The Aussies confirmed both their hands on the Ashes urn with a terrific bowling performance that wrapped up their innings victory in the Boxing Day Test and secured them an unassailable 3-0 lead over England in the five-match Test series.
England’s miseries were summed up by a horrible morning session on December 28 when they were bundled out for just 68 runs in their second-innings – losing their last six wickets for 36 runs in the first session on Day 3 – to concede the match as well as the series.
Encouragingly having kept the opposition down to 267 after posting a very modest 185 on Day 1, Joe Root-led side would’ve hoped to overhaul the 82-run lead that Australian tail compiled. But as it happened, they were reduced to 32/4 by stumps on Day 2 and got skittled out for one of their lowest-ever Test match scores on Day 3.
For Australia, it was debutant Scott Boland who led the way with the ball on Day 3 as he ran through the English middle and lower-order in a memorable four-over spell of six wickets for seven runs. Having already bagged two wickets in his first over late on Day 2, Boland went on to add four more scalps to his kitty and made it an unforgettable maiden Test outing for him, his family and the passionate Australian fans.
In a sorry-looking scorecard, only Root made it past the 20-run mark for England (28). Even on his worst days, Root happens to maintain a gulf of class and ability so wide between him and the rest of the England batting unit that it would make you proud and despair in equal measure if you’re an English fan. Only one other batter – Ben Stokes (11) – made it into double figures as the Three Lions managed to bat only 27.4 overs in their second-innings.
The MCG Test, however, wasn’t expected to end this way. At least not at the halfway mark, when England did concede a lead, but it wasn’t expected to be sizeable enough to be out of their reach. The three lions were expected to post a minimum of 270-280 runs and put Australia’s vulnerable batting under pressure on the final day.
That didn’t happen. But Australia would do well to keep their issues in mind, as outside their much-vaunted top-order trio – David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith – their batting looks thinner than one would think a team 3-0 up would look in home conditions.
In this game, the moment Warner (38), Labuschagne (1) and Smith (16) failed to play a substantial hand, Australians were put under great pressure by England. Led by their ace quick James Anderson (4/33), England managed to reduce Australia to 180/6 at one stage.
Marcus Harris’s defiant fifty (76) and late-order revival through useful contributions from skipper Pat Cummins (21) and Mitchell Starc (24) helped Australia inch ahead. But the hosts will know things could easily have been worse.
Cummins (2/54) and Starc (3/36) were magnificent with the ball on the opening day of the Test match when Australia won the toss and opted to bowl. On a spicy MCG track offering the pacers spongy bounce and seam movement, the pace duo ran through the England line-up for just 185. Off-spinner Nathan Lyon also chipped in with a three-fer (3/36).
In that innings, once again, only Root could last a distance at the crease for England. The captain and great batter scored a fighting half-century (50) after his team was reduced to 13/2 against Cummins and Starc with the new Kookaburra ball. 35 from Jonny Bairstow was the second-highest score by an English batter.
Brief scores
England 185/10 (Root 50; Starc 3/36, Lyon 3/36) & 68/10 (Root 28; Boland 6/7, Starc 3/29) lost to Australia 267/10 (Harris 76, Warner 38; Anderson 4/33) by an innings & 14 runs
