After missing the Headingley Test, Steve Smith returned to Ashes action and continued his fine form throughout the series, ending the day 60 not out.
England - Yet to bat / 170-3 - Australia
Steve Smith returned to Australia's batting line-up and once again got the better of England's bowlers on a rain-affected day at Old Trafford.
Having missed the third Test with concussion, the former captain ended the day 60 not out as the tourists were 170-3 at the close.
After winning the toss, Australia were 28-2 before Smith added 116 with Marnus Labuschagne, whose 67 was his fourth consecutive 50.
After the dramatic finish in the Yorkshire sunshine at Headingley, the first day in the North-West was a subdued affair in cold, windy and wet conditions.
Stuart Broad's new ball spell was the only positive from a bowling attack that struggled to threaten Australia consistently, not helped by the crowd's inability to raise the atmosphere above the elements.
After the players departed for lunch, they were off the pitch for three hours, and after a late tea was taken at 17:30, the rain got too heavy for there to be any more play after that.
Despite only 44 overs possible, Smith took Australia to a commanding position on a pitch that looks good for batting, and a win would see them retain the Ashes with a Test to spare.
It always seemed possible that a September Test in Manchester would be weather-affected, and it certainly lived up to that expectation today, with spectators shivering, players wearing their thickest jumpers and with rain intermittent throughout.
The gusts saw crisp packets regularly drifting across the pitch, much to the annoyance of Stuart Broad who had to pull out of several deliveries due to the batsman being distracted.
At one stage the bails were removed by the wind with such regularity that the umpires decided to do without them - in stark contrast to the World Cup when the bails remained stubbornly on top of the stumps on many occasions.
Smith - like the World Cup bails - was easily removed, and he slipped straight back in to the rich vein of form that brought him scores of 144, 142 and 92 already in the series, all the while fidgeting and eccentrically leaving alike.
His partnership with Labuschagne was enough to frighten any bowler - the pair of resilient top-order Aussie's have been England's biggest trouble in the series so far - but now they were at the crease together.
It would be fair to say that the amount of time that Smith stays out there will go a long way to deciding the match, with more rain on the way.
Australia captain opted to bat first on a slow dry surface, but when Broad had David Warner caught behind for a duck in the first over and had Marcus Harris trapped lbw, it looked like England's momentum from Headingley showed no signs of stopping.
That was to discount Labuschagne and Smith though, the former scoring off the front foot from pace and with cut shots when left-arm spinner Jack Leach went short.
The latter nudged and poked into the leg side and played some handsome drives, including one off a delivery outside off that he played through cover while on his knees.
Craig Overton bowled Labuschagne with a nip-backer, while Travis Head survived a Stokes revieew for lbw to accompany Smith until the close.
Broad was swinging the new ball beautifully away from the left-handers and getting the seam to nip the ball around.
After that, the level dropped of all the bowlers, though they may argue that the conditions did not help them.
The fielders were frustrated by the conditions, the problems with the bails and the litter blowing across the field, causing Smith - who never hurries with his preparations for each delivery - to delay the proceedings eve further.
Evan at the best of times, Archer was down on pace, failing to live up to the first battle with Smith at Lord's, but the crowd still roared the first ball he sent down since that brutal spell in the second Test.
Leach's bowling started off too short, while both Stokes' and Overton's economies were more than four.
Overton produced a beauty to dismiss Labuschagne and Stokes bowled a fiery spell near the end of the day, but they were just a consolation after a poor day's bowling.
The Ashes Fixtures and Results
1-5 August
First Test, Edgbaston
Australia won by 251 runs (England 0-1 Australia)
14-18 August
Second Test, Lord's
Match drawn (England 0-1 Australia)
22-26 August
Third Test, Headingley
England won by one wicket (England 1-1 Australia)
4-8 September
Fourth Test, Old Trafford
12-16 September
Fifth Test, The Oval
Never miss a post - enter your email address in the box on the right!
 |
| Photo from The New Daily |
Steve Smith returned to Australia's batting line-up and once again got the better of England's bowlers on a rain-affected day at Old Trafford.
Having missed the third Test with concussion, the former captain ended the day 60 not out as the tourists were 170-3 at the close.
After winning the toss, Australia were 28-2 before Smith added 116 with Marnus Labuschagne, whose 67 was his fourth consecutive 50.
After the dramatic finish in the Yorkshire sunshine at Headingley, the first day in the North-West was a subdued affair in cold, windy and wet conditions.
Stuart Broad's new ball spell was the only positive from a bowling attack that struggled to threaten Australia consistently, not helped by the crowd's inability to raise the atmosphere above the elements.
After the players departed for lunch, they were off the pitch for three hours, and after a late tea was taken at 17:30, the rain got too heavy for there to be any more play after that.
Despite only 44 overs possible, Smith took Australia to a commanding position on a pitch that looks good for batting, and a win would see them retain the Ashes with a Test to spare.
It always seemed possible that a September Test in Manchester would be weather-affected, and it certainly lived up to that expectation today, with spectators shivering, players wearing their thickest jumpers and with rain intermittent throughout.
The gusts saw crisp packets regularly drifting across the pitch, much to the annoyance of Stuart Broad who had to pull out of several deliveries due to the batsman being distracted.
At one stage the bails were removed by the wind with such regularity that the umpires decided to do without them - in stark contrast to the World Cup when the bails remained stubbornly on top of the stumps on many occasions.
Smith - like the World Cup bails - was easily removed, and he slipped straight back in to the rich vein of form that brought him scores of 144, 142 and 92 already in the series, all the while fidgeting and eccentrically leaving alike.
His partnership with Labuschagne was enough to frighten any bowler - the pair of resilient top-order Aussie's have been England's biggest trouble in the series so far - but now they were at the crease together.
It would be fair to say that the amount of time that Smith stays out there will go a long way to deciding the match, with more rain on the way.
Australia captain opted to bat first on a slow dry surface, but when Broad had David Warner caught behind for a duck in the first over and had Marcus Harris trapped lbw, it looked like England's momentum from Headingley showed no signs of stopping.
That was to discount Labuschagne and Smith though, the former scoring off the front foot from pace and with cut shots when left-arm spinner Jack Leach went short.
The latter nudged and poked into the leg side and played some handsome drives, including one off a delivery outside off that he played through cover while on his knees.
Craig Overton bowled Labuschagne with a nip-backer, while Travis Head survived a Stokes revieew for lbw to accompany Smith until the close.
Broad was swinging the new ball beautifully away from the left-handers and getting the seam to nip the ball around.
After that, the level dropped of all the bowlers, though they may argue that the conditions did not help them.
The fielders were frustrated by the conditions, the problems with the bails and the litter blowing across the field, causing Smith - who never hurries with his preparations for each delivery - to delay the proceedings eve further.
Evan at the best of times, Archer was down on pace, failing to live up to the first battle with Smith at Lord's, but the crowd still roared the first ball he sent down since that brutal spell in the second Test.
Leach's bowling started off too short, while both Stokes' and Overton's economies were more than four.
Overton produced a beauty to dismiss Labuschagne and Stokes bowled a fiery spell near the end of the day, but they were just a consolation after a poor day's bowling.
The Ashes Fixtures and Results
1-5 August
First Test, Edgbaston
Australia won by 251 runs (England 0-1 Australia)
14-18 August
Second Test, Lord's
Match drawn (England 0-1 Australia)
22-26 August
Third Test, Headingley
England won by one wicket (England 1-1 Australia)
4-8 September
Fourth Test, Old Trafford
12-16 September
Fifth Test, The Oval
Never miss a post - enter your email address in the box on the right!
No comments:
Post a Comment