Sydney: Australia were closing
in on a 5-0 Ashes sweep after demolishing England's batting and pushing their
lead to 311 runs after just two days of the final Sydney Ashes Test on
Saturday. The relentless Australians
blasted out the hapless tourists for 155 -- the fifth time England had
been dismissed for less than 200 in the series -- and set their sights on
batting them out of the game with three days to play. At second day stumps Australia
were 140 for four with Chris Rogers compiling his fourth half-century in five
innings on 73 and George Bailey not out 20.
The home side in the process
lost the wickets of David Warner (16), Shane Watson (9), skipper Michael Clarke
(6) and Steve Smith (7) as England tried to restrict Australia's mushrooming
lead on a flattening Sydney Cricket Ground pitch. "Day two, 300 plus lead's
a pretty good position to be in," Australia paceman Ryan Harris said. "It's obviously not a done
thing yet, we've got to make sure we bat well in the morning and get some more
(runs) and bowl like we did today to bowl them out again."
"We figure they are going
to fire at some stage, we hope they don't but they're going to have to." "I don't think the
wicket's getting any easier. If we bowl like we did today, I think we'll go
alright." Australia's pace trio of
Harris, Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle earlier took three wickets apiece as
England narrowly avoided the follow-on in response to Australia's first innings
score of 326. The tourists never recovered
from a disastrous morning session when they crashed to 23 for five despite the
efforts of young guns Ben Stokes, Gary Ballance and Jonny Bairstow to repel the
hostile home attack.
"It was pretty
disappointing today, but 326 is way over par on this pitch in my opinion,"
England batting coach Graham Gooch said. "So once that score's on
the board it's always going to be difficult and once we lost those early
wickets (it's) going to be tough from this position." Stokes eked out a dogged 47 off
101 balls after his six-wicket haul in the Australian first innings.
But he showed an error of
judgement that cost his wicket when he offered no shot and was bowled off-stump
by Siddle just three short of his half-century. It was Siddle's second wicket
of his 12th over after having wicketkeeper Bairstow caught by Bailey,
purposefully positioned at short mid-on, for 18, ending a 49-run stand with
Stokes. Debutant Ballance earlier went
in the second over after lunch for 18, caught behind off spinner Nathan yon. Ballance showed plenty of fight
coming to wicket with his team in dire trouble at 17-4. He took a Mitchell
Johnson bouncer flush on the helmet and needed replacement headgear.
Stuart Broad finished with an
unbeaten 30 off 22 balls. England suffered yet another
demoralising top-order collapse in the morning session against the dominant
Australians. At one stage the beleaguered
tourists looked in danger of falling short of their record low score of 45 at
the Sydney Cricket Ground, set in 1887, but Zimbabwe-born Ballance and Stokes
helped stop the rot to leave England 61-5 at lunch. Alastair Cook (7) was out to
the second ball of the day when the skipper was trapped leg before wicket by
Harris without offering a shot. Ian Bell was dropped by Watson
off the next ball but nightwatchman Anderson, who needed treatment after taking
a jarring blow on his right bowling hand fending off a rearing Johnson
delivery, did not last long.
He edged Johnson to Clarke at
second slip for seven, leaving the tourists 14-3 in the 10th over. Johnson now has 34 wickets for
the series as he bids to become only the fourth Australian bowler to take 40
wickets or more in an Ashes series along with Terry Alderman (twice), Rodney
Hogg and Shane Warne. The Australians, looking to
claim only the third 5-0 series whitewash in Ashes history, followed up with
the wicket of Kevin Pietersen (3), snapped up in the slips by Watson off
Harris, to leave the tourists 17-4. Bell was then out for two,
caught behind by Brad Haddin off Siddle to make it 23-5.
AFP
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