The Ashes 2023: Australia hit England between Edgbaston showers

England were deed by a one-two punch from Australia successful a devastating 21-minute interruption successful the rainfall that ruined the 3rd time of the archetypal Ashes Test.

Ben Duckett poked Pat Cummins to gully, wherever Cameron Green took a trademark catch, and a shuffling Zak Crawley edged Scott Boland behind.

Joe Root was besides the taxable of a reappraisal disconnected Cummins earlier the 2nd and last dense ablution of the time allowed England to flight connected 28-2, 35 ahead.

All this came aft England had overmuch the amended of the adust morning, moving done the Australia little bid to assertion a first-innings pb of 7 runs.

After Usman Khawaja was out-thought by different ingenious program from Ben Stokes and bowled by Ollie Robinson for 141, Australia mislaid their past 4 wickets for 14 runs to beryllium dismissed for 386.

Robinson and Stuart Broad bounced retired the tail, each ending with 3 wickets.

Overall, 47.3 overs were mislaid to rain, with much forecast for time 5 connected Tuesday. The bedewed weather, wearing transportation and clash of styles adhd substance to what could beryllium a thrilling decision to an enthralling bid opener.

• How time 3 unfolded - relive the champion of the action

Soggy Sunday inactive afloat of action

Less than 33 overs of play were imaginable connected a soggy Sunday successful Birmingham, but determination was inactive clip for immoderate engrossing and melodramatic Test cricket.

England were superb successful the greeting session, taking vantage of Australia's deficiency of intent to perfectly execute immoderate cautiously laid plans and delight the riotous Hollies Stand.

But the Australian passiveness disappeared successful the tiny model betwixt the showers that arrived arsenic forecast aft lunch.

With the shot nibbling much than immoderate clip successful the match, Australia made the benign aboveground look afloat of danger. England were fortunate to get retired lone 2 down.

Monday is acceptable to beryllium dry, but the rainfall predicted for Tuesday volition person an power connected immoderate imaginable England declaration - if they bat agelong capable for that luxury.

There is the suspicion the transportation volition deteriorate and turn, successful mentation helping Moeen Ali. However, the England off-spinner has a nasty chopped connected his spinning digit that affected his bowling connected Sunday morning.

Australia surge nether slate sky

When England returned astatine 15:30 aft a 75-minute rainfall delay, Duckett and Crawley had everything to suffer and thing to gain. The clouds provided cleanable conditions for Australian gait bowlers that knew they could springiness their each to a short, crisp burst.

With the groundstaff readying themselves, Cummins hung the shot wide of disconnected stump and left-hander Duckett, arsenic is his wont, pushed astatine the ball. Green, who is gathering a catalogue of good gully catches, swooped debased to drawback the shot successful his near hand.

For the archetypal clip successful the Test, Australia played with classical Australian aggression. Gone were the bound sweepers employed for the full of England's archetypal innings, successful favour of 4 catchers.

In the adjacent over, Boland got Crawley for the 2nd clip successful the match, again with a quality that kissed the borderline connected the mode done to wicketkeeper Alex Carey. England had mislaid 2 wickets for nary runs successful the abstraction of 4 balls.

In their excitement, Australia screamed for an lbw determination against Root disconnected Boland, past a reappraisal disconnected Cummins detected nary borderline erstwhile Root had been fixed not retired connected the field.

Neither Root nor Ollie Pope had managed to get disconnected the people erstwhile the merciful accomplishment of torrential rainfall astatine 15:51 sent England to the sanctuary of the dressing room.

England blitz passive Aussies

From 311-5 overnight, 82 behind, Australia were marginal favourites to gain a pb and benefitted from Carey being enactment down disconnected the wrong borderline from James Anderson's archetypal implicit of the time - wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow's 3rd miss of the innings.

Despite Carey being bowled done the gross for 66 to springiness Anderson his 1,100th first-class wicket, Australia took 44 from the archetypal 8 overs of the day, chiefly due to the fact that the injured Moeen bowled poorly. When Moeen came off, Australia stalled and England pounced.

Khawaja scored 15 runs successful astir 100 minutes of batting, and six of those came successful 1 changeable disconnected Moeen. Though his advancement was slow, the left-hander was the obstruction betwixt England and a lead.

The came different ingenious Stokes plan. First Khawaja was faced with 4 catchers connected the limb side, past 3 connected either side. Perhaps expecting a cutter, oregon looking to compression the shot done the disconnected side, helium gave himself country and was beaten by Robinson's speared yorker.

Roaring successful triumph, Robinson was transformed from the bowler that struggled connected time two. He teamed with Broad for a short-ball program to the process that volition surely acceptable the signifier for the remainder of the series.

Nathan Lyon hooked to heavy quadrate leg, Boland fended limply to silly constituent and Cummins miscued to mid-wicket. Australia mislaid their past 4 wickets successful the abstraction of 22 deliveries.

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