Fourth Test, day one, Melbourne - England win toss & bowl
Australia close on 4-0 - leading by 46 runs in their second innings after 20 wickets fall on frenetic day
England crumble to 110 all out: Brook 41 (34); Neser 4-45, Boland 3-30
Duckett, Bethell, Crawley and Root fall in first eight overs of England innings
Australia dismissed for 152 with Tongue taking a tremendous 5-45
Hosts hold unassailable 3-0 series lead
Pitch. Judgement. Both sides batted. I get you, Stevo.
Watch England play Test cricket long enough and you become conditioned to fear the worst but I reckon that why it's important to enjoy it when things are going well.
Who knows, they might continue to go well? We'll soon find out. England's players are gathered on the boundary edge and the afternoon session is almost upon us.
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Australia are never in trouble until they are in trouble. This is a blip. England's batsmen need to do something before we make a judgement.
Stevo, Essex
Josh Tongue really was excellent in that morning session.
He bowled full, dragging the Australia batters forward and got the ball nipping about.
Marnus Labuschagne fell in exactly that manner, the ball seaming away from him to take the edge through to Joe Root at first slip.
Tongue then got the big one - pinning back Steve Smith's middle stump as the Aussie stand-in skipper aimed an expansive shot down the ground...
Gus Atkinson returned to the England side, took the new ball and bowled superbly in his opening spell.
He took the first wicket of the morning, getting Travis Head to chop on for 12.
Brydon Carse struggled from the other end so Josh Tongue was soon brought into the attack and struck second ball - Jake Weatherald caught behind down leg...
Let's treat ourselves this Christmas night, shall we? Its time to look at the wickets to have fallen in the morning session...
Soham Sarkhel
CricViz analyst
As a direct consequence of England bowling fuller today, Australia have scored just 24% of their runs behind square.
Before this Test, 50% of Australia's runs against the seamers came behind the square in this series at a strike-rate of 124. That strike-rate drops to 77 when they have played in front of the square.
Sorry, Uzair, it's Christmas and England have had a rare good session in this Ashes so I'm simply not going to countenance such negativity...
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It goes to show how dire this series has been that even from this position I don't expect England to win.
Uzair, London
Glenn McGrath
Ex-Australia bowler on BBC Test Match Special
England have bowled better this morning. They needed early wickets after winning the toss.
Josh Tongue looked good and he was well-supported by Gus Atkinson.
To have four wickets by lunch means it was a good decision to bowl first.
Thanks, Mike. A Christmas treat, indeed.
Shorn of their best bowler throughout the series to this point, England's seamers have stepped up on a green seamer.
Gus Atkinson got things started by removing Travis Head in a superb opening spell before Josh Tongue took over, dismissing Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne and, crucially, Steve Smith.
Australia's top four gone, the tourists will be keen to make further inroads after the break.
Well, that was a little Christmas treat.
England now need to continue to exert control after lunch and get into the Australian tail.
To see how they get on, here's Sam Drury.
Khawaja 21, Carey 9
Image source, Getty ImagesEngland's session, for once.
A couple of singles from Josh Tongue's last over before the interval - he and Gus Atkinson has bowled superbly after England won the toss and chose to bowl under grey skies.
Australia have lost four wickets, but have two batters who scored heavily at Adelaide at the crease - their partnership is worth 21.
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I am fulfilling a lifetime dream at the MCG this morning and I keep thinking I’m at Old Trafford! It’s cold and dark with the odd spot of rain! Perfect conditions for England!
Kevin, MCG
Runs for Usman Khawaja.
He gets two off Josh Tongue with a shot past mid-on, then drives the next ball down the ground for four.
Glenn McGrath
Ex-Australia bowler on BBC Test Match Special
It is not that hot out there and the pitch is doing a bit. England are on top and things are going well.
Josh Tongue will want to keep bowling. There is no way you would want to let the ball go.
Leading edge!
Usman Khawaja tries to clip Gus Atkinson square and instead squirts the ball past point for three.
Atkinson follows up by beating the bat of of Alex Carey.
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Amazing what can happen when there is nothing left on the line. Aussies, probably subconsciously, not at 100% and England playing for a bit of pride.
Stuart, Swindon
Image source, Getty ImagesA couple of driven twos for Alex Carey.
He sends Josh Tongue past mid-on then finds more runs in the covers.
We're about ten minutes away from lunch, and Gus Atkinson is going to return to replace Brydon Carse.
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England choosing not to play Potts again over an erratic Carse just doesn’t make sense. They have lacked threat or control throughout this series.
Kier, Chichester
Glenn McGrath
Ex-Australia bowler on BBC Test Match Special
On a pitch like this, you want to get it fuller when it is moving around and be consistent. Brydon Carse has been shorter than Josh Tongue.
On top of that, you have the overhead conditions where the ball does a bit more.
| Batter | Runs | Balls | Dots | 4s | 6s | Minutes | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Head,bowled Atkinson Head, bowled Atkinson | 12 | 22 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 54.55 |
Weatherald,caught Smith, bowled Tongue Weatherald, caught Smith, bowled Tongue | 10 | 23 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 43.48 |
Labuschagne,caught Root, bowled Tongue Labuschagne, caught Root, bowled Tongue | 6 | 19 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 31.58 |
Smith,bowled Tongue Smith, bowled Tongue | 9 | 31 | 28 | 2 | 0 | 46 | 29.03 |
Khawaja,caught Smith, bowled Atkinson Khawaja, caught Smith, bowled Atkinson | 29 | 52 | 37 | 2 | 0 | 78 | 55.77 |
Carey,caught Crawley, bowled Stokes Carey, caught Crawley, bowled Stokes | 20 | 35 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 55 | 57.14 |
Green,run out Carse Green, run out Carse | 17 | 34 | 26 | 2 | 0 | 60 | 50.00 |
Neser,bowled Tongue Neser, bowled Tongue | 35 | 49 | 37 | 7 | 0 | 65 | 71.43 |
Starc,caught Stokes, bowled Carse Starc, caught Stokes, bowled Carse | 1 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 16.67 |
Richardson,not out Richardson, not out | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.00 |
Boland,caught Brook, bowled Tongue Boland, caught Brook, bowled Tongue | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
Extras, no balls 1, wides 0, byes 4, leg byes 8, total 13 Extras, no balls 1, wides 0, byes 4, leg byes 8, total 13 | |||||||
Total,152 all out 45.2 overs Total,152 all out 45.2 overs |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Dots | No balls | Wides | 4s | 6s | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atkinson | 14.0 | 4 | 28 | 2 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
Carse | 12.0 | 3 | 42 | 1 | 53 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3.50 |
Tongue | 11.2 | 2 | 45 | 5 | 50 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3.97 |
Stokes | 8.0 | 1 | 25 | 1 | 35 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.12 |
| Fall of wicket | Batter |
|---|---|
27 for 1 (6.1 overs) | Head |
31 for 2 (9.2 overs) | Weatherald |
34 for 3 (11.5 overs) | Labuschagne |
51 for 4 (19.2 overs) | Smith |
89 for 5 (28.5 overs) | Khawaja |
91 for 6 (31.2 overs) | Carey |
143 for 7 (42.1 overs) | Green |
152 for 8 (44.5 overs) | Starc |
152 for 9 (45.1 overs) | Neser |
152 for 10 (45.2 overs) | Boland |
| Batter | Runs | Balls | Dots | 4s | 6s | Minutes | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crawley,caught Smith, bowled Starc Crawley, caught Smith, bowled Starc | 5 | 14 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 35.71 |
Duckett,caught Neser, bowled Starc Duckett, caught Neser, bowled Starc | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 40.00 |
Bethell,caught Carey, bowled Neser Bethell, caught Carey, bowled Neser | 1 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 20.00 |
Root,caught Carey, bowled Neser Root, caught Carey, bowled Neser | 0 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0.00 |
Brook,leg before wicket, bowled Boland Brook, leg before wicket, bowled Boland | 41 | 34 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 59 | 120.59 |
Stokes,caught Smith, bowled Neser Stokes, caught Smith, bowled Neser | 16 | 38 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 67 | 42.11 |
Smith,bowled Boland Smith, bowled Boland | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 66.67 |
Jacks,caught Carey, bowled Boland Jacks, caught Carey, bowled Boland | 5 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 50.00 |
Atkinson,bowled Green Atkinson, bowled Green | 28 | 35 | 24 | 3 | 1 | 45 | 80.00 |
Carse,caught Boland, bowled Neser Carse, caught Boland, bowled Neser | 4 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 33.33 |
Tongue,not out Tongue, not out | 1 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 11.11 |
Extras, no balls 1, wides 0, byes 0, leg byes 4, total 5 Extras, no balls 1, wides 0, byes 0, leg byes 4, total 5 | |||||||
Total,110 all out 29.5 overs Total,110 all out 29.5 overs |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Dots | No balls | Wides | 4s | 6s | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starc | 6.0 | 0 | 23 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3.83 |
Neser | 10.0 | 1 | 45 | 4 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4.50 |
Boland | 9.0 | 1 | 30 | 3 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3.33 |
Richardson | 4.0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
Green | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Fall of wicket | Batter |
|---|---|
7 for 1 (2.3 overs) | Duckett |
8 for 2 (3.4 overs) | Bethell |
8 for 3 (4.2 overs) | Crawley |
16 for 4 (7.6 overs) | Root |
66 for 5 (16.5 overs) | Brook |
68 for 6 (18.2 overs) | Smith |
77 for 7 (20.2 overs) | Jacks |
83 for 8 (21.1 overs) | Stokes |
91 for 9 (23.6 overs) | Carse |
110 for 10 (29.5 overs) | Atkinson |
| Batter | Runs | Balls | Dots | 4s | 6s | Minutes | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Boland,caught Smith, bowled Atkinson Boland, caught Smith, bowled Atkinson | 6 | 17 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 35.29 |
Head,bowled Carse Head, bowled Carse | 46 | 67 | 46 | 4 | 0 | 101 | 68.66 |
Weatherald,bowled Stokes Weatherald, bowled Stokes | 5 | 15 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 33.33 |
Labuschagne,caught Root, bowled Tongue Labuschagne, caught Root, bowled Tongue | 8 | 18 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 44.44 |
Smith,not out Smith, not out | 24 | 39 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 89 | 61.54 |
Khawaja,caught substitute, bowled Tongue Khawaja, caught substitute, bowled Tongue | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 |
Carey,caught Brook, bowled Carse Carey, caught Brook, bowled Carse | 4 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 66.67 |
Green,caught Brook, bowled Stokes Green, caught Brook, bowled Stokes | 19 | 29 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 65.52 |
Neser,caught and bowled Carse Neser, caught and bowled Carse | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.00 |
Starc,caught Root, bowled Carse Starc, caught Root, bowled Carse | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.00 |
Richardson,caught Crawley, bowled Stokes Richardson, caught Crawley, bowled Stokes | 7 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 70.00 |
Extras, no balls 3, wides 0, byes 4, leg byes 6, total 13 Extras, no balls 3, wides 0, byes 4, leg byes 6, total 13 | |||||||
Total,132 all out 34.3 overs Total,132 all out 34.3 overs |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Dots | No balls | Wides | 4s | 6s | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atkinson | 5.0 | 1 | 20 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.00 |
Carse | 11.0 | 3 | 34 | 4 | 49 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.09 |
Tongue | 11.0 | 2 | 44 | 2 | 48 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4.00 |
Stokes | 7.3 | 1 | 24 | 3 | 33 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.20 |
| Fall of wicket | Batter |
|---|---|
22 for 1 (6.1 overs) | Boland |
40 for 2 (10.5 overs) | Weatherald |
61 for 3 (17.1 overs) | Labuschagne |
82 for 4 (20.6 overs) | Head |
83 for 5 (21.3 overs) | Khawaja |
88 for 6 (22.5 overs) | Carey |
119 for 7 (30.5 overs) | Green |
120 for 8 (31.5 overs) | Neser |
121 for 9 (31.6 overs) | Starc |
132 for 10 (34.3 overs) | Richardson |
| Batter | Runs | Balls | Dots | 4s | 6s | Minutes | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crawley,leg before wicket, bowled Boland Crawley, leg before wicket, bowled Boland | 37 | 48 | 30 | 3 | 1 | 95 | 77.08 |
Duckett,bowled Starc Duckett, bowled Starc | 34 | 26 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 35 | 130.77 |
Carse,caught Green, bowled Richardson Carse, caught Green, bowled Richardson | 6 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 75.00 |
Bethell,caught Khawaja, bowled Boland Bethell, caught Khawaja, bowled Boland | 40 | 46 | 24 | 5 | 0 | 75 | 86.96 |
Root,leg before wicket, bowled Richardson Root, leg before wicket, bowled Richardson | 15 | 38 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 39.47 |
Brook,not out Brook, not out | 18 | 22 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 43 | 81.82 |
Stokes,caught Carey, bowled Starc Stokes, caught Carey, bowled Starc | 2 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 22.22 |
Smith,not out Smith, not out | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 150.00 |
Extras, no balls 5, wides 0, byes 8, leg byes 10, total 23 Extras, no balls 5, wides 0, byes 8, leg byes 10, total 23 | |||||||
Total,178 for 6 32.2 overs Total,178 for 6 32.2 overs |
| Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Dots | No balls | Wides | 4s | 6s | Economy rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Starc | 10.0 | 0 | 55 | 2 | 35 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 5.50 |
Neser | 8.0 | 1 | 54 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 6.75 |
Richardson | 5.2 | 1 | 22 | 2 | 22 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.12 |
Boland | 9.0 | 0 | 29 | 2 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.22 |
| Fall of wicket | Batter |
|---|---|
51 for 1 (6.6 overs) | Duckett |
65 for 2 (9.5 overs) | Carse |
112 for 3 (18.4 overs) | Crawley |
137 for 4 (24.3 overs) | Bethell |
158 for 5 (28.4 overs) | Root |
165 for 6 (31.2 overs) | Stokes |