England struggle in 3rd Ashes Test

England struggle in 3rd Ashes Test
X

Nathan Lyon took two wickets to surpass Glenn McGrath at No. 2 on Australia’s all-time bowling list, and returning skipper Pat Cummins took his first wickets of the series as a relentless bowling attack kept England in trouble in the third Ashes test.

Australia resumed Day 2 at 326-8 and was out for 371 with Mitchell Starc posting a half-century before Jofra Archer finished off the tailenders to return 5-53, his fourth five-wicket haul in test cricket.

By stumps England had struggled to 213 for eight, still 158 behind.

England was coasting at 37-0 in reply until Cummins struck. Lyon then took two wickets in his first over as England lost three wickets in 15 balls.

It was a struggle the rest of the day for England, which needs to bat long to revive its chances in this five-test series on a pitch and conditions that traditionally favor batting at the Adelaide Oval. The Australian bowlers and fielders spent most of the day in the field in temperatures hitting 40C (104F), but most of the heat was on England skipper Ben Stokes.

He spent around four hours at the crease, getting hit on the helmet and the body and appearing to struggle with cramping. His mood wasn’t helped by more contentious outcomes from the Decision Review System technology.

His defiant, unbeaten 45 from 151 balls and his unbroken 45-run stand with No. 10 Archer (30) at least helped England’s innings go into another day.

Cummins was recovering from a back injury when he missed the wins in Perth and Brisbane which gave Australia a 2-0 series lead. In his first spell on return, he dismissed opener Zak Crawley (9) to trigger a top-order slide.

Lyon was introduced for the 10th over and the 38-year-old offspinner had immediate success with two wickets in four balls to remove Ollie Pope (3) and Ben Duckett (29) as England slumped to 42-3. Pope’s wicket allowed him to equal retired paceman McGrath’s career haul of 563.

Lyon soon bowled Duckett with a drifting delivery that took out off stump. TV coverage showed McGrath in a stadium commentary booth pretending to throw a chair around in mock annoyance.

Australia 371 (Alex Carey 106, Usman Khawaja 82, Mitchell Starc 54; Archer 5-53) lead England 213/8 (Harry Brook 45, Ben Stokes 45*; Pat Cummins 3-54, Nathan Lyon 2-51) by 158 runs.

Next Story
Share it