Ashes in a nutshell: All you need to know from day four in Perth
Written by News on 17/12/2017
Mitchell Starc bowls the ball of the series before rain aids England’s hopes of a draw… all you need to know from a truncated day in Perth.
Mitchell Starc produced the delivery of the series to bowl James Vince as Australia closed in on an Ashes-clinching victory in the third Test before rain caused an early close on day four in Perth.
WHAT THEY SAID
England batsman, JAMES VINCE: “We have try to put the rain to the back of our minds. I haven’t seen a huge amount of rain during the time I’ve been in Perth. The two guys at the crease [Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan] spent a lot of time there in the first innings in slightly different conditions, but we’ve got to have belief that we can stay in the series.”
Australia seamer, JOSH HAZLEWOOD: “I think were in a pretty good position, obviously. We would have loved one more wickets but they’ve lost the wickets at the tail pretty quickly throughout the whole series.”
Sky Sports pundit, ROB KEY: “Starc’s ball is the best we have seen in any series for a long time, right up there with the best balls in Test cricket. I always work on the theory that if you see extravagant movement from that angle on TV then it feels twice as bad when you are facing it!
“Vince looked in good touch, so to get out like that was a real shame for him – Test cricket, in many ways, is about getting your first hundred, it’s what you are desperate for. Vince has played beautifully on two occasions and been undone by a run out, in Brisbane, and now by an unplayable delivery.”
MOMENT OF THE DAY
The seed of the series! Vince had batted excellently for his 55 and it took a tremendous delivery to remove him – Starc angling the ball in before it jagged back off a crack and clattered into Vince’s off-stump at circa 90 miles an hour. A paceman’s leg-break, if you will.
Starc’s moment of magic pushed Australia nearer a Test and series victory and rather outdid his fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood’s superb caught-and-bowled dismissal of Alastair Cook earlier in the day, Hazlewood lunging low to his right and grabbing one-handed in his follow through.
STAT OF THE DAY (from Sky Sports’ Benedict Bermange @Benedict_B)
Steve Smith and Mitchell Marsh’s partnership of 301 is the highest in Tests by two players whose first names and surnames start with the same letter – the previous best was 199 between Gordon (yes, I know his first given name was Cuthbert but he was known as Gordon!) Greenidge and Richie Richardson for the Windies against Australia at Bridgetown in 1991.
TWEETS OF THE DAY
Starc’s brilliant ball got the Twitterverse talking…
Ali Marton was grateful for the rain and hoping for more of it…
And others were just feeling glum…
THE KEY DEBATE
WATCH: ATHERS’ ASHES REVIEW
(c) Sky News 2017: Ashes in a nutshell: All you need to know from day four in Perth
