England’s chase of 416 seemed comfortable before a flurry of three soft wickets left the second Test finely poised ahead of day three at Lord’s.
After bowling out the Australians on Thursday morning, the hosts began to make light work of the chase, as Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley put on an opening stand of 91 – England’s highest in an Ashes series since 2010-11.
But after the Kent opener was stumped, Ollie Pope continued the entertainment with 42 before being caught by Steve Smith, who also sent Joe Root back to the pavilion after David Warner ended Duckett’s century bid just two runs short.
Ben Stokes and Harry Brook steadied the ship before the close, to see the hosts through to the end of play on 278 runs for the loss of four wickets.
So, with day two of the second Ashes Test over, here are some of the more unusual talking points as discussed by Mail Sport’s RICHARD GIBSON.
Ben Duckett left the field just two runs shy of a second ever Test century on home soil
Nathan Lyon picked up a calf injury which could a be a seismic blow to Australia’s chances
Harry Brook ended not out on 45 from 51 balls in an entertaining knock, including four fours
England shirt auction could bring up £500,000 mark
The fifth year of Lord’s turning Red for Ruth raised in excess of £400,000 on Thursday – surpassing the total of 12 months ago when New Zealand were the opposition.
Former England captain Andrew Strauss, along with his sons Luca and Sam, and parents and children of those who have benefitted from work done by the Ruth Strauss Foundation, the bereavement charity set up in his late wife’s name, rang the five-minute bell before the start of play.
It is hoped that an auction of signed shirts from the England team will push the final total beyond the £500,000 mark.
Ex-England captain Andrew Strauss (left), along with his sons Luca and Sam, rang the five-minute bell before the start of play at Lord’s on day two of the second Ashes Test
The pair of Ollie Robs have plenty in common
Mail Sport columnist Jason Gillespie’s promotion of Durham’s Ollie Robinson as England’s next wicketkeeper threw up the possibility of international scorecards reading ‘caught Ollie Robinson, bowled Ollie Robinson’ in future.
The pair of Ollie Robs have plenty in common.
Both were born in Kent, 65 miles apart, and started their respective careers with their home county.
Freakishly, they also share the same birthday of December 1 – the Sussex and England seamer, born in 1993, five years his namesake’s senior.
Ollie Robinson (right) shares birthday and birth county with another cricketer with same name
ECB to use iHawk for Kookaburra trial feedback
The trial of the Australian-manufactured Kookaburra ball for two rounds of the County Championship mid-Ashes was organised by the ECB with a view to challenging young English cricketers to adapt to ways of playing that will improve them overseas.
Discussions behind the scenes have focused on not drawing too many conclusions from the first half of 18 four-day matches despite evidence suggesting that spinners were used more predominantly.
Instead, they will ask counties for their feedback after the next round finishes on July 13, and use data analysis collected from iHawk – mobile Hawk-Eye cameras clipped to umpires – to judge the worth of the experiment.
Anderson and Warner’s love of crosswords
Anderson and Warner do not appear to have a lot in common – aside from a love of crosswords.
Warner could be seen on the Australian dressing room balcony on Thursday, deep in thought, thumbing through a crossword puzzle book.
That is Anderson’s preferred form of relaxing when England are batting, with team-mates reckoning he’s never happier than when he completes one. In contrast, Jonny Bairstow is a big sudoku fan.
Meanwhile, Warner’s bruised left hand did not prevent him fielding. He reported that the blow he took during his innings of 66 on the first day was the third within a fortnight since India’s Mohammad rapped his gloves in the World Test Championship final.
David Warner (right) could be seen on the Australian dressing room balcony with a crossword
Demand for bucket hats through the roof
The demand for bucket hats since it became the headwear of choice for England captain Ben Stokes resulted in the ECB ordering a new batch for the second Test.
After selling out at Edgbaston, the ECB ordered more for Lord’s hoping that they would arrive in time for day one.
The delivery was punctual but ECB staff were somewhat bemused when it turned out that it was only a batch of 20 and so they were handed out to staff rather than marked up for purchase. A bigger delivery is expected later in the match.
Broad and Anderson still the kings of swing
Despite an underwhelming scoreboard, Anderson and Stuart Broad both managed in excess of two degrees of swing in the first innings – double the amount averaged by Australia’s bowlers on day two before the tourists opted for a bumper barrage.
Stuart Broad (left) and Anderson (right) averaged double the amount of swing in the first innings compared to the Australians
How much?!
A corporate ticket for a place in the Ashes Lounge at Lord’s sets you back £1,399 plus VAT and has triggered disquiet in the cheap seats.
The Loungers are housed on the nursery ground, providing the VIP viewing of England and Australia batting in the nets the MCC sales pitch promises.
However, the marquee has obscured the view of the giant screen for those socialising around the food and drink outlets at the nursery end of the ground.
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