Alex Carey's Stunning Century Assists The Baggy Greens Recover After Early English Ashes Assault.
In the wake of the chaos of the Perth Test and Brisbane's day-night spectacle, a more traditional style of the longest format broke out on the turf of Adelaide Oval. For the South Australian fans, it was a day to enjoy, as their boy the wicketkeeper-batsman notched up a magnificent century on his home ground to help Australia edge the first day's play.
However, England, 2-0 down and still fighting in the contest, were entirely downbeat. Ben Stokes lost out on what appeared a significant coin toss and, despite being far from at their best, the English attack kept persevering in scorching conditions. By the close of play, the Australians had reached 326 for eight from 83 overs – runs on the board but surely short of their expectations when captain Pat Cummins won the toss first thing.
The Pace of Archer Leads The Tourist's Effort.
The standout for the tourists proved to be speedster Jofra Archer. Returning figures of 3/29 off his 16 overs constituted a strong answer against the scrutiny directed at him this past week. Here he clearly led the bowling unit, averaging around 88mph (142kph) on the speed gun while providing Stokes a combination of accuracy and clear threat. Only at the very end of play – during a single over with the second new ball – did he look a bit jaded.
Having bounced out Jake Weatherald early on, the fast bowler's first over after lunch accounted for Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green within just three deliveries. The all-rounder's duck served as a reminder that cricket can bring a player back down to earth, his tepid chip to mid-wicket occurring barely a day after securing a massive multi-million dollar contract in the IPL.
Carey's Priceless Contribution Steadies The Ship.
Alex Carey's performance, however, was nothing short of invaluable, culminating around 4.48pm as he drove Ben Stokes through cover for three runs which prompted the Adelaide faithful to rise with a roar. Coming off that masterful display with the gloves in Brisbane, the left-hander's aggressive 106 from 143 deliveries ensured that a mid-innings stumble to 94/4 did not become a full-blown collapse. The 34-year-old has become a genuinely Test match player these days.
Australia undoubtedly left some potential runs out there, however. Absent was that pronounced bounce from the opening matches replaced by only a fraction of nibble if a good length was located.
The pitch also offered some grip to Will Jacks, although his control was that of a part-timer – hence figures of two for 105 from his 20 overs – but the deliveries that did to misbehave will give hope to Australia's own spinner, Nathan Lyon.
Solemn Context and Late Switch.
The day's play was always going to be an emotional day for Australia, coming so soon after a devastating terrorist attack in Bondi. A minute's silence prior to the start of play was immaculately held, broken only by folk singer a rendition performing a stirring version of the anthem 'True Blue'.
By this stage, Australia had also been compelled to make a change to their stated XI. Steve Smith pulled out due to feeling dizzy and nausea first thing – seemingly return of a vertigo issue which has periodically affected the star batter since he was struck by Archer at Lord’s six years ago.
His place was taken by Usman Khawaja, just 24 hours after it was speculated his international career could be finished. Until Carey's arrival, the left-hander had held the Australian innings steady, walking out at 33/2 before crafting a fine 82 off 126 deliveries a day out from turning 39. Stands of 61 with Labuschagne plus another of 91 with Alex Carey were significant.
England's Mixed Bag Persists.
Aside from Archer's efforts, and despite the sapping conditions, it remained still another frustrating outing for the English bowling attack. Seamer Brydon Carse rather rolled over his inconsistent form of the series, picking up figures of 2/70 from 13 overs, and the recalled Josh Tongue picked up 1/63 from 15 overs.
Carse looked erratic when tasked with sharing the new ball early on, overstepping on five occasions but still removing Travis Head for just 10 runs thanks to a sublime one-handed catch by Zak Crawley at cover. This moment summed up the day for both teams: brilliance interspersed with periods of error-prone cricket.
