Ashes 2019: Australia gaining slender lead on Day 3
Australia lead by 34 runs as bad light calls for an early stumps on Day 3 of the First Ashes Test- 2019.
Ashes 2019: FIRST TEST, DAY THREE
ENGLAND: 374/10 IN 135.5 OVERS
Rory Burns: 133(312) | Joe Root: 57(119)
Pat Cummins: 3/84 | Nathan Lyon: 3/112
AUSTRALIA: 124/3 IN 31 OVERS
Steven Smith: 46*(61) | Ben Stokes: 1/18
MATCH SUMMARY
Ashes 2019, First Test, Day 3: Steven Smith remains not out on 46 as Australia lead by a measly 34 runs.
Earlier in the day, Australian bowlers had a mixed day as they let the tailenders off the hook, after picking up crucial early wickets.
All plans of England to bat Australia out of the game failed considerably. The 43rd delivery of the day had the Aussies watching the back of Ben Stokes. After a gritty knock of 50(96) Stokes couldn’t capitalize on the same. A loose shot from him brought back the Aussies from a visible slumber.
Post Stokes’ dismissal in the 98th over, the next 9 overs saw three wickets in quick succession. The Australian bowlers were bang on accurate as a lot of chances were created in a short span.
Nathan Lyon then picked up the overnight centurion, Rory Burns with an absolute ripper of a delivery. The 8-hour vigil from Burns ended with him receiving a standing ovation from the Edgbaston crowd.
Meanwhile, Moeen Ali continued his dreaded Ashes run as he lasted only 5 deliveries. Ali shouldered arms to a straighter one from Lyon, only to make up for a hilarious dismissal. 5 balls later, Jonny Bairstow threw his hands at a delivery which he should have left and was caught by David Warner.
ENGLISH TAIL FRUSTRATES AUSTRALIA; HELPS HOSTS TO GAIN A RESPECTIVE LEAD.
Australia looked on course to smoke England’s tail up and gain a psychological advantage going into bat. But, Broad and Woakes had different plans as they dodged and wriggled their way out.
Surprisingly, the Aussie bowlers didn’t bowl any sort of short stuff to the batting pair. Easy singles and a few odd boundaries later, the Australians did try to bounce out Stuart Broad. They succeeded in it very soon as Broad’s troubles against the short balls continued.
The Broad-Woakes pair put up 65 valuable runs together as the lead swelled. The last wicket partnership added 10 more runs to the total. Lyon dismissed Anderson as Woakes returned unbeaten on 37. The last two wicket partnerships contributed 74 runs and who knows, these runs might actually win the match for the hosts.
AUSTRALIAN TOP ORDER FAILS YET AGAIN.
David Warner and Cameron Bancroft failed to contribute anything of value as the Aussies were rocked early in their innings. Three overs into the innings and Warner nicked one to the keeper. However, both Broad and the umpire didn’t hear a thing, until the keeper and the slip cordon pushed Root to review it. DRS to the rescue as the faint edge was acknowledged and Warner righteously sent back.
Introducing Moeen Ali early paid rich dividends as he dismissed Cameron Bancroft in his 2nd over. Khawaja and Smith repaired the innings for a while. However, the pair were separated when the left-hander was caught behind of Stokes’ bowling. By then, Khawaja scored a fluent 40 of just 48 deliveries.
Steve Smith, Australia’s savior yet again paired up with Travis Head and ensured that there were no more casualties. Smith stroked a couple of boundaries before bad light forced an early stumps.
WHAT LIES AHEAD?
Steve Smith needs to score big again, for Australia to have any kind of chance to win the game.
For England, picking the wicket of Steve Smith is of the highest priority. Will Steve Smith ruin England’s chances, or will England strangle him and move towards a victory.
WATCH THIS SPACE FOR MORE ASHES CONTENT:
Ashes 2019, Day 2: Rory Burns puts England slightly ahead of Australia.
Lakshman is an 18-year-old cricket fanatic. Just like millions of fans, his love for cricket is unparalleled. He has a passion for writing, and his emotion for the sport can be seen in his words.
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