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England’s Ashes hopes were fading after another batsman surrendered on the second day adelaide,
Trailing 2-0 after already trailing Perth And brisbaneThe tourists were found wanting for the third Test in a row as they surrendered in almost ideal batting conditions.
The pitch was favourable, the outfield was fast and the sun was over 40 degrees – the kind of conditions bowling teams have nightmares about.
but he was England Which faltered in reply to Australia’s 371 runs and was reduced to 213 runs for eight wickets.
As he did in the defeat at the Gabba, the captain ben stokes They tried to generate some defiance as he smashed their way through with an unbeaten 45 off 151 balls, but their deep defensive gap could only do so much.
He was clearly in discomfort during the final session, straining, cramping and occasionally staggering while running, and there must have been fear about the damage he would do if required to bowl in the second innings.
For the second day in a row there was confusion over the reliability of the Snickometer technology, with Jamie Smith involved in two controversial decisions which caused confusion on both sides. He survived one and was destroyed by the other, eroding confidence in the system and leading to growing calls to take it out of the DRS process in its current form.
But to focus on that would be to distract from England’s weak-willed performance and Australia’s excellent bowling, which relied heavily on returning captain Pat Cummins and recalled spinner Nathan Lyon.
Cummins, fit again after back problems, bowled with relentless accuracy and high skill in his first competitive appearance since July, taking three for 54.
Meanwhile, Lyon bounced back from his loss in Brisbane to surpass Glenn McGrath’s tally of 562 Test wickets to become Australia’s second-highest wicket-taker and sixth on the all-time list.
There were early signs that it would not be England’s day when another weak bowling performance saw them concede a quickfire 45 for the last two wickets.
Jofra Archer dismissed both of them, taking five wickets for 53 runs, his best performance since his first summer in 2019. After a lackluster tour, there was a real chance to score some big runs on the friendliest ground in the country, but the opportunity went waste.
The entire top three at 10-mark came and went, with Jack Crawley, Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett gone in the space of 15 balls before lunch. Crawley fell behind to defend Cummins, and Duckett was bowled by Lyon’s classic off-break, but Pope’s limping strike at midwicket was a disappointing stroke.
He looked timid during his 10-ball stay and his average against Australia has now dropped to 17.66, so his time at number three has certainly increased.
England managed to avoid another major blow when Joe Root was spared one run after Scott Boland’s ball took the inside edge. With uncertainty over Alex Carey’s take – the man who was wrongly relieved by a snicko mistake on the first day – TV umpire Chris Gaffney must have been feeling the heat.
After taking a close look several times from multiple angles, he gave a strong verdict in favor of Root. This had the potential to be a crucial moment in the match, but England’s record run-scorer could not make it count, with Cummins dismissing Carey for 19 in the third over after lunch.
Stokes spent the rest of the session at one end, beginning his long vigil, and Harry Brook showed a more disciplined approach as he did most of the scoring in a 52-run partnership.
He reached 45, including a remarkable blow of a six over cover point, but it failed as tea approached. This time it was all-rounder Cameron Green who made the breakthrough by snatching one down the seam and flicking the outside edge.
Smith’s stay was eventful, his two brushes with the snickometer caused now-universal confusion over its use, but not influence.
The tough-faced Stokes supplied a steady supply of forward defense to give his bowlers a night off, with Boland rewarding Will Jacques and Brydon Carse. Archer played a strong innings of 30 and offered late support to Stokes, but Australia’s lead of 158 retained an ominous feel.