Key events
WICKET! Jacks c Labuschagne b Starc 47 (England 337-8)
A screamer from Labuschagne at first slip! Australia strike and Jacks is gone. Good grief, that catch is the equal of the ripper Marnus took in the first innings. A fast ball from Starc and Jacks chased it, looking to guide it past the cordon. Instead he got a thick edge that flew between Carey and his first slipper and a lunging left hand plucked it from the air. Massive moment!
97th over: England 333-7 (Carse 25, Jacks 47) Thanks James! With that runaway boundary, England are bnow within 98 runs of victory. That feat seemed remote when they started the day needing 228 with just four wickets in hand. But they are now past the halfway mark and the pressure is on Australia. Nathan Lyon is off the field, gone for the Test and perhaps the series. Mitchell Starc’s brain has been muddled by two warnings for trespassing on the protected zone of the pitch. Here comes Starc now. Can he produce some of the magic that swung the Perth and Brisbane Tests the home side’s way?
James Wallace
96th over: England 333-7 (Carse 25, Jacks 47) Brydon Carse swipes Head for six! Huge stroke from the big man. Three singles follow and the target is now 102 runs away. Scott Boland is coming on to replace Cummins and my work is done. I’m off to look up wines to pair with a four year old Dell laptop… Angus Fontaine will take you through to the close. Thanks for your company, goodbye!
95th over: England 324-7 (Carse 17, Jacks 46) Cummins is targeting the stumps but then surprises Carse with a short ball that slams into his midriff, the ball squirts away and England take three.
94th over: England 321-7 (Carse 17, Jacks 46) Head continues and four singles are taken with a minimum of fuss. Each one cheered to the rafters by the England fans in Adelaide.
“Watching from Geneva with my newborn daughter on my lap as mum gets some sleep” writes John Butler.
My aussie mate has gone quiet which is not helping me keep awake but may reflect Aussie nerves. As Leeds United won today, I decided to stay up in case of the miracle because it’s this or bust. No idea why we play dead rubbers. I wonder if we did do it, if we put Brook to 3, bump Jacks up and then add Bethell in lower? Anyway, idle thoughts to pass the minutes.”
What does the little one think? Two gurgles for Bethell at the MCG?
93rd over: England 317-7 (Carse 15, Jacks 44) Cummins nearly pins Jacks lbw but a thick inside edge squirts the ball into the leg side and they scamper a single. Carse is then given out lbw but this looks all wrong… he reviews immediately, he hasn’t hit it but it is missing leg stump by some distance! Drama but Carse survives in the end.
“I’ve woken up on the couch, bleary eyed and not entirely sober. This cricket has thrown off my sleep cycle, nothing to do with the daytime drinking… I hadn’t given up hope so much as forgotten about it, but maybe. Carse can bat. Archer can definitely bat.
They seem to do better when I’m not paying attention. Maybe I’ll take one for the team. Or watch a new record!”
You’re drunk Glenn Walton!
92nd over: England 316-7 (Carse 15, Jacks 43) Jacks and Carse rotate strike to pocket three runs off the over. Head bowling suggests Australia are in no hurry, they will likely rotate their seamers. The field is spread and there are plenty of singles on offer, can the England batters resist taking on the big shot?
91st over: England 312-7 (Carse 14, Jacks 41) Cummins starts after lunch, Jacks is watchful and clips for two off his pads. A stabbed single brings Carse on strike for one delivery. He survives a short ball. Travis Head is going to come on, he’s underrated with the ball but these are the injured Nathan Lyon’s overs.
Righto, here come the players for the afternoon session. If we’re still here at the next interval then someone’s dan sammink!
In case you missed it earlier – Nathan Lyon is out of the match with a hamstring injury. He must be a doubt for the rest of the series too with Melbourne just five days away.
“Very nervy session coming up for your laptop James” carps Patrick Wills. “What’s the live blogging contingency plan if the target drops below 100?”
Well I’ll be off shift shortly after the resumption, should England get the 26 runs to take the target to 100 runs you absolutely have my word that I’ll chow down on my Dell. 100 per cent. No questions asked. There are no weak men on the OBO. No glass promises.
England make it to lunch to keep slim hopes alive
90th over: England 309-7 (Carse 13, Jacks 38) Scott Boland with the last over before lunch. Jacks re-engages his noodle and blocks out the over. That’s the session. England have scored 102 runs but have lost the big wicket of Jamie Smith.
LUNCH: Australia need three more wickets and England need 126 runs. I know where my money is. Nevertheless, an absorbing session of Test cricket, when England knuckle down and apply their undoubted skill to the match situation they can challenge this Australian side even in their own conditions. The huge frustration from their perspective is that they have done it so little and now it is more than likely too late.
89th over: England 309-7 (Carse 13, Jacks 38) Cummins replaces Starc. He hoops one back into Jacks and it raps the Surrey man on the thigh pad. Five minutes til lunch, how England must be wishing they hadn’t lost Jamie Smith. Ohemgeeeee! Jacks walks over to the off side and tries to flick PAT CUMMINS through the leg side with a premeditated swish. What is with these guys!?
88th over: England 308-7 (Carse 13, Jacks 37) Boland beats Carse with his first ball! A tentative poke from Carse who looks much more comfortable against the pace of Starc over the nibble of Boland. The rest of the over is defended well by Carse who gets his foot out to the pitch. A maiden stitched together by Boland.
87th over: England 308-7 (Carse 13, Jacks 37) Carse punches off the back foot for a delightful four through the off side. Here comes Scott Boland for a burst before lunch. He cleaned up Carse in the first innings. Just saying.
86th over: England 303-7 (Carse 8, Jacks 37) Nathan Lyon has left the ground on the way for a scan. We’ll bring you any official news when we get it. Jacks is beaten by Cummins and then top edges a pull for four runs to bring up England’s 300.
“I would love nothing more than for England to get through this ordeal without looking completely ridiculous” writes William Lane.
“But let’s be honest with Lyon off, do you think if Starc, Cummins, Boland and Green all stumbled off with injuries, that England would be able to draw or even win the test match? Something has changed this series with the Bazball team. I reckon a year or so ago we would have chased this down, but Marnus could probably see the rest off without a fuss at this point.”
Marnus would love that eh? I think you are right to an extent, Bill. There was a confidence and an almost inevitability in those early chases, the first 12 months of the Stokes and McCullum tenure saw some amazing run chases. I guess once you fail then the familiar doubts start to seep in, the failures that follow then start to stack up and eat away at that initial invincibility and we eventually get to where England are in this series. An almost total loss of faith and confidence in their skills.
85th over: England 297-7 (Carse 7, Jacks 32) Starc thinks he has Carse lbw but it is just heading over the stumps and Australia lose a review. Carse drives the next ball for four through the covers. Two more are added in the same area, good balance from Carse, he can definitely bat. Knuckle down son.
84th over: England 289-7 (Carse 1, Jacks 32) Cummins gets Carse to flap at a short ball and the ball pops up but somehow lands safe. The game is prised open after Smith’s departure, feels like another wicket is coming any moment.
83rd over: England 285-7 (Carse 0, Jacks 29) Brydon Carse is the new man and he’s beaten all ends up first ball by Starc. Australia sense this is their time to pounce. They need 3 more wickets to win the Ashes, England need 149 runs.
WICKET! Jamie Smith c Cummins b Starc 60 (Australia 285-7)
Oh Jamie Smith. That sort of sums up England’s series, just as they were getting to a moment when they could assert some pressure onto Australia they throw it away. Smith hits Starc for consecutive boundaries off the over and then gets carried away and plays an ugly hoik off a back of a length ball to hole out to Pat Cummins. He’d got two boundaries off the over and then came the massive brain fade to release the pressure before it could really start to tell.
82nd over: England 276-6 (Smith 52, Jacks 28) Pat Cummins with the new ball. If England can see off this spell from these two then there might be a flutter or two of nerves from the Aussies. BIG IF.
Smith unfurls a perfect cover drive off Cummins to collect four. He then goes to his first fifty of the series with an audacious drive over the top for four more. He’s driven Pat Cummins on the up, with the new ball, back over his head for a rattling boundary. That’s his first fifty of the tour, good on him, he’s showing some ‘ticker’ as they say.
*Googles the best way to cook a laptop… flambée is it?
81st over: England 268-6 (Smith 44, Jacks 28) Starc soars in like the pedigree fast bowler he is, Smith meets his full deliveries with a straight and true blade. Two slips and a gully in place and a sweeper out on each side – Smith drives handsomely to the one on the off. Starc is grabbing at his side a little, he might be trying to get loose or he might have a bit of a twinge. One to keep an eye on. Beaten! Starc cuts Will Jacks in two with one that comes back sharply, the batter spliced like Debbie McGee at the hand of Paul Daniels in his pomp. Me either, I thought I’d be in bed by now to be honest.
80th over: England 267-6 (Smith 43, Jacks 28) Jamie Smith makes the most of the old ball and the offerings from Travis Head, driving through cover for four and then dancing down to larrup another boundary down the ground. Here comes the new ball and Mitchell Starc. Gulp.
79th over: England 257-6 (Smith 34, Jacks 27) Marnus Labuschagne on for a twirl. Plenty of chatter but a short and wide ball is clubbed to the fence by Smith. One more over til the new ball is due. Stand by your beds.
77th over: England 250-6 (Smith 29, Jacks 25) Lyon’s injury is awful for him personally if it is a muscle tear but it isn’t awful news for Australia in this game (just yet) with the new ball due in a couple of overs. Travis Head comes into the attack and finds some purchase straight away, Jacks flings a single into the leg side.
Nathan Lyon limps off field after injury
77th over: England 246-6 (Smith 27, Jacks 23) Green goes to a short ball ploy but Smith can’t be tempted into the pull. Clever boy.
Smith does paddle a pull and Nathan Lyon pulls off a diving stop on the boundary. Lyon is injured here, it looks like he has pulled his hamstring. He signals to the physio straight away and limps off the field. That does not look good for Lyon.
76th over: England 246-6 (Smith 27, Jacks 23) Lunch has been delayed til 12:30pm local time, an hour from now. Jacks pushes a single to point and it brings up the 50 partnership for Jacks and Smith. You stop it.
Play resumes after rain delay
75th over: England 241-6 (Smith 25, Jacks 21) Lyon completes his over and Cam Green is going to continue with the new ball 6 overs away.
Mark Beadle is not so much clutching at straws but rather twirling a bale around his bonce like a gladioli wielding Morrissey.
“How do rain breaks affect the new ball? If it’s a bit damp I’d assume it softens up quicker?” Whatever you need to believe Mark. You do you big fella.
Here come the players and the sun is now shining. Day five, take two. Let’s play.
LACK OF PLAY ANECDOTE ALERT:
In the pub last night after our Christmas Friday football five-a-side there was much kicking over the corpse of BazBall. It was quite late when one of our party let out a sigh and said “I don’t think England have actually been that bad”.
To which there was a long pause and then I eventually took the bait after realising this was not a macabre joke.
“No, you’re right, they haven’t been that bad… most of them have batted awfully, bowled terribly and caught abysmally… apart from that they’ve been fantastic. Your round I think?”
The covers are coming off in Adelaide. Here was me thinking i’d fire up Die Hard and hit the Eggnog.
“I hope I’m wrong” Writes an impossibly pessimistic Kev McMahon… “I really want to be, but for an Australian fan this is a dangerous situation. We tend to waltz into days like this, assuming that 4 wickets will tumble quickly and all’s right with the world. But the longer the resistance lasts, the more frustrated the Australian team gets and they don’t play well when they’re grumpy. You might want to look into appropriate side dishes for your laptop, James!”
You are right Kev, I’ll wash it down with my Christmas tree complete with all the ‘trimmings’…
Rain stops play – England 241-6 (need 194 runs, Australia need four wickets)
Huge cheers from the England fans as the players are ushered off with the rain falling a bit more heavily. The impending moisture and overall gloom didn’t stop Jamie Smith from attempting two agricultural swipes off Nathan Lyon, mind.
In all seriousness (ahem) England might have preferred to stay our there for a bit, there won’t be enough rain to save them today and it is always tricky to start again after a break.
73rd over: England 241-6 (Smith 25, Jacks 21) Jason Gillespie says this England pair are giving themselves a chance… CAN YOU PACK IT IN DIZZY PLEASE!? There is some rain falling in Adelaide though and the Barmy Army are chanting “off! off! off!” The umpires come together for a chat at the end of the over but they are carrying on for now. “Boooooooo!” chant the Barmies. It’s a bit of fun.
72nd over: England 240-6 (Smith 24, Jacks 21) A maiden from Lyon. Eight overs to the new ball, Cummins, Starc and Boland waiting in the wings, just in case you England fans were starting to get ahead of yourselves after 30 minutes without a wicket.
71st over: England 240-6 (Smith 24, Jacks 21) Smith slaps Green over the leg side for SIX more. He’s looking more confident now, as the old adage goes – when he hits it, it stays hit. England’s need 195 more. Australia four wickets.
70th over: England 232-6 (Smith 17, Jacks 20) Lyon rattles through a probing over and it’s a maiden.
69th over: England 232-6 (Smith 17, Jacks 20) Jacks doesn’t look comfortable out there, he misses a drive outside off stump to Green and then pulls out of an attempted pull and the ball loops up and lands safe behind square leg. Good lordy lord.
68th over: England 225-6 (Smith 17, Jacks 13) Jamie Smith pokes about and then decides enough is enough and swipes Lyon with the spin into the empty-ish stands for SIX. That’s more of the Smith Surrey fans know and love. A relatively safe shot unlike his attempted pull off Green in the last over. England are over halfway to the total and the Barmy Army dust off some Bon Jovi.
67th over: England 218-6 (Smith 13, Jacks 11) Will Jacks goes back to Green and turns his ankle in a deep foothole in the crease. He looks in trouble for a few seconds but then seems to recover ok. One to keep an eye on, could’ve been nasty. Urgh! Smith top edges Smith on the pull and nearly plinks a catch to the fielder in the deep, that would not have been a good way to go.
66th over: England 214-6 (Smith 9, Jacks 11) Smith pushes a single off Lyon. It’s the only run off the over. Oohs and ahhs from the Aussie fielders, I wouldn’t say Marnus is quiet exactly.
65th over: England 213-6 (Smith 8, Jacks 11) Smith drives Cameron Green for three more but it was uppish and not too far away from the bowler’s gargantuan wing span in his follow through. Jacks then nearly nicks off with a loosey goosey drive. Gah. To channel Ray Winstone in The Departed – I’m here to tell you there are ways to get out and ways to not get out, getting out caught and bowled to a loose drive is not a way to get out.
(To be read in a weird Mockney/Boston accent)
“Hi James, is it cowardly to pray for the end of the world?”
Be careful what you wish for John Leavey… most England fans would take a nine hour rain storm in South Australia though.
On the TNT coverage Ebony Rainford-Brent and Alastair Cook are discussing England’s required run rate for the day, which feels a little optimistic.
64th over: England 210-6 (Smith 5, Jacks 11) Jamie Smith uses his feet to Lyon’s second ball and collects three runs to get England going for the day. Good intent from Smith, he’s playing for an awful lot today. He’s been incredibly meek on this tour so far, he’s a quiet lad but his batting is usually extremely confident. We haven’t seen anything from him at all and questions are being asked of his place in the side. He’s not the only one of course. Jacks blocks out the rest of the over. Australia have 16 overs until the new ball, they may not need it.
It is murky in Adelaide but the players are coming out onto the field and we’ll start on time. Jamie Smith and Will Jacks head to the middle, Nathan Lyon is going to start with the ball. Once more unto the breach … let’s play!
“Quite apart from his admirable stint with the willow, shout-out to Zac Crawley for his excellent post-match interview yesterday.” Writes Sarah Benton. “Even this Aussie-in-Ingerland can see him doing well on the after-dinner circuit in the future.”
“Until the last man is out, there is still hope for England.” Writes Andrew Benton. “And what next? Maybe England will win the next two and it’ll be a respectable 3:2 scoreline. Maybe heads will roll on Monday. But it’s all over far too soon.”
Would a 3-2 scoreline be more frustrating for England fans? If they suddenly start playing like we know they can when the pressure is off and the series is gone it’ll make what we’ve seen so far even more galling I reckon.
Geoff Lemon penned an ode to the magnificent Pat Cummins:
“England supporters will spend four years until their team’s next visit pondering explanations for this poor showing, inevitably including much examination of the lack of chances for their bowlers to adjust to Australian conditions. Cummins spent five months in the gym and the nets without once seeing the middle of a ground, latterly powering through what might have been a few months of rehab in the space of a few weeks, then hit the pitch for a Test match like he had never been away.”
“We’re staring down the barrel, so it’s disappointing. But we’ll never give up.”
Zak Crawley spoke honestly last evening:
“At which point, enter Brook, who is deep in it, an entire Test career played out around this regime, and who appears to be still fighting the second world war from inside a small copse. Brook and Crawley were putting pressure on the bowlers simply by surviving. The end of the day had begun to loom. This was England’s best batting of the series. At which point Brook did the thing.”
Barney Ronay lamented the latest brain fade from Harry Brook:
“There was a time when England players threw around phrases like “the more runs, the better” such was their confidence in the chase. But tasked with knocking off a world record 435 runs to stop Australia winning this Ashes series at the earliest opportunity, one suspects it was not said on Saturday.
Instead, having picked up six cheap wickets first thing to set up an unlikely five-session challenge, it was about seeing where they could get to by stumps on day four. The upshot was 207 for six from 63 overs which, while progress of sorts on this malfunctioning tour, means Australia will go into the final day of the third Test on the verge of an unassailable 3-0 lead.”
Catch up with Ali Martin’s report from yesterday:
Preamble
James Wallace
And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make result you get is equal to the way you perform on the pitch when it really matters. In the eye of the storm and in the heat of the pressure, against well drilled and ruthless opponents who don’t give you an inch. In the end, it took just 11 days.
Australia will win the Ashes today in Adelaide. It might take a few minutes, it might take a few hours, but it will happen. They’ve been magnificent, England have been a lot of things but mainly thunderingly, shatteringly, crushingly disappointing.
There has been rain around in Adelaide but the covers are off and the players are out in the middle going through their motions. England will resume on 207-6 and require a notional 228 more runs from the four wickets they have left to keep their Ashes hopes alive. That ain’t happening folks. With respect and apologies to Will Jacks, Jamie Smith and the rest of the lower order, I’ll swallow this laptop whole if they get within 100 runs of the 435 target.
Plenty to get stuck in to, do drop me a line if you are tuning in to these last rites. Play begins in just under 30 minutes. The End is nigh, the urn is Australia’s (almost).
