MELBOURNE, Dec 26: England vice-captain Andrew Strauss defended the decision to bat first after his side was routed for just 159 on the first day of the fourth Ashes Test against Australia at the MCG.

On another dark day for the embattled tourists, captain Andrew Flintoff called correctly and resisted the temptation to insert the Australians on what shaped as a lively deck.

But England's batsmen again failed to do the job and the tourists lost their last eight wickets for just 58 runs.

Speaking after play here on Tuesday, Strauss said the English still believed they made the right call in batting first, but admitted it might not have been a bad toss to lose in retrospect.

“We felt the right thing to do was bat and I think we still feel that,” he said.

“If you had lost it (toss), you wouldn't have felt too bad. It (the pitch) did a little bit more than we expected it to.”In heavily overcast and windy conditions ideal for seam bowling, and with the pitch sure to have some life having been covered for several days because of rain, England must have considered bowling first.

However, former captain Nasser Hussain's disastrous decision to bowl first in Brisbane on the last tour would have weighed heavily on their mind.

In England's defence, the Australians said they were also planning to bat if they won the toss.

Strauss said England laid the foundations for a good score at 101 for two, but didn't capitalise.

“We got to 100-odd for 2 and if you get 250-odd you have done pretty well on a wicket like that,” he said.—AFP