England’s tail blown away again as Australia hit back
Lower order skittled out after Bairstow’s century Overton pick of seamers as Smith anchors reply
It would knock the stuffing out of Joe Root’s team were England to lose this Test, and with it the Ashes, after the record partnership of 237 between Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow, the highest for England’s fifth wicket against Australia. Yet the possibility existed at the end of day two.
The batting of Malan and Bairstow was wonderfully bold as they compiled their maiden centuries against Australia – Malan’s his first in any Test – and held the enemy’s pace at bay. But as well as the record-breaking pair camouflaged it, England’s subsequent collapse was their biggest of this series, when the pitch was at its truest, too, and may prove the more significant omen.
On the slow pitch in Brisbane, England lost their last six wickets for 56 runs, then their last four wickets for 10 second time around. In equally slow Adelaide, they lost their last six wickets for 57. On this relatively quick pitch, from the moment Malan, for the first time, drove against the spin, the killer instinct of Australia’s fast bowlers kicked in and mowed down England’s last six wickets for 35. England’s cake, lovingly baked by Malan and Bairstow, had no icing.
From cricket’s point of view, it is great when tail-enders are blown away instead of hanging around and blocking. From England’s, it will be ever more demoralising if their Achilles’ heel becomes a whole limb. Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Craig Overton, Stuart Broad and James Anderson lasted a total of 38 balls – Moeen, Overton and Broad bounced out. Whatever the state of this game after the first innings, Australia’s big three bowlers will tear into England’s top order, sensing yet another collapse is around the corner.
It was not as if Malan and Bairstow exposed England’s lower order to a new ball. When they resumed, the second was seven overs old, and they dutifully blocked four maidens before scoring again. Malan took his overnight 110 to 140 before his pardonably tired shot. Bairstow was exceptional in three respects: his cover-driving, the precision of his judgment when leaving the ball around off stump, and his sensing of when to up the gears and counter-attack.
Bairstow’s celebration was exceptional, too, with a few butts of his helmet. He thereby proclaimed he had used the early-tour bar incident for motivation – it had not broken but made him. And after batting for 332 minutes, he made no mistake during the two sessions when England bowled, almost bringing off a freakish catch to dismiss Shaun Marsh when the ball ricocheted up off short-leg’s boot.
While Steve Smith commanded artillery, Root had to settle for attritional bowling, which made no impression on Smith, who purred to 92 off 122 balls. A world-class wristspinner would have helped, but England have never had one of those, and simply in terms of offspin, Nathan Lyon leads Moeen by 12 wickets to two; or else an outright fast bowler, such as England had when they won on the back of Harold Larwood on the Bodyline tour of 1932-33, or Frank Tyson in 1954-55, and John Snow in 1970-71.
In the absence of superior pace or spin, England’s chance of bowling Australia out twice – a pre-requisite for winning, as Australia do not go in for sporting declarations – appeared as remote as usual. England did it for a pastime on their triumphant tour of 2010-11: four times they dismissed Australia twice. Otherwise, in the eight Ashes series here since 1987, England have done it in only six Tests.
James Anderson led England’s attack on Andrew Strauss’s tour of 2010-11, but he has never prospered in Perth, nor did Stuart Broad last time: the Waca refuses to let the ball seam sideways for England’s illustrious opening pair.
Overton was the pick of the touring bowlers, almost a replica of Tim Bresnan, a key member of Strauss’s attack, lumbering in and hitting the bat harder than his official speed of a little more than 80mph would suggest, his bouncer distinctly sharp. Bresnan can claim the distinction of having his face displayed on the perimeter wall of the Waca, as a key member of the Perth Scorchers, the most successful team in Australia’s T20 Big Bash.
Overton found movement where none of his seniors did. When he bowled from the Lillee/marsh End, with the Fremantle Doctor coming over his left shoulder, Overton seamed one away from David Warner’s prod, and brought one back into Cameron Bancroft’s planted front pad.
Overton also had the satisfaction of hitting Smith on his right thumb with the last ball before tea – satisfaction because Smith had informed him on his Adelaide debut that he was too slow.
Overton did not let his side down; but, eventually, his side – his left one – let him down. He had ducked into a bouncer by Pat Cummins in Adelaide, to be struck above the chest protector, and aggravated his bruised left rib when he jarred it in diving to try to catch Usman Khawaja when nought. Smith added 124 with Khawaja, and was in no hurry to reach his 22nd Test century before the close.