England Hit the Self-Destruct Button Again

Are there many good golf courses in Perth? If so, they may be about to receive some additional business, as the first Test of this Ashes series will be over by this time tomorrow.

After cantering to 59 – 1 in the morning session, England have lost their final nine wickets in the afternoon session and been bowled out for 164, setting Australia a target of 205 for victory.

The dismissal of Duckett (28) at 65 – 2 sparked another woeful England collapse of 4 – 11, with the left-hander edging the improved Scott Boland to Steve Smith at slip.

Ollie Pope (33) and Harry Brook (0) were in the festive spirit, gift wrapping their wickets to Boland by edging attempted cuts and drives respectively, before Joe Root (8) dragged a Mitchell Starc delivery onto his stumps.

The carnage continued with Starc becoming the first Australian to claim an Ashes 10 wicket haul since the late Shane Warne in 2005, as Smith claimed another edge at slip.

England’s hopes of a recovery were further dashed by a controversial decision from the third umpire to give Jamie Smith (15) out caught behind down the leg side off Brendan Doggett.

Despite the spike appearing well after the ball had passed the bat on its way through to Carey, on-field umpire Nitin Menon’s decision of not out was over-ruled to the indignation of the travelling Barmy Army.

An aggressive partnership of 50 between Gus Atkinson (37) and Brydon Carse (20) propelled England’s lead up past 200, only for both to fall in quick succession either side of Jofra Archer, as they were bundled out for 164.

Following on from an outstanding performance with the bat, England’s batting left a lot to be desired and if they fall short, they will surely be rueing a missed opportunity given the position they found themselves in at lunch.

However, Australian’s decision to use the bumper barrage against Atkinson and Carse allowed England to find the boundary rope more easily and post a potentially challenging score, especially given the fragility of their batting line and doubts over the fitness of Usman Khawaja.

To follow the reminder of the Test and find out which side will gain first blood heading to Hobart for the pink-ball Test, follow the link to our ball-by-ball coverage of the match: https://www.youtube.com/live/E2kEcj4O0LY?si=KAuJ_sPXcxwY6CKi