Ashes triumph ‘what dreams are made of’: captain Cummins
(Reuters) - Thrilled Australia captain Pat Cummins praised his players for turning his childhood dream into reality with a victory in Melbourne yesterday that delivered an Ashes triumph in his first series in charge.
Australia thrashed England by an innings and 14 runs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, sealing the series 30 before lunch on day three in front of a festive crowd of 40,945.
“Everything’s gone to plan ... I think our bowlers have been fantastic,” Cummins told reporters.
“I haven’t even felt like there’s been one session where it’s really got away from us.
“It’s what dreams are made of, the way we’ve played.”
Australia’s bowlers routed England for 68 in their second innings, their 13th lowest total in tests, with debutant Scott Boland proving the surprise hero with a sixwicket innings haul in front of his home MCG crowd.
Australia have now retained the urn twice in succession for the first time since Steve Waugh’s side clamed an eighth consecutive series win in 2002/03.
Though Cummins was forced to miss the second test in Adelaide after being identified as a close contact of a COVID-19 case, the 28-year-old fast bowler has been a big part of Australia’s success.
Promoted to the captaincy just before the series after Tim Paine’s
resignation over a ‘sexting’ scandal, Cummins has marshalled the team superbly.
He has taken 10 wickets at an average of 14.40 in his two matches and contributed 21 with the bat in Melbourne to help build an 82-run lead that England proved unable to reel in.
“I grew up watching Steve Waugh, Ricky Ponting, those guys winning Ashes series,” he said.
“It felt a million miles away from me playing cricket in the backyard and here I am a decade later in this position.
“It’s madness ... No way near what I could imagine my life would become as a young kid.” (Reuters) - India seamer Mohammed Shami claimed his 200th test wicket and completed figures of 5-44 as hosts South Africa were bowled out for 197 on the third day of the first test yesterday.
India reached 16 for one in their second innings at the close, a lead of 146 that already looks imposing for the home side on a Centurion Park wicket that will get harder to bat on.
First-innings centurion KL Rahul (five not out) and nightwatchman Shardul Thakur (four) will resume on the fourth day trying to quickly move to a score that allows India to declare and have enough time to bowl the home side out again.
Mayank Agarwal (four) was the only wicket to fall in India’s second innings as he edged debutant leftarm seamer Marco Jansen to wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock.
Eighteen wickets fell on the third day after no play was possible on Monday due to rain.
Shami led the Indian attack with a superb bowling display, eking out every ounce of assistance from the helpful conditions.
“Test match cricket is not rocket science. Understanding the conditions was crucial... it had rained a bit and I just wanted to hit the right lengths,” Shami told reporters.
“While coming through the ranks, no bowler thinks about this (getting 200 wickets). They just dream of playing for India. It’s all about hard work... when you put in the work, results follow.”
His haul included the wicket of South Africa’s top-scorer Temba Bavuma, who had reached 52 when he edged to wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.
Bavuma put on 72 for the fifth wicket with De Kock (34) before the latter tried to guide a Thakur (2-51) delivery through gully but succeeded only in playing onto his own stumps.
It was a key moment in the game that swung the momentum back in India’s favour and exposed the South African lower order.
All the Indian seamers were among the wickets, Jasprit Bumrah (2-16) weighing in despite rolling his ankle and being forced to leave the field. He returned late on to pick up the last wicket.
“Bumrah is fine,” Shami said. “He came back and picked up a wicket. Ankle injuries are always painful but hopefully he should be okay.”
Seamer Lungi Ngidi had earlier taken 6-71 as South Africa made light work of bowling India out after the visitors resumed on 272 for three.
Ngidi, who took a career-best 639 on debut against India at Centurion in 2018, helped South Africa claim the last seven wickets for the addition of only 55 runs in 15.3 overs.
“The first session tomorrow is going to be key,” Bavuma said. “The intensity we brought today out there with the ball is what we will require. Hopefully, there will be a reachable target for the batters to chase down.
“If we can’t chase it down, then we need to find a way to make it super hard for the Indian bowlers.”