(Reuters) – England’s opening batsmen survived a tense half-hour earlier than lunch after Australia had been dismissed for 425 on day three in Brisbane on Friday but Joe Root’s facet face a Herculean job to save the opening Ashes check.
Opener Rory Burns was 13 not out, having overturned an lbw choice on evaluation, whereas Haseeb Hameed was on 10, with England 23 for no wicket and nonetheless needing 255 runs to make Australia bat once more.
Travis Head completed with a powerful 152 from 148 balls, Australia’s final wicket to fall after one other dominant session.
Burns, dismissed first ball of the sequence by Mitchell Starc on Wednesday, was rapped on the pads by the large left-armer on the sixth ball of the second innings and given out lbw.
He referred nearly instantly and the ball-tracking expertise confirmed it simply clearing the bails.
Following Head’s swashbuckling century on day two, the equal third-fastest in Ashes historical past, Australia resumed on 343 for seven in the morning with England struggling for a lot of a dreary session.
Paceman Ollie Robinson, who appeared to be nursing a sore hamstring late on day two, nonetheless appeared in a funk and barely threatened with the brand new ball.
Ben Stokes, who bowled 9 overs on Thursday and struggled after jarring his left knee, was deemed match and got here into the assault some 45 minutes into the session.
The all-rounder was blasted over his head for six by Head on his second supply.
Nearly an hour handed earlier than tail-ender Starc gifted England a wicket by slogging Chris Woakes straight to Burns at deep sq. leg, the England opener making the catch a day after grassing one in the slips that reprieved David Warner throughout his 94.
Moments later, Nathan Lyon additionally provided up a caught-and-bowled wicket to Woakes but the seam-bowling all-rounder put down the one-handed likelihood.
Lyon then slogged Stokes for 4 on the subsequent over to push Australia previous 400.
Wood, the choose of England’s bowlers, lastly dismissed Lyon for 15 when the quantity 10 pulled at a brief ball and top-edged to Robinson at sq. leg.
Head slog-swept Jack Leach to deliver up his 150 in 143 balls and loved one other roaring ovation from the Gabba crowd, as followers kitted out as bananas, convicts and nuns celebrated the mark.
Hameed then dropped Head in the sector with a operating likelihood earlier than the batsman was lastly bowled by Wood backing away from the wicket in search of fast runs.
(Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
