Ashes Tour

[Admin]

England squad for Ashes tour of Australia

Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire), Dom Bess (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Jos Buttler (Lancashire) wk, Zak Crawley (Kent), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Craig Overton (Somerset), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).

[chris]

Oct 11, 2021 9:37:13 GMT Admin said:

England squad for Ashes tour of Australia

Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire), Dom Bess (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Jos Buttler (Lancashire) wk, Zak Crawley (Kent), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Craig Overton (Somerset), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).

Bohannon,  Mahmood and Parkinson in Lions tour to Aus. But no place for Livingstone. 

[Admin]

Stokes available for all cricket

[Admin]

The Brisbane Cricket Ground, commonly known as the Gabba,[1][2] is a major sports stadium in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. The nickname Gabba derives from the suburb of Woolloongabba, in which it is located. Over the years, the Gabba has hosted athletics, Australian rules football, baseball, concerts, cricket, cycling, rugby league, rugby union, Association football and pony and greyhound racing. At present, it serves as the home ground for the Queensland Bulls in domestic cricket, the Brisbane Heat of the Big Bash League and Women's Big Bash League, and the Brisbane Lions of the Australian Football League. The Gabba will be the centrepiece of the 2032 Summer Olympics and will be upgraded for the games.

Between 1993 and 2005, the Gabba was redeveloped in six stages at a cost of A$128,000,000. The dimensions of the playing field are now 170.6 metres (560 feet) (east-west) by 149.9 metres (492 feet) (north-south), to accommodate the playing of Australian rules football at elite level. The seating capacity of the ground was 42,000 in 2010, which has been reduced in recent times due to new electronic scoreboards and corporate facilities.[3] For international cricket matches, the capacity is reduced to 36,000 due to new scoreboards and the addition of a pool deck, as well as wider sight screens.[4] For AFL matches the capacity is slightly larger at 37,478.[5][6] The capacity will increase to 50,000 for the 2032 Olympics.[7]

England in Australia - Records



Highest Innings Totals

1. Australia 662-9d - Perth, 14th December 2017
2. Australia 659- - Sydney, 13th December 1946
3. Australia 649-7d - Sydney, 4th January 2018
4. Australia 645 - Brisbane, 29th November 1946
5. England 644 - Sydney, 3rd January 2011


Lowest Innings Totals

1. Australia 42 - Sydney, 10th February 1888
2. England 45 - Sydney, 28th January 1887
3. Australia 58 - Brisbane, 4th December 1936
4. England 61 - Melbourne, 5th March 1904
5. England 61 - Melbourne, 1st January 1902


Highest Individual Scores

1. Robert Cowper 307 - Melbourne, 11th February 1966
2. Reginald Foster 287 - Sydney, 11th December 1903
3. Donald Bradman 270 - Melbourne, 1st January 1937
4. Walter Hammond 251 - Sydney, 14th December 1928
5. Justin Langer 250 - Melbourne, 26th December 2002


Best Bowling Figures In An Innings

1. Arthur Mailey 9-121 - Melbourne, 11th February 1921
2. George Lohmann 8-35 - Sydney, 25th February 1887
3. Albert Trott 8-43 - Adelaide, 11th January 1885
4. George Lohmann 8-58 - Sydney, 29th January 1892
5. Wilfred Rhodes 8-68 - Melbourne, 1st January 1904


Most Runs In A Series

1. Walter Hammond 905 - 1928/29
2. Donald Bradman 810 - 1936/37
3. Alastair Cook 766 - 2010/11
4. Herbert Sutcliffe 734 - 1924/25
5. Steven Smith 687 - 2017/18


Most Wickets In A Series

1. Rodney Hogg 41 - 1978/79
2. Maurice Tate 38 - 1924/25
3. Mitchell Johnson 37 - 2013/14
4. Arthur Mailey 36 - 1920/21
5. Geoff Lawson 34 - 1982/83

[Admin]

Anderson injured

[lancsdes]

Ah well. At least we are Europe leading in Omicron.

[Admin]

Thed familiar winter phrase of ENGLAND BATTING COLLAPSE anyway here's ESPN's take on it

England 147 (Buttler 39, Cummins 5-38) vs Australia

The Ashes' past have been defined by the first ball of the series at the Gabba. Think Michael Slater clattering Phil DeFreitas for four in 1994-95 or Steve Harmison bowling the first ball to second slip in 2006-07.


ADVERTISEMENT

The 2021-22 Ashes series may well be defined by Rory Burns being bowled around his legs first ball from Mitchell Starc as England collapsed to be all out for 147 at tea on the opening day of the first Test, with Australia captain Pat Cummins claiming 5 for 38 after Joe Root won the toss and elected to bat.

RELATED
Story Image
England's Ashes horror shows in Brisbane

Story Image
Anderson sits out first Test with an eye on Adelaide pink-ball contest

A thunderstorm then washed out the early part of the final session to pour salt into a gaping wound, as England were given no chance at redemption with the ball. A wet outfield and bad light combined to end the day's play.

Root won't be lambasted for life for the decision at the toss in the manner that Len Hutton and Nasser Hussain have in Ashes Tests of the past at the Gabba. Cummins admitted he might have batted too despite a distinct green tinge to the surface and some moisture both in the pitch and in the atmosphere.

But he would have been regretting it after he joined Andrew Flintoff and Andrew Strauss as England captains to make first-innings ducks in Ashes Tests at the Gabba. Root fell victim to a superb piece of bowling from Josh Hazlewood, who now has a stranglehold on the England skipper having claimed him eight times in Test cricket.

He also may regret leaving both James Anderson and Stuart Broad out of the side for the first time in five years and the first time in an Ashes Test since 2006, as England's top order capitulated on a surface that gave the bowlers plenty of assistance. But some played their own part in the procession of wickets that fell in the first hour after slumping to 26 for 4.

Burns lost all bearings of where his stumps were stepping way outside off to expose leg stump to Starc who did shape the ball back down the line after it looked to be veering down leg. But Burns will rue the day as his error could be replayed for decades to come. He also claimed two regrettable records, becoming the second man in history to fall first ball of an Ashes series while registering his sixth duck of the calendar year, the most of any Test opener.

Hazlewood then went to work testing the defence of England's top order and they were found wanting. Dawid Malan nicked a ball he could have easily left alone on length handing Alex Carey his first Test catch, while Root wasn't allowed to breathe for eight unwavering deliveries before one straightened off the seam to catch his outside edge.

Story Image
Joe Root fell to leave England three down inside half an hour Getty Images
Ben Stokes entered at 3 for 11 needing to produce another Ashes miracle. He was undone after the drinks break by Cummins from around the wicket, squared up by a ball that climbed from a length and Marnus Labuschagne held a very sharp chance diving to his left at third slip.

Haseeb Hameed fought impressively in the face of some outstanding fast bowling. Hameed and Ollie Pope steadied the ship momentarily prior to lunch to prevent any further loss. Hameed was obdurate in defence while Pope was busy, pushing balls into the off side with positive footwork and weight transfer to rotate the strike well.

But neither could lay a glove on Hazlewood who bowled seven overs in the first session and conceded just three singles while collecting the scalps of Malan and Root.

The lunch break did Hameed no favours as Cummins struck again. He went wide of the crease and angled into off stump forcing Hameed to play, a hint of seam movement away caught the edge and again it was well held at slip, this time by vice-captain Steven Smith.

England's only moment of joy for the day came with the arrival of Jos Buttler. Having pledged pre-series to play fearless cricket he followed through on his promise and counter-attacked in typical fashion. While England could barely defend Hazlewood before lunch, Buttler took the long handle to him launching him through and over the offside with control. Buttler and Pope's positivity changed the atmosphere briefly as Australia turned Nathan Lyon for containment.


The pair shared a 52-run stand and Pope passed 1000 Test runs in the process becoming the sixth-youngest English player to do so.

But Starc returned and dismissed Buttler with a superb delivery that threatened to shape in but left him off the seam to catch the outside edge. Cameron Green then claimed his first Test wicket to raucous celebrations after going wicketless all last summer. Pope failed to control a hook shot and Hazlewood ran in from fine leg to complete an outstanding diving catch. It was the first of two for him in the deep as he took another to help Cummins complete his five-wicket haul. Cummins returned to take the last three wickets of the innings as England lost their last five for just 32 runs.

Cummins became the first Australian captain to take a five-wicket haul since Richie Benaud in 1962 and the first captain of either nation to do so since Bob Willis at the Gabba in 1982. It was a day he could not have dreamt up if he tried, as England added another chapter to their horror history at the Gabba.

[Admin]

It gets worse

ESPN

Australia 343 for 7 (Head 112*, Warner 94, Labuschagne 74, Robinson 3-48) lead England 147 by 196 runs

Travis Head thumped a century in a session to rip the game away from England after they briefly clawed their way back into the contest following another morning of self-destruction.

Head made the joint third-fastest Ashes century, off 85 balls, and became the first to score a Test century in a session at the Gabba, to torch any hopes England had after Australia had lost 4 for 29 in the afternoon to lead by just 48 with five wickets in hand. Australia finished the day with a lead of 196 and three wickets in hand with Head still unbeaten on 112.

RELATED
Story Image
David Warner rides his luck on way to 94

Story Image
Ben Stokes in no-ball drama with front-foot technology broken

Head's century came on the back of a supreme 156-run stand earlier in the day from David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne, with Warner making an eventful 94, while Labuschagne a masterful 74 in difficult batting conditions to set the game up. Ollie Robinson bowled superbly to take 3 for 48, but limped off with a hamstring injury late in the day while Ben Stokes also battled a leg issue and a host of no-ball problems, including bowling Warner on 17 when he overstepped. Mark Wood also bowled whole-heartedly all day for little reward.

Halfway through the day, Australia were ready to make England pay as their calamitous start to this series had turned from bad to worse. Australia were 166 for 1 with Warner and Labuschagne having passed England's first-innings total on their own, with Warner having survived being bowled off a no-ball, dropped at slip, and missed being run-out.

A rare mistake from Labuschagne opened the door for England to keep the door ajar thanks to a superb spell from Robinson, only for Head to all but slam it shut. He tore into England's weak links, thumping a struggling Stokes for three boundaries in an over to get his innings going. He then latched onto Jack Leach, just as Labuschagne and Warner had earlier in the day, hammering him with lofted strikes over long-on and powerful cuts and pulls. Leach took 1 for 95 from 11 overs, which did include four overthrows as England unravelled.

Story Image
Ollie Robinson took two wickets in two balls CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images
Head brought up his third century against the second new ball with a superb drive down the ground and celebrated to a standing ovation. Head had entered the Test as the last man picked for Australia, having beaten Usman Khawaja for the No. 5 spot, and might have cemented his place long term.

England only have themselves to blame for their predicament. Warner could have been out on 17, 48 and 60.

England bowled well in the first session without much luck as they induced a host of false strokes from Australia's batters but only claimed one wicket. Marcus Harris' lean run in Test cricket continued as he edged Robinson to slip for just 3. None of the 16 deliveries he faced until then would have hit the stumps but the slips cordon was ready and waiting for the eventual chance after he had played and missed a number of times.

But while they may rue their luck in some ways, England were culpable in a variety of ways.

Stokes added his name to a long list of culprits who have dismissed Warner off a no-ball, and has been guilty of doing it previously. The mistake was made worse when it was revealed he had bowled three no-balls in the lead-up without being called and 14 in total in the session, as the third umpire was unable to intervene due to a technology issue.

Rory Burns added to his dismal Test match by dropping a simple chance off Warner at slip on 48. He also should have been run-out on 60 after he clipped a ball off his toes and took off only for Haseeb Hameed to stop it. Warner slipped and dropped his bat as he groped for safe ground but Hameed's throw missed the stumps.

Warner played 30 false shots in all including the chipped drive to mid-off which saw him fall six runs short of his 25th century. But his 94 was invaluable to Australia's cause, and just one run short of his entire 2019 Ashes series tally.


Labuschagne's innings was every bit as good as Head's. In tough conditions, he left the ball with incredible judgement and pounced on anything loose. He and Warner waited and waited, absorbing long spells of quality fast bowling, particularly from Wood, before Joe Root finally had to turn to Leach. They assaulted him with a premeditated attack taking 31 from his first three overs. Labuschagne and Warner shared their fifth century stand and become the second-fastest Australian duo behind Don Bradman and Bill Ponsford to reach 1000 runs together, doing so in just 11 partnerships.

Labuschagne's loose cut off Leach cost him a certain century then Wood had Steven Smith caught behind with express pace before Robinson returned after tea for two wickets in two balls. He deceived Warner with some extra bounce as he miscued to mid-off before Cameron Green shouldered arms and lost his off stump to a ball that nipped back off the seam. It was just reward for Robinson who had bowled magnificently without luck. Alex Carey made just 12, pulling Chris Woakes straight to midwicket as Australia's lead looked set to be kept well under 150.

But Head put paid to that as Robinson limped off with a hamstring and Stokes limped through his final spell.

[Admin]

Woke up this morning they were showing highlights from the 3rd day assumed we had lost was correct. The sage of English cricket the South African KP thinks the County cricket system is to blame, we have too many counties, think he misses the point that the vast majority of this lot do not play county cricket

Australia 425 and 1 for 20 (Harris 9*, Robinson 1-13) beat England 147 and 297 (Root 89, Malan 82, Lyon 4-91) by nine wickets

The power went down at the Gabba and England went down with it as Nathan Lyon finally claimed his 400th Test wicket and Australia claimed a one-nil series lead after another calamitous collapse from the visitors handed the hosts a comfortable nine-wicket win.


ADVERTISEMENT

Lyon took four wickets on the fourth morning, including that of Dawid Malan's for his 400th to start the rot prior to the new ball being taken, while Cameron Green claimed the prized scalp of Joe Root for 89 as England lost 8 for 74 to be bowled out for 297 and set Australia just 20 runs to win.

RELATED
Story Image
Australia to monitor Hazlewood fitness after 'minor' side strain

Story Image
Root: 'We are not scared of a challenge'

Story Image
The best of Lyon: Galle debut, Bengaluru eight-for, and more

Story Image
Gabba power failure causes TV broadcast blackout

Story Image
'I thought I would never play another Test again' - Malan

Australia's only concern came when David Warner did not come out to bat in the fourth innings. He did not field during England's second innings after he was hit in the ribs by Ben Stokes during his first-innings 94. Cricket Australia released a statement on day three saying he had bruised ribs and Warner told Channel Seven on the morning of day four that he was sore but would bat with the aid of some pain killers. However, with only 20 runs required to win Warner did not take to the crease raising concerns about his fitness for the second Test in Adelaide, with just four days to recover.

Alex Carey opened alongside Marcus Harris. It was just the third time Carey has opened in first-class cricket having opened in just his third first-class match back in 2013. He tried to play positively. He was nearly run out twice before Ollie Robinson found his outside edge with a superb delivery that nipped off the seam. Harris was far from convincing early as the new ball zipped around but played a glorious cut shot and equally good square drive to bring up the winning runs without Marnus Labuschagne having to face a ball.

Earlier, England regressed to their mean on the fourth morning after the sublime day three partnership between Root and Malan had sprung hopes of a 2010-style Gabba revival, having erased 220 of the 278-run first-innings deficit just two down.

But hope springs eternal as Lyon snuffed out any chance of a miracle removing Malan in the fourth over of the morning. Lyon had been stuck on 399 wickets for 326 days and Malan revealed to ABC radio after play on day three that Lyon should have had him out caught and bowled in the afternoon when a ball ballooned off his pad and brushed the glove on the way back to Lyon but the Australians did not appeal.

Lyon finally got him a similar manner for wicket 400 with Malan deceived in flight as he skipped down to the wrong length. He groped in defence only to get a thick inside edge onto pad with Labuschagne claiming the chance at a well-placed silly mid-off. The relief for Lyon and the Australians was palpable as he celebrated becoming the 17th Test bowler to claim 400 wickets, and just the third Australian behind Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath.

Story Image
Cameron Green roars in celebration after dismissing Joe Root CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images
But the biggest wicket of the morning came from the unlikeliest source. Green bowled a superb spell with a 70-over old ball to fill a hole for his captain Pat Cummins while Australia's thoroughbred quicks were held back for the new ball. Green banged away at a good length at 140kph/87mph for several overs and finally found a hint of outswing, luring Root into a false prod outside off stump and catching his outside edge. Root fell 11 short of his 7th century of 2021 and is still yet to register three figures in Australia.

Lyon then picked up Ollie Pope, whose struggles against spin continue. He tried to cut a ball that bounced and spun back from outside off and succeeded in only gloving it to slip.


The game went dark for a period of five overs after Australia took the new ball as a power outage at the Gabba saw the entire television feed go down. Josh Hazlewood returned to the bowling crease after questions were raised about his fitness having only been used for eight overs out of 70 on the third day, but only those at the ground could see it.

Television pictures were restored just in time for Cummins to pick up Stokes for the second time in the match. Stokes was squared up again by Cummins, this time from over the wicket, as he closed the bat face to a ball that leapt from a length. Green held the leading edge at gully with ease.

Jos Buttler was unable to produce the same counter-attack he offered in the first innings, poking meekly wide of his off stump at Hazlewood to give Carey his seventh catch of the match. Lyon and Green cleaned up the tail handing Lyon a well-deserved four-wicket haul after toiling without reward on day three, while Carey claimed a record-breaking eighth catch to end the innings in a flawless display behind the stumps. It is the most catches on Test debut by a wicketkeeper and the equal-most dismissals alongside fellow Australian Brian Taber and England's Chris Read.

[man in the stand]

Bad defeat. Should have had more confidence played Broad and bowled. Hopefully Robinson and Stokes are not going on the injury list with Anderson. Leach, when compared to Lyons, ineffectual.

[Admin]

Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the city centre and North Adelaide. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby league, rugby union, soccer, tennis among other sports as well as regularly being used to hold concerts.[3] Austadiums.com described Adelaide Oval as being "one of the most picturesque Test cricket grounds in Australia, if not the world".[4] After the completion of the ground's most recent redevelopment in 2014, sports journalist Gerard Whateley described the venue as being "the most perfect piece of modern architecture because it's a thoroughly contemporary stadium with all the character that it's had in the past".[5]

Adelaide Oval has been headquarters to the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) since 1871 and South Australian National Football League (SANFL) since 2014.[6] The stadium is managed by the Adelaide Oval Stadium Management Authority (AOSMA). Its record crowd for cricket was 55,317 for the Second Ashes Test on 2 December 2017[1] and its record crowd for an Australian rules football match was 62,543 at the 1965 SANFL Grand Final between Port Adelaide and Sturt.

Might be me but I preferred Adelaide before they rebuilt it but that is progress I suppose. As for the game Anderson and Broad tipped to play and neither has played a game since late August, I leave it at that

[Admin]

Catches win matches is the old phrase

ESPN View

Australia 2 for 221 (Warner 95, Labuschagne 95*) vs England

Australia marched into a commanding position at the end of day one in Adelaide, the top-order grit of David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne denying England any pink-ball sparkle in their attempts to fight back the series. The withdrawal of Pat Cummins, after Australia's new captain was forced into isolation by South Australia's Covid-19 regulations, forced a last-minute rejig of the home XI but thereafter proceedings followed a familiar script.




After Warner had fallen just short of three figures for the second innings in succession, Labuschagne walked off unbeaten at the close but still waiting for a maiden Ashes hundred. It was far from his most fluent innings, but England only had themselves to blame for not seeing the back of him earlier - Jos Buttler twice dropping the Australia No. 3, most egregiously when he was on 95 and clinging to his wicket as the pink ball zipped around under the floodlights.

Steven Smith, resuming the Australia captaincy in unexpected circumstances for the first time since his 2018 ban for ball-tampering, won the toss and duly opted to bat. It was hard going at times, but a 172-run stand for the second wicket between Warner and Labuschagne ensured Australia took a position from which, in Smith's words, they could hope to "control the game". England's five-man pace attack ask plenty of questions but ultimately managed as many wickets as catches dropped - one of them, ironically enough, via a superb Buttler take.



England struck early through the returning Stuart Broad, playing his 150th Test, but they were kept at bay during the afternoon and evening as Australia's second-wicket pair resumed a productive association that has now yielded six century stands. Warner seemed set to raise the individual hundred he missed out on in Brisbane, following a watchful innings that blossomed as the sun began to set - only to thrash a Ben Stokes ball to Broad in the covers for 95.

Remarkably, following an unbeaten 335 against Pakistan in 2019 and having not played against India last summer, it was Warner's first Test dismissal at Adelaide since the 2017-18 Ashes.

Labuschagne's innings was as dependably quirky as ever, loud cries of "No ruuuuuuuuuuuun!" punctuating his obdurate stay at the crease. Having moved quickly to 10 from his first nine balls, he was successfully tied down by England, playing out 37 consecutive dots before an attempt to break free saw an angled dab at Ben Stokes fly through the slip cordon at catchable height.

Stokes targeted Labuschagne with a sustained short-ball attack throughout the day, and it should have borne fruit shortly after the dinner break, a gloved pull down the leg side put down by Buttler despite the wicketkeeper getting a full hand to the ball. Labuschagne's efforts to reinforce his bubble brought out some of his famed eccentricities - the decision to duck a bouncer later in the same over bringing an enthusiastic, "Yeah, well played, Marn!"

His thoughts on the hard-handed attempt to punch James Anderson through the covers in the 85th over of the day went unrecorded, but Buttler's error ensured it went unpunished.


Chances were few and far between on an attritional day. Warner took 20 balls to get off the mark, twice surviving ambitious England reviews as he fought to stay afloat after losing his opening partner, Marcus Harris. Australia were 1 for 11 after the first ten overs - their slowest start to a Test innings in the last 20 years - and the session was into the second hour before Warner connected with an attacking stroke, as Chris Woakes was flogged through the covers.

Both he and Labuschagne began to open up as the ball and the England attack lost their hardness, although it was not until the 41st over that Australia's run rate rose above two an over - Warner launching some more short stuff from Stokes over cover and through backward square leg to bring up a 108-ball half-century, his third-slowest in Tests. Labuschagne nearly tickled the pink straight to leg slip when facing Root's offbreaks, before bringing up his own fifty, from 156 balls, shortly before the tea interval.

Having left out Jack Leach - the first time England had not picked a spinner in an Ashes Test since Headingley 2001 - Root filled in capably but the sight of him bowling a leg-stump line as Australia passed 200 two down summed up their day.


With Anderson and Broad back in harness after being left out at the Gabba, England made a disciplined start. Broad's first ball to Warner since dominating the Australia opener during the 2019 Ashes - seven dismissals from 104 balls - brought an optimistic lbw appeal, and Harris was also in the crosshairs, given out lbw in the sixth over only to be saved by a review.

Harris did not last much longer, falling to a superb diving catch from Buttler. Whether Broad intended to pitch the ball quite as short and leg side as he did, England were certainly looking at that mode of dismissal, having stationed Haseeb Hameed at leg gully. Harris duly cuffed a pull off splice and glove and although Hameed wouldn't have got there, Buttler clung on one-handed while in mid-air and fully horizontal.

England knew the importance of trying to remove Warner early, having squandered several chances in Brisbane, and reviewed for a catch in the slips off Broad - the DRS showed the ball beating the inside edge before deflecting straight off the thigh pad. Root burned another review a few overs later, when Woakes struck Warner on the front pad. Third umpire Paul Reiffel deliberated at length over replays trying to discern an inside edge before deciding they were inconclusive, only for ball-tracking to show the delivery had pitched outside leg regardless.Australia 2 for 221 (Warner 95, Labuschagne 95*) vs England

[lancsdes]

Completely agree Admin. So glad I got to see Adelaide before the alterations.

Also, I know I’m a dinosaur but always pick the best wicketkeeper.

[Admin]

ESPN View on a slightly better day although not by much

England 17 for 2 (Root 5*, Malan 1*, Neser 1-4, Starc 1-11) trail Australia 473 for 9 dec. (Labuschagne 103, Warner 95, Smith 93, Carey 51) by 456 runs

The message on Adelaide's scoreboard was unequivocal: "Severe weather approaching. Follow direction from event staff and seek shelter". And sure enough, England's beleaguered cricketers were only too willing to hunker down and hope the bad men go away, after a ferocious floodlit examination had ended with their Ashes hopes tumbling down the street like a wheelie-bin in a gale.

After five sessions of sedate sparring at the Adelaide Oval, in which Australia's top-order played within themselves to drag England's largely toothless right-arm seam attack into their umpteenth spells, the contest was lit up in the final session like the lightning strike behind the bowler's arm that forced a hasty abandonment, midway through the ninth over of Australia's new-ball onslaught.

By then, both of England's openers had been prised from the crease - Rory Burns a victim once again of Mitchell Starc's left-arm wiles, despite being shielded from his first delivery, before Haseeb Hameed flicked the second ball of Michael Neser's Test career straight to mid-on to cue the most joyous scenes of celebration in the series to date.

Joe Root, England's only source of hope, then edged his second ball short of slip but endured to the early close alongside Dawid Malan, the same sidekick who had briefly inspired thoughts of salvation in that third-wicket stand at the Gabba last week. But with three full days to come, and confidence in England's camp at rock bottom, it's going to take something truly phenomenal to pull the team out of this latest tailspin.

After resuming on an ominous 221 for 2, Australia's eventual 473 for 9 declared was a masterclass of targeted acceleration, as a brace of sparky innings from Steve Smith and Alex Carey built on the first-day efforts of David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne - who duly brought up his sixth Test century in the first half-hour then survived England's second wicket with a no-ball of the series before departing soon afterwards for 103.

But it was the twin departures of Smith, lbw for 93, and Carey, caught at short cover on the stroke of tea for 51 - both off the tidy but largely unthreatening James Anderson - that set the stage for a contemptuous finale.

With the storm encroaching on the horizon, and the clear ambition of a lengthy stint of bowling under the floodlights, Australia's lower-order emerged after the interval with licence to plant their collective front dogs and swing for the hills. Starc was the relative anchorman, serving up a run-a-ball 39 not out with a host of long-levered swipes through the line, but it was the debutant Neser who seized the moment with unfettered glee.


After so many years of waiting on the sidelines as 12th man, Neser wasn't going to let a further 20 minutes of waiting putting him off his stride. He saw off the first two balls of the resumption with minimal fuss, and then, after picking off a brace of fours to ease into his evening's work, it was the return of Woakes that truly signalled the cavalry charge.

Hard though Woakes had toiled in the opening exchanges of this Test, he had already been identified as England's weakest link during the latter stages of Smith's innings, in which he had cracked two fours and a six in the space of three balls - the latter a remarkable heave over midwicket as he knelt into a fractionally short ball outside off to hoist Australia past the 350 mark.

And now, as he returned for his 22nd over, Neser was primed to prove that his solitary first-class hundred was no fluke, as he climbed in Woakes' laboured offerings for a 16-run over including a yawning hack for four through midwicket and the shot of the match to date, a veritable uppercut into the stands at extra cover.

Ben Stokes ended his fun on 35 from 24 balls as Stuart Broad back-pedalled at long-off to swallow another thrash through the line, but Starc picked up the cudgels with three meaty fours in the same over, before Jhye Richardson set the seal on a free-wheeling final flourish with a murderous clout for six over midwicket - the most literal declaration of the death overs that Woakes has encountered since the T20 World Cup.

One ball later, Richardson scuffed an edge to the keeper and Smith waved them in - but all told, Australia's Nos. 8 to 10 had racked up 83 runs in their final ten overs, and Woakes' figures had been vandalised to the tune of 54 runs in his final four overs.

The irony is that England's day had actually begun with relative purpose. With more swing on offer for the second new ball than the first, the seamer's lengths had been notably fuller from the outset, not least the persevering Ollie Robinson, whose first ball of the day should have had Labuschagne caught-behind for 102, only for replays to show that he had over-stepped.

It was another shattering blow to England's flagging morale - their second no-ball dismissal of the series, to go with a tally of dropped catches than is now into double figures - but with impressive gumption, Robinson dusted himself down and made amends ten balls later, as Labuschagne padded up to a nipbacker to be pinned plumb in front of middle.

Worryingly, however, for England's prospects of achieving even parity in this contest, the middle part of their bowling effort was dominated by the part-time spin of Joe Root, who found purchase from the outset and no little guile, as he showed by bowling Australia's first-Test centurion Travis Head with a superb sucker-punch, a toss-up above the eyeline that dipped at his feet and straightened into the stumps for 18.

At a stroke, Root had become only the tenth visiting spinner to take a wicket at Adelaide since 2010, and of the names above him, only three have more than two scalps. Nathan Lyon, by contrast, has hoovered up 51 wickets at 26.94 in 11 visits, and assuming Australia's seamers leave him any spoils to get stuck into, he'll fancy his chances of adding to that tally on this particular surface, and against this particular line-up.

When Stokes popped up one over later to bowl the hapless Cameron Green for 2 (taking his Test average to 1.00), England went to lunch, having arguably enjoyed the better of the session with Australia 303 for 5.

It was, however, about as relative as such comparisons get, and the manner in which Australia turned up the heat before the close was a far truer reflection of the gulf between the team's aptitudes, attitudes and applications.

[man in the stand]

Another dire day for England...only Root and Malan contributing with the bat against a weakened Aussie attack. Our bowling not much better...