though, as one of their major doubts evaporated quickly.

Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath - the only duo with more than 500 Test wickets each to play in the same team - are just as good as they ever were.

They may have a combined age of 70 but so far in this series they have 34 wickets between them.

McGrath came into the first Test determined to answer those, including opposite number Matthew Hoggard, who said he was "getting on a little bit".

McGrath and Warne are as good as ever

By the end of his first 10-over spell, in which he took five wickets for 16 runs and passed that 500-wicket milestone, he had done just that.

It is no coincidence that England's revival has come after he injured his ankle, missed the second Test and was below his best in the third.

Warne warmed up for this series playing for Hampshire amid mutterings around the county circuit that he now relied more on guile than spinning ability.

But there has been plenty of bamboozling variation on offer so far, especially when he ran through the English order in successive innings at Lord's and Edgbaston.

England have already discovered weaknesses in the back-up Aussie attack.

It has been most noticeable in the poor form of Jason Gillespie, which they have exploited ruthlessly at times.

Their two biggest bowling weapons are as good as ever, but Australia now know they have plenty to work on before the fourth Test begins at Trent Bridge on 25 August.

England have already answered the doubters, but need to work out how to make best use of their advantages to wrap up the series.