England blunder as Smith plunders again
It took 16 days of intense Ashes cricket but Joe Root finally hit breaking point at Old Trafford, firing up after an unforgivable no-ball from Jack Leach before Jofra Archer appeared to disagree with his captain’s tactics in Manchester.
Root could barely contain his rage after celebrations of Smith’s dismissal on 118 were halted by third umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge.
Delight quickly turned to despair as Palliyaguruge reviewed replays, which revealed left-arm spinner Leach clearly overstepped before finding the edge.
As Smith trotted back to the crease, Root called his team-mates into a tight huddle and unleashed an old-school captain’s rev-up.
The 28-year-old read his side the riot act, urging them not to lose focus and let Smith and Tim Paine build an imposing total.
‘‘We just said ‘look we’ve got an opportunity now to crack on, there’s nothing we can do about what’s just happened and let’s try to get him again’,’’ England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow said.
Smith cashed in, scoring 211 as he made a mockery of England’s attack before Australia declared at 497-8 on day two of the fourth Ashes test.
All the talk leading up to the decisive clash, which comes with the series level at 1-1, was how Smith would handle mental demons and an Archer bouncer barrage in his test return from concussion.
By the end of Australia’s first innings at Old Trafford, where the maestro manipulated the field in another masterclass that lasted almost 81⁄2 hours, the chatter again focused on comparisons between Smith and Don Bradman.
Smith’s pressure-laden knock, which dragged his team from 28-2 to 438-8, was the third double ton of his test career.
Root is renowned for being among international cricket’s most affable leaders, having been likened to a ‘‘little boy’’ by Ricky Ponting during the 2017-18 Ashes because he was ‘‘really quiet and too shy to say too much’’ after relinquishing the urn in Australia.
Another tense moment in the field, which captured the attention of commentator Mark Taylor, came when Root asked Archer to bowl around the wicket.
Archer’s body language suggested he wasn’t on board with the idea and the express paceman, who finished with figures of 0-97, soon returned to bowling over the wicket.
‘‘I’m not sure the relationship between Joe Root and Archer is going well,’’ Taylor said.
To cap off what was a terrible day for England, Ben Stokes trudged off the park after suffering a shoulder injury while delivering his 11th over.
Stokes returned to the field soon after
but didn’t bowl again.
There were calls for Root to step down as captain after England were skittled for 67 in their first innings of the third test.
That criticism was silenced by Ben Stokes’ sensational knock to win the
memorable third test but it will likely start up again, especially if England lose an Ashes series at home for the first time since 2001.
At stumps, with three days still to play, England were 23-1.