Left Arm Around

A five-wicket haul from England skipper Ben Stokes meant the tourists restored control from Australia on day one of the first Ashes Test in Perth.

His figures of 5/23 from only six overs left the hosts reeling on 123/9, still 49 runs short of England’s feeble first-innings effort of 172-all out.

Stokes incredible display of fast bowling, including the wickets of Travis Head and Cameron Green, earned him his sixth Test fifer and third against the old enemy.

A total of 19 wickets across the day’s play was the most in the Ashes Test since 20 wickets fell at Old Trafford in 1909.

On a day that started horrifically for the tourists, with Zak Crawley falling in the first over and Joe Root also falling for nought shortly after, it appeared to be the story of ‘same old’ England down under as they collapsed to 172 all-out in quick time.

Ollie Pope (46) and Harry Brook (52) provided the main resistance in a counter-attack, however Mitchell Starc polished off the innings with career-best figures of 7/58.

It is the second time in as many Tests that the left-armer has earned a career-best haul after taking 6/9 against the West Indies in Jamaica in July.

Brendan Doggett took two important scalps on debut, while Green snaffled the other as he pinned the set Pope LBW.

But while many England fans will have feared the worst, the tourists’ accurate and hostile display of pace bowling showed they have the firepower to unsettle the Aussie lineup. Probably for the first time in years.

A rapid Jofra Archer began proceedings with a wicket inside two balls to sent back debutant Jake Weatherald, before removing the returning Marnus Labuschagne with a ball that ricocheted back onto the stumps.

That momentum was continued by Durham’s Brydon Carse, who removed the dangerous Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja in quick succession- the latter of whom was dismissed from a rip-snorting delivery that just caught the outside edge.

Just as the hosts looked to wrestle back control courtesy of an ominous Head and Green partnership, it was then the turn of the ‘game-changing’ Stokes to grab the contest by the neck and make things happen with five wickets.

You could argue the likes of Head, Green Carey AND Starc all played false shots that could have been avoided, but there’s also something to be said about Stokes’ aura in crucial match situations. It happens time and time again.

Mark Wood went wicketless in a five over spell, however his express pace undoubtedly troubled the Aussie batters on numerous occasions. A fearsome 91 MPH bouncer clattered straight into Green’s grill and staggered the 26 year-old backwards.

It is only day one in a long Ashes summer, though it’s always advantageous to deliver that first stinging punch.

Can Australia fight back and deliver a haymaker or two of their own?

Their first task will be to add a few extra runs and put an aggressive Three Lions batting lineup under the pump once more!

Don’t miss it… this series promises to be an absolute cracker!