Key events
19th over: England 94-2 (Crawley 42, Root 4) We haven’t seen a pitch map but it feels like Australia are bowling straighter and fuller than England. That’s partly because the pitch is more worn so there’s a greater chance of uneven bounce; it’s also a better approach at the Gabba full stop, especially the length.
Root has started calmly, as if continuing his first innings rather than starting afresh, and pulls Doggett’s last ball round the corner to keep the stirke.
“Pope shouldn’t have been facing that ball,” says Phil Harrison. “The last ball of the previous over should have been given as four. Yes, these grapes are rather sour since you ask…”
Fire up the Ultra-Processed Beef Maker!
18th over: England 93-2 (Crawley 42, Root 3) Alex Carey comes straight up to the stumps to ensure Joe Root can’t bat outside his crease against Neser. If Australia get Root tonight they will be in a great position to go 2-0 up; England aren’t coming back from that, certainly not to win the series.
“Hi Rob,” says Patrick O’Brien. “Currently enjoying that under appreciated Swans B-side: ‘This is the least threatening Australian bowling attack in living memory and England should stop arguing about philosophical names for their approach and just get on with winning this Test because they’re clearly good enough to do so.’ Clocked in at a breezy – for them – 7:54, if I recall correctly.”
That’s 7hrs 54mins, right?
That was Pope’s eighth innings against Australia in the Bazball era. Five have ended between 26 and 46, and he still hasn’t reached fifty. He’s no Magnus Magnusson.
WICKET! England 90-2 (Pope ct and b Neser 26)
We need to talk about Ollie. Another skittish cameo from Pope comes to an end when he punches a drive straight back at the new bowler Michael Neser, who leaps to take a smart two-handed catch. Pope goes for 26 from 32 balls.
17th over: England 90-1 (Crawley 42, Pope 26) I thought Starc was into his work but he’s been replaced by Doggett. Perhaps he’ll change ends, or maybe he’s being saved for the arrival of Joe Root.
Pope hits two streaky boundaries – a drive that just clears cover and a flashing edge over the slips – before clipping three through square leg. Boland did really well to save the boundary.
“I don’t want to distract your audience from the unique experience which is watching Ollie Pope start an innings, but I feel duty bound to point out that the West Indies fourth innings in Christchurch is a joy for scorecard fans,” writes Rob Knap. “Kemar Roach’s 233-ball 58 is a personal highlight.”
16th over: England 78-1 (Crawley 42, Pope 15)
15th over: England 77-1 (Crawley 41, Pope 15) After an iffy first spell, Starc is getting into his work now. Pope is suckered into chasing a very wide ball that zips past the edge. England’s batters are magnetised towards that delivery.
“Does Ollie Pope has a spider in his undercrackers?” says Paul Turp. “He’s absolutely manic.”
I heard it was a marmot. But it may have gone now because he has looked calmer in the last 5-10 minutes. Calmer than you are.
14th over: England 76-1 (Crawley 40, Pope 15) Pope drives Boland sweetly through mid-off for four. That’s a beautiful stroke, his best yet, and he is starting to look a little calmer. His heart rate may even have dropped below 150.
“Thing is,” says James Kettle, “Bazball removes the old idea that the primary motive in Test match strategy is the desperate avoidance of defeat. And I liked those stakes, and thought they were worth setting aside five days at a time to follow! No shade on those that like the new stuff but it does feel like a different format and the tragedy is you can’t have both.”
That’s a good point – although it was kind of dying anyway. Since the glorious rearguard in New Zealand in 2012-13, when Monty Panesar swam to safety, England have only once batted for more than 70 overs to save a game in the fourth innings. That was at Sydney on the last Ashes tour.
13th over: England 71-1 (Crawley 39, Pope 11) Pope plays a more controlled stroke, push-driving Starc for three to move into double figures. Crawley borrows the cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof baton from Pope, eding a very loose drive over the slips for four. Careful now.
Another exhilarating over ends with Pope digging out a gorgeous curving yorker from Starc. Well played.
“Huge thanks for your recognition of the presumably quite small but very real Venn diagram of cricket fans/Swans fans,” writes Xav from Cardiff. “Proof that there’s at least two of every type of person.”
It’s just a great pop song!
12th over: England 63-1 (Crawley 34, Pope 8) Boland’s first poor delivery is dealt with efficiently by Pope, who flicks it to fine leg for four. He’s getting some unpleasant bounce, though, and twice hits Pope high on the bat during that over.
England, rightly or wrongly, won’t accept being a punchbag for Boland. Crawley proves that point with a gorgeous drive through mid-on – then fresh-airs a wild slap well wide of off stump. Compelling stuff.
“Inspired by your invocation of the mathematical Starc formula,” begins Brian Withington, “I am pleased to announce a comparison of first innings scores that has England way ahead of the opposition.
“The measure is of course standard deviation, the cognoscenti’s only true arbiter of an innings, and the England batters have utterly dominated with an SD of 40.9 to Australia’s rather shabby 23.0 – obviously I use N=11 rather than 10 in the divisor of the sum of squares about the mean, and will fight anyone who argues otherwise (although it does produce an even higher figure).
“England’s magnificent distribution reflects Joe Root’s 138* outlier alongside four ducks, whereas the conformist Australian batters were all confined to double figures.”
Does that make England’s first innings at Trinidad in 1986 an unqualified triumph?
11th over: England 52-1 (Crawley 30, Pope 1) Oh, hi Starc! Yep, Mitchell is back to replace Doggett, a good move given the change in mood of both the match and the pink ball. Crawley suddenly looks nervous, wide-eyed, and is a bit fortunate when a thick inside-edge flies away for a couple of runs.
No real swing in that over from Starc, but he was very accurate and Crawley had to defend, I think, four of the six deliveries.
“It’s funny/ironic that the anti-Bazball folk often seem guilty of the same flaws that they accuse the Bazzers of having,” writes Alanis Morr- Niall Mullen. “A one-eyed refusal to believe that things could be done a different way vs a one-eyed view that things must only be done a different way. Who is going to care for all those babies getting thrown out with the bath water?”
10th over: England 50-1 (Crawley 28, Pope 1) They said it changes when the sun goes down around here. That’s exactly what’s happening, with Boland and Doggett making the ball nibble just enough to threaten both edges of the bat.
A beauty from Boland nips back to hit Crawley on the pad and deflect through to Carey. Australia go up for everything, just in case there’s an inside edge, but it missed the bat and was too high for the LBW. Even so, these are excellent signs for Australia.
Boland has a better LBW shout against Pope turned down later in the over. Outside the line, I reckon, but it was close and Pope’s beans are going like a pinball machine.
This is outstanding, aggressive (in the sense of making the batters play) bowling from Doggett and Boland. England were 45 for 0 from six overs at tea; since the break they’re 5 for 1 from four.
9th over: England 49-1 (Crawley 27, Pope 1) Another leading edge from Pope falls safely on the off side. After a strikingly serene performance at Perth, he’s like a cat on a hot tin roof again. An accurate, make’-em-play maiden from Doggett, who has started superbly.
“Like most people I do wish sometimes England would in key moments bat a little more carefully,” says Steve Hudson. “But the howls of hostility from many England fans towards the aggressive approach under McCullum is very depressing.
“It has its faults but Bazball has given us so many wonderful moments, and wonderful victories. Do they forget the absolute state of our team at the point Stokes was made captain? Here’s hoping Crawley scores a ton here batting left handed, just to bloody show them.”
They’re the most life-affirming England team I’ve watched, in any sport. But I understand the opprobrium because I’m fairly sure my 30-year-old self would have been howling with hostility. This team often make me think of a great quote in Christian Ryan’s wonderful book about Kim Hughes: “I have most admired him,” said Des Hoare, his captain at Subiaco, “because he had the courage and the ability not to become ordinary.”
8th over: England 49-1 (Crawley 27, Pope 1) Ollie Pope, on a pair, almost goes first ball when a hard-handed leading edge drops just short of Boland in his follow-through. He gets off the mark next ball.
That ball to Duckett definitely kept low, grotesquely so in fact, so Australia will be targeting the stumps from now on.
WICKET! England 48-1 (Duckett b Boland 15)
Scott Boland has struck in his first over! Duckett played a defensive stroke into the ground and was mortified to see, or rather hear, the ball bounce under his bat and onto the stumps. It must have kept a bit low.
Duckett’s poor series continues: he has 64 runs in four innings.
7th over: England 46-0 (Crawley 26, Duckett 14) Brendan Doggett replaces Mitchell Starc and makes a superb start. He beats both batters (Duckett’s was a half-leave) and has an LBW appeal turned down when Crawley pushes around a nipbacker. Too high but beautifully bowled.
“English fatalism is my favourite meal, Rob,” says Eamonn Maloney, “but it’s a little early to declare Bazball Fawlty.”
Especially as, for the openers at least, duck’s off!
The players are back on the field. A not insignificant two and a half hour session is about to begin.
Teatime reading
We receive a lot of emails to the OBO, so it’s rarely possible to read them all in real time. That was the case with this email from Abhishek Chopra about the last-wicket partnership of 20 between Scott Boland and Brendan Doggett – but it’s well worth posting after the event.
Any records waiting to be broken for the highest last-wicket stand between two people of Indigenous origin? The 1868 party must be looking at these two from up above with such pride.
Tea/Dinner: England trail by 132 runs
6th over: England 45-0 (Crawley 26, Duckett 13) Too straight from Neser to Crawley, who puts him away through midwicket for three. Duckett mistimes a push at Neser that teases mid-off before bouncing short and scuttling under the fielder for three more.
Thus ends a good mini-session for England, who have shaved off a quarter of the deficit in only six overs. Zak Crawley played some brilliant strokes en route to 26 from 23 balls; Ben Duckett was busy but less fluent and was dropped by Michael Neser.
“Agree – McCullum will resign if we lose this series heavily,” says Joshua Keeling (see 4th over). “But you know what, there’s always a chance. This Test isn’t over, and there are three more after this. Now, if Crawley could just for once leave the bloody ball on the rise outside off stump, it would really help my blood pressure.”
If England save this Test, a Brobdingnagian ‘if’ despite this fine start, they will be on par with the 2010-11 team: draw in Brisbane, defeat at Perth. They’re coming home!
5th over: England 39-0 (Crawley 23, Duckett 10) Crawley drives two majestic boundaries off Starc, the first through mid-off and the second through extra cover. This pitch is one flat mother.
Crawley, full of fizz after those two boundaries, tries for a third and is beaten. It was clever bowling from Starc, who pulled his length back in the assumption/knowledge that Crawley would want to go for the drive again.
A fine over for England though, 13 from it. Starc has figures of 3-0-25-0.
Duckett dropped by Neser!
4th over: England 26-0 (Crawley 12, Duckett 10) Duckett haddocks the ball straight back at Neser, who puts down a seriously tough chance above his left shoulder. Careful now, Benjamin.
The next ball curves down the leg side for four byes. Not sure why it wasn’t called wide, and we’ll surely reflect on that when this match ends in a tie on the final day. Duckett hits his first boundary to end the over.
“Bazball has been brilliant to watch over the last few years,” writes Joshua Keeling. “It has revitalised Test cricket in this country, and been incredibly entertaining. But the stated aim has always been to build towards winning an Ashes series. And if they lose this series heavily, Bazball will have failed on its own terms.
”All that said, come on England…”
If England are hammered here, do you think they will move the goalposts and begin Project 2027 Ashes? Normally that’s what would happen but I’m not sure Key, Stokes and McCullum will be able to lie to themselves and each other. Certainly not all three.
3rd over: England 18-0 (Crawley 12, Duckett 6) Thanks to Lee Henderson for directing us to the weather forecast for the last two days of this game: small chance of thunderstorms, 0.001 per cent chance of an apocalypse.
Starc beats Duckett with a beautiful outswinger, just full of a good length. Duckett clips confidently for three, then Crawley fizzes a clip to the square leg boundary. Give or take, the first three overs have gone perfectly for England.
“It’s clear after four and a half days of the series that Emperor Baz has no new clothing,” says Darryl Accone. “The Baz haute couture, ‘We trust in the process’, has been exposed for the sham and hauteur that it is. Baz sold Robert Key an empty wardrobe and the sooner England cricket divests itself of all three the better.
“Beyond process, Baz has selected a squad of batters who, with one exception, can’t or don’t bat; of bowlers who can’t keep line and length and are knackered after managing only 73 overs in a day; of a wickie who might flash the odd quick 20 or 30 but can’t catch. It’s genius, Baznosis, perhaps the most egregious act of mass hypnosis ever perpetrated on an unsuspecting (and suspecting!) public.
“Baznosis, Bazball: when it’s all over perhaps another urn, with the ashes of burnt Baz artefacts like that baseball cap, will be in order.”
Politely, meekly but firmly, I could not disagree more. This isn’t the time for that discussion, though. If the series plays out as most expect, there will be plenty of time for a Baztopsy. And for dreamers like me to defend a team that has just been plugged 4-0.
2nd over: England 9-0 (Crawley 6, Duckett 3) Crawley offers no stroke to Neser’s first ball, which swings seductively but from well wide of off stump. A straight delivery is clipped confidently for the first boundary by Crawley; this is now England’s highest opening partnership of the series.
There’s a terrifyingly long way to go but England will be pleased with how they’ve started, and how little the new pink ball has swung. Yet. (NB: Clip contains adult language, probably, there isn’t time to check the whole thing.)
“England are f**ked, Rob,” says Simon McMahon. “Unless something very strange happens. Desperate times call for desperate measures…”
Free George Davis!
Breaking news: Mitchell Starc hasn’t taken a wicket in his first over
1st over: England 5-0 (Crawley 2, Duckett 3) Starc has three slips and a gully for Crawley, who pushes the second ball towards mid-off for a single. Duckett gets off a king pair with a slightly awkward defensive stroke – and then off a pair with a crisp flick through square leg for three. Not much swing for Starc, who goes wicketless in the first over for the first time in the series.
“I agree, the pitch does look good for batting,” says Andrew Goudie. “I’ll stick my neck out and say England will make Australia bat again.”
Tonight, presumably.
Complete the equation
Mitchell Starc + new pink ball x twilight = ???
We’re about to find out.
Cue operatic music England have been preparing for this Ashes series for three and a half years. Unless they ace the next three and a half hours, it will be over before the Radio Times Christmas edition has been published.
“Does anyone have any good recipes,” says Paul Griffin, “or tips for getting lard stains out of carpets?”
Afraid not, but have you heard this great new pop song?
“G’day Rob,” writes Chris Paraskevas. “Hope you’re well! Firstly, everyone take a deep breath, put the packet of Penguin Bars/ Tim Tams down, hit pause on that video of Chris Tavare hitting a six on YouTube (yes, it did happen!) and give yourselves a HUGE pat on the back…
“Congratulations: You made it to Test two, day three of the 2025 Liqourland Ashes Series!
“It might not seem much of an accomplishment to the untrained eye, particularly when you consider England only survived 1.75 days in the first Test and have only played four days of actual cricket on this Homeric tour. But we are all sporting massive hangovers/Scarface chainsaw-level headaches for different reasons.
“History won’t forget the sacrifices we’ve all made to be here right now on the OBO: sleep, mental health, relationships, our dignity, the ability to form cohesive sentences, a fully functioning liver.
“Anyway, as I said yesterday I’m not having another drink until Xmas Day and even then I’ll need to ‘leave some in the tank’ for NYE.
“PS. Pretty much touched 40 degrees Celcius in Sydney today. Couldn’t force myself to the pub on the corner for Hair Of The Dog treatment. I just don’t have what it takes to play cricket for Australia…”
Speak for yourself, Chris. I’m whistling Happy Go Lucky Me, and my Body Battery has just hit 110 per cent.
“Is this one of the highest scores made without a century being scored?” asks Jeremy Stokes.
I can think of at least two higher scores in Tests – South Africa v Australia in 1997-98, when they picked the strongest tail in history, and India v New Zealand in 1976-77. But this must be in the top five.
Edit: it is in the top five. At number five in fact.
WICKET! Australia 511 all out (Doggett c Brook b Jacks 13)
The Australian innings comes to an end when Doggett edges Jacks to slip. Australia only batted for 117.3 overs, which isn’t that much in the grand scheme, but it felt like they were batting forever. More importantly, they lead by 177 and will be bowling with a new ball just as day turns to night.
117th over: Australia 511-9 (Boland 21, Doggett 13) Carse tries his luck around the wicket, and gets none Boland misses a windy woof outside off stump. The pitch is so flat, which should give England hope. The worry is that Mitchell Starc will make the pink ball talk so incessantly that the pitch will become irrelevant.
“OK,” says Max Williams, “simple plan: pretend it’s a fourth-innings chase, race to 380 for 6 and skittle them under lights tomorrow evening. Golf on Monday.”
Don’t take this the wrong way, Max, BUT I AM NOT EFFING READY FOR EFFING GALLOWS EFFING HUMOUR IT’S DAY FIVE OF THE SERIES FFS.
116th over: Australia 508-9 (Boland 20, Doggett 12) Doggett, pushing forward defensively, edges Brook this far short of Brook at slip. And why not?
Doggett has reached double figures now, completing the set for this innings: his 12 not out is the lowest score by an Australian batter. I’d need to check to be sure, but I think the last time all 11 players reached double figures in an Ashes Test was England’s first innings at Sydney in December 1928.
Australia have never done it before in an Ashes Test. And the last time they did it against any opposition in a Test was the famous heist at Colombo in 1992.
115th over: Australia 504-9 (Boland 19, Doggett 9) Australia lead by 170.
114th over: Australia 502-9 (Boland 17, Doggett 9) Cheers Jim, hello everyone. Ben Doggett cuts Jacks for four to bring up the 500, a score that looked unlikely when Australia were 0 for 0 and most people thought England’s 334 was a competitive total. take this game into a fourth day!!! save this game.
James Wallace
113th over: Australia 496-9 (Boland 16, Doggett 4) Brydon Carse thunders in once more but its all pretty futile. The Gabbatroopers do the YMCA and drinks are taken on the field.
Rob Smyth is here to shepherd you to the end of this innings and then call some tasty stuff under lights. Thanks for your company, I’ll be back tomorrow morning, if England are.
Brydon Carse in the market for one of the all-time great five-fers here
— Will Macpherson (@willis_macp) December 6, 2025
112th over: Australia 495-9 (Boland 16, Doggett 3) Jacks beats Doggett with one that grips in the surface a little. Two further singles added. Australia’s lead is up to 161.
“That last wicket was such a bizarre dismissal” emails Martin Burley. “England managed to hold on to a catch?!”
111th over: Australia 491-9 (Boland 15, Doggett 2) Brendon Doggett is Australia’s last man, the pitch is now completely in shadow. Perfect conditions for a fast bowler to have a dart at England before the dinner break. Doggett clips off his hip for two runs and the lead swells to 159.
WICKET! Mitchell Starc c Stokes b Carse 77 (Australia 491-9)
Brydon’s dan sammink! Mitchell Starc is OUT! A lofted swat is well caught by Stokes at mid off despite Ben Duckett almost colliding with him. Leave it Ducky!
What an innings from Starc, he departs to a rapturous reception from the Gabba faithful, this is firmly his Ashes series at the moment.
110th over: Australia 491-8 (Starc 77, Boland 15) Starc takes a single off Jacks, Brydon Carse is going to replace Gus Atkinson.
109th over: Australia 490-8 (Starc 76, Boland 15) Starc crunches Atkinson for two fours to go to 75 and Australia’s lead past 150. A quick single off the final ball of the over sees Scarp scampering for his ground, Brydon Carse has a shy at the stumps but is is a wild throw (quelle suprise?) and it hits Starc in the lower back. After a short delay he is fine to continue but it looks like it is a sore elbow that is giving him a bit jip. Batter’s elbow Starcy?
108th over: Australia 480-8 (Starc 67, Boland 15) Just a single off Jacks as Australia march on. The shadows are almost onto the wicket now. Starc is hurting England with the bat but just wait til he gets the ball in his hand under lights.
107th over: Australia 479-8 (Starc 66, Boland 15) Starc clips a single off Atkinson to take Australia’s lead to 145.
“Forget about Bazball, I say to my son as we bond over an early morning Ashes viewing. Watching your team get ground slowly into the Australian dirt is what Christmas is all about. A cherished tradition passed down from one generation to the next. Comforting, really.”
World Class parenting, Jonathan Vincent!
106th over: Australia 478-8 (Starc 65, Boland 15) Jacks bowls a maiden. Sweet, sweet relief.
105th over: Australia 478-8 (Starc 65, Boland 15) Starc plays a blistering cover drive for four and then caresses Atkinson in front of square for a consecutive boundary. He has a Test 99 but never a century… could today be the day to get the monkey off his back?!
104th over: Australia 470-8 (Starc 57, Boland 15) Jacks tosses up a floaty half volley and Scott Boland crunches it for four. This partnership is now the second longest of the match after the one between Root and Crawley in England’s first innings.
Underneath my seat a man dressed as Queen Elizabeth II has his plastic mace confiscated. It feels quite symbolic.
103rd over: Australia 465-8 (Starc 56, Boland 11) Boland hacks an inside edge past his stumps and away for four! The shadows lengthen and the Gabbatroopers cheer.
102nd over: Australia 461-8 (Starc 56, Boland 7) Jacks whirls through a maiden.
“Waking up in the lovely medieval city of Perugia bathed in sunshine. What could possibly deflate the spirits?”
I fear for you here Colum Fordham.
“Oh, I could always check the OBO to see if England have kept the Aussie lead to a bare minimum. Ah, but Starc is having a field day with the bat ably assisted by that batting phenomenon Boland. I suppose I’ll have to look on the bright side. Pat Cummins should be fit for the third test and Australia might just have the upper hand. PS. Happy birthday to my wife Roberta. Could you give her a shout out? Not a big cricket fan tbh. Lucky her.”
Happy Birthday Roberta! May Mitchell Starc get a century and five-fer in your honour!
101st over: Australia 461-8 (Starc 56, Boland 7) A waggish friend texts to say “The longer Starc bats, the more tired he will be this evening…” Yes that is exactly the right straw to clutch. Atkinson oversteps with his front foot and serves up a half volley that Starc marmalises down the ground for four. “We’re entering sh***show” territory” the experienced cricket correspondent and Ashes tour veteran whispers next to me.
100th over: Australia 455-8 (Starc 51, Boland 7) Will Jacks starts after the interval to Starc and a spread field. A long stride from Starc smothers any spin before he opens the shoulders and slaps through the gap at midwicket to go to fifty! What a series he is having by the way, after 4 and a bit days.
“Morning Jim, here in dreary West Yorkshire I’m following this nonsense whilst finishing off some work. It is better than no cricket on… I think” writes Andrew Bennett.
“Question – do you think McCullum and Stokes reflect on the entirely sensible but also ruthless approach to batting from Boland and Starc and perhaps think they’ve gone about things the wrong way? Or do they genuinely ignore the “outside noise”?”
There will be some learnings to be taken Andrew, but after the match. They’ll also likely go down like a cup of cold sick.
England’s fielders gather on the Gabba boundary, Will Jacks bowls into a mitt and Gus Atkinson joins him. The shadows are starting to elongate across to the right of us here at the Vulture St end. The metaphorical vultures will be circling for England later this afternoon unless they can do something remarkable with the bat. More likely Mitchell Starc is going to pick over their carcass and have a ruddy good time doing so.
Mitchell Starc is currently averaging 58 with the bat and 11.75 with the ball in this Ashes series.
Joe Root is the only England batter to have faced more balls in this match than Mitchell Starc’s 95. Near-perfect first session for Australia with the prospect of a new pink ball in twilight later this afternoon
— Matt Roller (@mroller98) December 6, 2025
Tea/First Break – Australia 450-8 (Lead by 116 runs)
99th over: Australia 450-8 (Starc 50, Boland 7) Starc bunts Carse over the covers for three and that takes Australia to 450 and the lead at the lunch/tea/first break is 116 runs.
A bruising session for England, they will still have to come out after the interval to try and get the two final Australia wickets. It’s all going very much to plan for the home side, the lights will start to take effect about an hour into the second session.
Disappointing to know that England will never get another wicket ever again.
— Max Rushden 💛🖤 (@maxrushden) December 6, 2025
98th over: Australia 447-8 (Starc 47, Boland 7) Will Jacks rattles through an over of completely harmless off spin. Starc pats one to Ollie Pope at short leg who has a pointless shy at the stumps and gifts the big man a single and the chance to get down the other end for the next over. Whoops.
It’ll be nice for Starc to chalk up a half century with the bat, he needs to take a bit of a confidence boost into his bowling…
97th over: Australia 446-8 (Starc 42, Boland 7) “It’s pretty tough on Boland and Starc the way England are forcing them to hit boundaries in the baking sun.” The OBO as ever keeping us all sane. Brydon Carse bowls a maiden and Will Jacks is summoned!
96th over: Australia 446-8 (Starc 42, Boland 7) Boland guides a four down to the vacant third man and it’s another boundary to Australia in that region. There have been so many there that the wagon wheel is enough to make a grown man weep. Not me, obvs.
Boland flicks a single uppishly but short of a diving Duckett. Bosh! Starc drives Stokes through the covers for four. We are getting into wheels off territory here.
England have come undone.
95th over: Australia 437-8 (Starc 38, Boland 2) Carse continues with the short stuff with a short leg in place but no slips. It looks absolutely knackering. Starc gets width and flat bats a four up to the Gabbatroopers and they lose their collective. A drive down ground sees Australia’s lead stretch past 100 runs! This is punishing for England.
94th over: Australia 429-8 (Starc 30, Boland 2) Ben Stokes, glimmering with sweat and puce in the gills beats both Starc and Boland but there’s still no breakthrough for England. They’ve been out there for an hour and thirty-five minutes this morning.
