A dramatic turn of events unfolded at the Perth Stadium in Western Australia, where Australia's batting line-up took control of the first Ashes Test. In a span of just six balls, Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc picked up three wickets, leaving England reeling at 76-5 on day two.
The Australian duo wreaked havoc on the English batsmen, dismissing Ollie Pope, Harry Brook, and Joe Root in quick succession. The rapid wicket-taking raised questions about the fragility of the English batting line-up, which has been struggling to find its footing against the Australian bowlers.
England's top order continued to struggle, with Pope, who had opened the innings alongside Jonny Bairstow, falling first to Boland. Brook and Root followed suit, with Starc taking his share of two wickets in the space of three balls.
The fall of Pope, Brook, and Root has left England on the back foot, with Australia looking set to dominate the match at this stage. The pressure is now squarely on the shoulders of Bairstow and Ben Stokes, who must come up with a resurgent innings to take England's chances of winning the Test alive.
The Perth Stadium crowd was electric throughout the session, sensing an imminent collapse from the English batsmen. With Australia taking control, all eyes are now fixed on how England can turn this match around and level the series.
The Australian duo wreaked havoc on the English batsmen, dismissing Ollie Pope, Harry Brook, and Joe Root in quick succession. The rapid wicket-taking raised questions about the fragility of the English batting line-up, which has been struggling to find its footing against the Australian bowlers.
England's top order continued to struggle, with Pope, who had opened the innings alongside Jonny Bairstow, falling first to Boland. Brook and Root followed suit, with Starc taking his share of two wickets in the space of three balls.
The fall of Pope, Brook, and Root has left England on the back foot, with Australia looking set to dominate the match at this stage. The pressure is now squarely on the shoulders of Bairstow and Ben Stokes, who must come up with a resurgent innings to take England's chances of winning the Test alive.
The Perth Stadium crowd was electric throughout the session, sensing an imminent collapse from the English batsmen. With Australia taking control, all eyes are now fixed on how England can turn this match around and level the series.
those australian bowlers r in top form! scott boland & mitchell starc are unstoppable 
76-5 is a huge gap to close, especially w/ australia dominating the match. bairstow & ben stokes need to step up their game ASAP 
cant believe england's top order is getting smashed like this 
scott boland and mitchell starc are on fire 
. pope, brook, and root all out in quick succession - it's like australia has a magic wand 
.
️. they're the only ones who can take england's chances of winning seriously. but it's gonna be tough 
. australia's bowlers are just too good right now 
. i'm guessing england will have to work really hard to get back into this test 
The way they're picking up wickets left and right is insane 
. And poor England, struggling to even get past 76 on the board? Not exactly the most confidence-boosting start 
. Now it's all about Bairstow and Stokes stepping up and saving their team from a complete meltdown 
. The pressure's on, but I think they've got this 
! Can't wait to see how the rest of the Test plays out 
The Aussie bowlers are having a MASSIVE day - 12 wickets between them so far 
! Meanwhile, England is looking really shaky - their batting average has dropped to 35.5 already 
. It'll be tough for Bairstow and Stokes to get out of this hole, but I'm keeping an eye on them 
they took out 3 wickets in like 6 balls lol England's batting line-up is so fragile rn 
it's like they cant even survive for 1 day without getting destroyed Australia is looking super strong right now 
or else England will be in big trouble 
they're getting thrashed at perth stadium like 3 wickets down in just 6 balls is crazy 
. The fact that three of their top batsmen (Pope, Brook, and Root) got out for just 19 runs on a day where they needed to post a big score is pretty alarming 
. Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow will have to pull some magic tricks out of their hats if England wants to get back into this match 
. It's not impossible, but it's gonna be a tough ask 
Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc are literally destroying the English batsmen! I mean, 3 wickets in just 6 balls is insane 
. Can't wait to see what happens next, this match is shaping up to be a real nail-biter 
it looks like ben stokes & jonny bairstow have their work cut out for them if they wanna save the match 
he's on fire right now 
anyway, this is getting intense. hope bairstow and stokes can somehow miraculously turn it around