England fell further behind in the ongoing Adelaide Test on Day 3, as they stare a massive defeat once again. After Australia declared at 473/9 in their first innings towards the end of the second day, England lost two wickets in quick succession and headed into the third day lagging behind.
Joe Root and Dawid Malan had the tough job of steadying a sinking ship, but they managed to keep it afloat for a while with a stunning partnership. The duo played well in attack and managed to see through the first session without losing a wicket, as both batters completed their half-centuries.
Their stay in the middle produced some eye-popping cricket, just the way it did in the last Test at Gabba. However, the outcome was a bit too similar for England’s liking. Cameron Green provided the first breakthrough of the afternoon, dismissing Root courtesy of a fantastic catch at first slip from Steve Smith.
This wicket came just before the drinks break, and on the side of it, Malan fell similarly. Mitchell Starc found his outside edge, and it was the Aussie stand-in skipper once again doing the catching duties, this time even more brilliantly. Ollie Pope stayed for a short period and fell to Nathan Lyon, and the off-spinner continued his dominance.
He then dismissed Chris Woakes and Ollie Robinson in quick succession, leaving the visiting unit further in tatters. Ben Stokes remained at the crease for nearly three hours for his 34 runs but lost his composure in a bid to accelerate the scoring, thus falling prey to Green, who got his second big wicket of the night.
Starc completed the final formalities of the innings by dismissing Stuart Broad, as England only managed 236 runs in 84.1 overs. They fell 237 runs short of Australia’s first innings total, with Starc picking four wickets and Lyon returning with three. The hosts did not enforce the follow-on and came out to bat again.
A mix-up between David Warner and Marcus Harris resulted in the fall of the former, which was the only disappointing aspect of an otherwise brilliant day for the hosts. Before backing out of it a bit too late, Warner called for a run and ran himself out. Australia finished the day at 45/1, with Harris and night-watch Neser in the middle. They currently lead by 282 runs.
Brief scores
Australia 1st innings: 473/9 declared in 150.4 overs (Labuschagne 103, Warner 85, Smith 93; Stokes 3/113)
England 1st innings: 236 all out in 84.1 overs (Malan 80, Root 62; Starc 4/37, Lyon 3/58)
Australia 2nd innings: 45/1 in 17 overs
