On Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test match at the MCG, England were knocked over for 185 in 65.1 overs. Now, following big defeats the first two Test matches, they are on the verge of losing the Ashes again.
Australia would have retained the Ashes if they even drew this Test match. And now, they are in a position to go 3-0 up in the five-match series. After bundling out England for a paltry total, they reached 61/1 at stumps, trailing by only 124.
After winning the toss and opting to field, Pat Cummins sent England to the back foot in the opening session. He snared England’s top three – Haseeb Hameed, Zak Crawley (12) and Dawid Malan (14) – to leave England reeling at 61/3. Joe Root (50) and Ben Stokes (25) held the fort for some time before the former fell edged one off Mitchell Starc.
England, 82/3 before Root’s departure, lost their last seven wickets for 103. Jonny Bairstow (35) and Ollie Robinson (22) put some resistance, but that was not enough to take England past 200.
With that, for the 12th time in the calendar year, England were bowled out for below 200.
All five Australian bowlers claimed at least one wicket. Cummins and Nathan Lyon took three each, debutant Scott Boland had 1-48, Starc 2-54 and Cam Green 1-7.
Coming to bat, David Warner batted aggressively, scoring 38 in 42 balls before falling to James Anderson. Marcus Harris (20*) and Nathan Lyon batted out the final 11 balls to ensure no further damage.
Brief scores: England 185 (Joe Root 50; Pat Cummins 3-36) lead Australia 61/1 (David Warner 38; James Anderson 1-14) by 124 runs.