Ashes, 3rd Test: Australia skittle out England for 185 on Day 1

Melbourne: Australia showed their dominance with both bat and ball and were in a commanding position against England at the end of the opening day of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, here on Sunday. Marcus Harris (20 off 51) and Nathan Lyon (0 off 5) were unbeaten at the crease as […]

Melbourne: Australia showed their dominance with both bat and ball and were in a commanding position against England at the end of the opening day of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, here on Sunday.

Marcus Harris (20 off 51) and Nathan Lyon (0 off 5) were unbeaten at the crease as Australia finished Day 1 of the third Test at 61/1, trailing by 124 runs. After bowling out England for 185 in their first innings, Australia began confidently and were cruising for the most part.

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With the pitch easing out, opener David Warner and Harris negotiated the initial overs expertly. The 35-year old Warner, in particular, was the aggressor of the two and hit some cracking boundaries as the pair soon brought up their fifty partnership.

England finally got a breakthrough when James Anderson got Warner for 38 in the penultimate over before stumps. Warner looked to dab a good-length ball towards third man but got an outside edge to gully, where Crawley took a good diving catch in the front.

However, Harris and nightwatchman Nathan Lyon ensured no further damage was done, returning unbeaten to the pavilion. Earlier, Australia opted to bowl after a 30 minutes delayed start due to a slight drizzle. Returning skipper Pat Cummins started strong, bowling testing lengths and lines to trouble England’s openers. He drew first blood in his opening over when Haseeb Hameed poked at a fuller delivery that shaped away a tad bit, falling for a 10-ball duck. The skipper then dismissed Zak Crawley (12) in his fourth over, leaving England teetering at 13/2 early in the third Test.

However, England’s fight-back was led by skipper Root, who along with Malan added 48 runs for the third wicket. The pair complemented each other well enough to keep Australia at bay for most parts until a lapse in the final minutes of the first session. Cummins was rewarded for his spectacularly consistent bowling as Malan (14) nicked in the last over of the morning session.

Brief scores: England 1st innings 185 in 65.1 overs (Joe Root 50; Pat Cummins 3/36, Nathan Lyon 3/36) vs Australia 1st innings 61/1 in 16 overs.

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