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Smith leads Australia’s day out with the bat
A solid platform provided by David Warner’s 66 was capitalised upon by Steve Smith, Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne as Australia finished with 339/5 at the end of Day 1 of the second Ashes Test at Lord’s. Smith was the common denominator in two century partnerships – 102 off 155 with Labuschagne and 118 off 122 with Head – as Australia amassed 266 runs after Lunch on Wednesday (June 28). Joe Root’s strikes late in the day gave England something to cheer about but they still have Smith, unbeaten on 85, to contend with on Day 2.
Smith arrived at the crease shortly into the second session, after Warner was bowled by a nip-backer from Josh Tongue. Smith started off positively, striking two successive fours off Stuart Broad through the cover region and also got a caught-behind decision reversed in the same over. Labuschagne, who was circumspect at the start of his innings which began soon after Lunch, got going with three fours in an over off Broad. He used a review in a Broad over successfully after being given out leg-before offering no shot, and survived an England review a short while later.
Skipper Ben Stokes brought himself on but clearly lacked rhythm as he overstepped multiple times and leaked boundaries. Smith crossed 9000 Test runs with a four off Stokes, becoming the second fastest in terms of innings (174) to reach the landmark. With not much working for England, they even tried Root for a couple of overs but he too didn’t make an impact as Australia finished the second session having added 117 runs for the loss of only one wicket.
Smith and Labuschagne extended their partnership past 100 before Ollie Robinson struck in the final session, getting Labuschagne to edge to the ‘keeper. This brought Head to the crease and the left-hander dealt in a flurry of boundaries to help Australia make good progress. Robinson was at the receiving end, guilty of bowling short on the off stump. Tongue and Broad too erred with their lines and were made to pay by Head, who had raced away to 35 off 32 when the half-century stand was raised off 54 deliveries.
It took a while for England before they resorted to short-ball tactics against Head, who was ready to take it on as he pulled Tongue for a four to bring up a 48-ball fifty shortly after Smith played a straight drive for a boundary. Two fours off Broad followed for Head as the fourth wicket pair maintained a good run-rate to power Australia. Even luck was favouring Australia. Smith was rapped on his pad after walking too far across to a Tongue delivery and was given not out. England didn’t opt for the review, with replays revealing that it was umpire’s call.
A century partnership was raised off 104 deliveries as Australia went past 300 in the 72nd over. Root’s re-introduction proved a masterstroke for England as he had Head stumped and Cameron Green caught off a pull in the same over. England opted for the new ball after the 81st over and Smith got a thick edge past the vacant gully region for a four off Robinson. Alex Carey saw off the final over, bowled by Broad, as Australia dominated the day despite conditions being helpful for the bowlers throughout. The final session was the most profitable one for Australia in terms of runs, with the visitors getting 149 in only 33 overs.
Earlier in the morning session, after England opted to bowl, their pacers persisted with outside-off lines as they tried to put the Australian openers under pressure. But Warner was solid, scoring at a good clip despite a few jittery play-and-misses. Usman Khawaja, on the other hand, wasn’t looking fluent and was troubled by the England pacers, being beaten multiple times. He even edged an Anderson delivery but Root failed to hold on to a tough chance.
There were also a couple of interruptions in the first session. The first was when ‘Just stop oil’ protesters invaded the ground and sprinkled orange powder, with one of them being lifted off the field by Jonny Bairstow who then had to head off for a change of dress. After a short rain break nine overs into the day’s play, Warner played some confident shots, including two fours in an over off Tongue, having earlier been dropped by Ollie Pope off Broad. Warner brought up his fifty with a six while Khawaja was beginning to play his strokes. But the partnership, worth 73, ended just before Lunch when Khawaja’s decision to shoulder arms to a Tongue delivery proved costly.
Brief scores:
Australia 339/5 (Steve Smith 85*, Travis Head 77, David Warner 66; Joe Root 2-19, Josh Tongue 2-88) vs England