Joe Root (left) and Harry Brook placed on an unbroken 150 stand for England in Sydney. Photograph: AFP
SYDNEY:
Joe Root and Harry Brook tamed Australia’s all-pace assault with an unbroken 154-run stand on Sunday to rescue England and provides them the higher hand after a rain-hit day one of many fifth and remaining Ashes Take a look at.
Batting after skipper Ben Stokes gained the toss at a sold-out Sydney Cricket Floor, they steered the vacationers to 211-3 when unhealthy gentle pressured the gamers from the sector simply earlier than tea.
Subsequent rain and the danger of lightning made no additional play doable, with stumps referred to as an hour early.
Root was not out 72 and Brook on 78 after coming along with England tottering at 57-3 following the wickets of Ben Duckett (27), Zak Crawley (16) and Jacob Bethell (10) earlier than lunch.
The world’s high two-ranked batsmen set about counter-attacking on an honest batting pitch offering little motion for the bowlers.
Each introduced up hard-fought half-centuries and, with darkish storm clouds looming, stored the scoreboard ticking over at a quick clip.
“We’re in superb place, clearly three down on the finish of the top of play,” stated Brook.
“Hopefully we will profit from that going into tomorrow.
“It was good pitch,” he added.
“After I first went in it felt just like the bounce was pretty steep. However then it it began to get somewhat bit decrease and slower and simply usually looks like a very good wicket.”
England got here into the sport buoyed by a four-wicket win inside two days within the earlier Take a look at in Melbourne, determined to maintain the momentum going.
That victory snapped a 15-year winless streak in Australia however got here too late to avoid wasting the sequence, with the hosts retaining the urn by profitable in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide.
Australia sprang a shock by together with all-rounder Beau Webster instead of fast Jhye Richardson, with off-spinner Todd Murphy neglected.
‘Hate doing it’
It’s the first time in virtually 140 years that the hosts haven’t performed a front-line spinner throughout a Sydney Take a look at.
“Hate doing it,” stated Australia skipper Steve Smith.
“But when we hold producing wickets that we do not assume are going to spin and seam goes to play a giant half and cracks are going to play a giant half, you form of get pushed right into a nook.”
England introduced in seamer Matthew Potts for the injured Gus Atkinson of their solely change, with their frontline gradual bowler Shoaib Bashir lacking out for a fifth straight Take a look at.
The day started with a tribute to first responders on the Bondi mass taking pictures final month that killed 15 folks, with big cheers when hero Ahmed Al Ahmed, who tackled one of many gunmen, appeared.
Duckett was vigorous when play began, crunching 5 boundaries from Mitchell Starc in a quickfire 27 off 24 balls.
However England’s tormentor-in-chief Mitchell Starc had the final snigger, attractive an out of doors edge from an angled ball to wicketkeeper Alex Carey at full stretch.
It was the fifth time Starc has bagged Duckett this sequence.
Crawley was subsequent to go, trapped lbw by Michael Neser, with each openers again within the sheds by the primary drinks break and the vacationers in hassle on 51-2.
A cautious Bethell took 15 balls to get off the mark and by no means seemed assured.
He departed after prodding at a shifting supply from Scott Boland that took a faint edge to Carey as England fell to 57-3.
Root joined Brook on the crease they usually started to rebuild.
They rotated the strike effectively and punished any free balls with Root citing his 67th half-century, and the 100-partnership, with a single off Webster.
Solely Indian nice Sachin Tendulkar, with 68, has scored extra Take a look at fifties.
Brook was lucky to outlive on 45 when he slogged Starc and the ball dropped between three chasing fielders.
However he stored his composure to succeed in a fifteenth half-century 4 balls after Root, cracking Webster by way of the covers for a boundary.
