Cook's double ton keeps Australia silent
Beginning the day at 104 not out, Cook showed his class and grit by finishing another day unbeaten on 244 not out.
Well, it is fair to say that not a lot of people thought that the living legend would come back in this type of fashion. I guess that is what champions are made up off, when the going gets really tough, they know how to make it big.
Resuming day 3 at the MCG, England sat in a commanding position and Australia was begging for a wicket. It didn't take too long for the Aussies to get Joe Root out playing a fairly unnecessary pull shot. Whilst Alistair Cook continued his form from the second day, wickets continued to tumble down at the other end. Moeen Ali's poor series continued as he was out searching for form with an over-aggressive approach to leave the game back in the balance. But it was all too good for the Aussies as the lack of a destructive Mitchell Starc released a lot of the pressure from the tailenders as they too contributed to the scorecard for the first time in the series. In particular, Stuart Broad's innings of 56 must be widely applauded as his partnership with Cook ultimately allowed England's first innings to get well away from Australia.
Again, England have owned day 3 of this test match, as they slowly begin to take the game well in front of Australia and are beginning to lay the foundations for a victory. In particular, much is the reputation of Alistair Cook, his ability to not only make hundreds but big hundreds has totally lifted the England side and has certainly given the tourists all the momentum going into the fourth day.
Australia again looks completely lost without Mitchell Starc in the team and moreover, they look extremely fatigued. This is a common issue that has been present in the Australian team for some time, that they simply fail to perform when a key player is missing. It is understandable that without a player like Mitchell Starc blowing away the tail that the team is going to have a few setbacks, Australia needs a player to step up. No one has put their hand up to consistently apply pressure on the tourists as Broad punished the Australians and their poor bowling tactics.
I think that at the end of day three, there is no doubt that England is well in front of the game. With only one wicket left in hand and a lead of 164, every run from tomorrow is going to be a bonus. I would assume that England will look to take the game as far as they can before lunch and certainly if given the chance a triple century may be on the cards depending on James Anderson's batting.
Australia needs to catch better, there is no doubt about that. Dropped catches in this game have cost the hosts plenty of runs and it is a clear sign that they have not taken the right intent into this game. Australia has almost taken their foot off England's throat and let them back into this game.
This game I suspect is set to be an absolute cracker as England have given themselves a chance to win a game and let's hope that Australia can show some fight on the fourth day.
Well, it is fair to say that not a lot of people thought that the living legend would come back in this type of fashion. I guess that is what champions are made up off, when the going gets really tough, they know how to make it big.
Resuming day 3 at the MCG, England sat in a commanding position and Australia was begging for a wicket. It didn't take too long for the Aussies to get Joe Root out playing a fairly unnecessary pull shot. Whilst Alistair Cook continued his form from the second day, wickets continued to tumble down at the other end. Moeen Ali's poor series continued as he was out searching for form with an over-aggressive approach to leave the game back in the balance. But it was all too good for the Aussies as the lack of a destructive Mitchell Starc released a lot of the pressure from the tailenders as they too contributed to the scorecard for the first time in the series. In particular, Stuart Broad's innings of 56 must be widely applauded as his partnership with Cook ultimately allowed England's first innings to get well away from Australia.
Again, England have owned day 3 of this test match, as they slowly begin to take the game well in front of Australia and are beginning to lay the foundations for a victory. In particular, much is the reputation of Alistair Cook, his ability to not only make hundreds but big hundreds has totally lifted the England side and has certainly given the tourists all the momentum going into the fourth day.
Australia again looks completely lost without Mitchell Starc in the team and moreover, they look extremely fatigued. This is a common issue that has been present in the Australian team for some time, that they simply fail to perform when a key player is missing. It is understandable that without a player like Mitchell Starc blowing away the tail that the team is going to have a few setbacks, Australia needs a player to step up. No one has put their hand up to consistently apply pressure on the tourists as Broad punished the Australians and their poor bowling tactics. I think that at the end of day three, there is no doubt that England is well in front of the game. With only one wicket left in hand and a lead of 164, every run from tomorrow is going to be a bonus. I would assume that England will look to take the game as far as they can before lunch and certainly if given the chance a triple century may be on the cards depending on James Anderson's batting.
Australia needs to catch better, there is no doubt about that. Dropped catches in this game have cost the hosts plenty of runs and it is a clear sign that they have not taken the right intent into this game. Australia has almost taken their foot off England's throat and let them back into this game.
This game I suspect is set to be an absolute cracker as England have given themselves a chance to win a game and let's hope that Australia can show some fight on the fourth day.
Comments
Post a Comment