It was a classic end to a Test match, as the game went Australia’s way. Australia deserved the win as they bowled and batted beautifully and took a big lead of 278 runs after the first innings. England was under the pump after a miserable first innings total. The Australian pacers were ready to roll and picked two quick wickets. It was a tricky situation for England when the captain arrived in the middle. He joined Malan, who was batting pretty well. Both of them then saved England’s innings as England looked solid at 220/2 and trailed by just 58 runs at the end of Day 3.
But unfortunately, on Day 4, the tables turned, and the Australian bowlers got into the groove. It was Lyon, who picked up Malan and finally reached the golden landmark of 400 wickets. The English skipper then followed him after nudging a ball outside off from Chris Green. After this, the English batting line-up crumbled like a house of cards, as they managed to set a target of just 20 runs for the home side. Carey, who was forced to open the innings due to Warner’s absence got out early, but the target was successfully chased by the other two batters, Harris and Labuschagne, in 5.1 overs.
Root and Malan’s vital partnership goes in vain
England did manage to give it a battle in this first Ashes Test, thanks to a great display of batting by two of the most technically balanced batters in the England squad. Root and Malan’s partnership of 162 off 316 balls was the reason for their brilliant fight back against their first-innings deficit of 278 runs, as they managed to clear the bulk of the deficit. But this went in vain as they couldn’t hold on to the ropes on the morning of Day 4. The England captain, Root, played marvelously for his 89 and did prove that he is currently the best in this format. After a duck in the first innings, Root managed to keep his cool and tackled the Australian seamers pretty comfortably. Root scored runs at a strike rate of 53.93 and was on course for another century, but he ended up fetching a ball from outside of off stump and knicked behind.
Malan came in early as Burns again got out cheaply. Malan built a small partnership first with Hameed and then held his guard, and along with his captain, played beautifully until the end of a sunny Day Three of a Test match on a pitch that looked great for batting. During Day 4 of the Test, Malan played skillfully for his 195-ball 82 until he became Lyon’s 400th scalp.
Nathon Lyon’s remarkable comeback
The Australian bowlers looked vulnerable in the second innings on Day 3 after a brilliant display of bowling in the first innings. On the other hand, the Australian veteran off-spinner Lyon was one of those bowlers who suffered to find his rhythm in the first innings. Lyon showed signs of frustration as he was stuck on 399 Test wickets since January 2021 and was searching for a wicket on Day 3 of the match. His last Test wicket was Washington Sundar, and since then, Lyon didn’t pick any wicket until Day 4 of the game, where he eventually struck four times.
Lyon was the key reason for Australia’s win as he turned the tides to Australia’s favor on Day 4 of the match by picking four crucial wickets of Malan, Pope, Robinson, and Wood. He wasn’t able to find his rhythm in the first innings, which were signs of worry for the Australian camp. But the maestro proved his haters wrong and looked in great rhythm after picking up his 400th Test wicket, which boosted his confidence.
Highlights of the game:
England’s first-innings collapse
It was Starc, who set the stage with a first-ball wicket of Rory Burns. England then looked vulnerable on the first day itself, as no batter managed to withstand the fierce Australian pacers. After being named captain of the team, Pat Cummins, was questioned as to whether he would be able to deliver with the ball. Cummins went on to pick up a fifer on his captaincy debut and also managed to restrict England to just 147 runs.
Travis Head’s incredible knock
Head was certainly under the pump after not managing to score big runs in the past 12 months. He had to produce something big and he managed to do so on the biggest stage, The Ashes. Head’s knock of 152 off just 148 balls built a solid platform for the Aussies. It was a dazzling effort by the middle-order batter and he was deservingly honored with the Player of the Match award.
Joe Root’s incredible year
The English captain broke a huge record, surpassing Michael Vaughan for scoring the most runs in a calendar year by an England batter. Michael Vaughan scored 1481 runs in 2002, and Root overtook this tally after scoring 89 in the second innings of the Gabba Test. Root has had an outstanding year, scoring 1544 runs in just 25 innings so far. With an average of 67, he has scored eight half-centuries and six centuries, including two double hundreds in Sri Lanka and India.
Australia’s complete dominance
Pat Cummins, the new captain of the Australian Test team, led them to a complete performance. Australia bowled to their strengths, and thanks to Warner, Head, and Labuschagne, they managed to gain a huge first-innings lead. It was then Lyon, and the young all-rounder Chris Green, who took the priced wicket of Joe Root. The only sign of worry for Australia was David Warner, who couldn’t manage to open the batting in the second innings due to a rib injury. But overall, Australia has set the Ashes on fire, and England has to fight pretty hard to win against this quality Australian unit.