Advertisement

Top order rescues England after Nathan Lyon puts his money where his mouth is at the Gaba on day one of the Ashes

Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

When you shout the odds in sport, you had better make sure you can back it up on the field. Sadly for England, Nathan Lyon did precisely that on a compelling opening day of the Ashes.

Usually considered a low-key character, Lyon surprised everyone this week. The Australian accused England players of being ‘scared’ during the 2013-14 whitewash and then, for good measure, said he hoped to end the careers of some of the current generation during this series.

Lyon has not yet achieved that, but he did deny James Vince a maiden Test hundred with a brilliant direct hit that saw the England batsman run out for 83, at a crucial time of the day. He also bowled 24 overs of beguiling off-spin, during which Vince was dropped.

Either side of Lyon’s strike, Pat Cummins removed Mark Stoneman for 53 and took the key wicket of captain Joe Root, lbw on review for 15. When bad light stopped play, England were 196 for four, Dawid Malan surviving an lbw review on 28 against Mitchell Starc, from the last delivery of the day. Moeen Ali is unbeaten on 13.

Australia have made it pretty clear that Alastair Cook and Root are the only England batsmen they respect, so they had the ideal start when Cook fell for two.

Starc quickly found a tempting line and Cook, still trying to get his bearings at the crease, attempted a drive and edged to Peter Handscomb at first slip.

Australia were chipper. They had two Ashes rookies at the crease, they were protecting a 29-year unbeaten record in Tests at the Gabba, and batsmen David Warner and Shaun Marsh had passed fitness checks on neck and back injuries respectively.

Not surprisingly, Root had chosen to bat after winning the toss, and confirmed the team that was anticipated, with Jake Ball given the nod over Craig Overton. Moeen was promoted to No6 and Jonny Bairstow stayed at No7.

Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Had the pre-series narrative held true, Vince and Stoneman (above) would have departed quickly, yet both played sensibly, benefiting from a slower wicket than is traditional at the Gabba.

Luckily for Australia, Lyon’s bowling is considerably cleverer than his choice of words and when he was introduced from the Stanley Street End he found turn immediately. Both Stoneman and Vince looked tentative, particularly when the off-spinner generated extra bounce.

Still, England reached lunch with nine wickets intact after a quiet opening session that yielded only 59 runs. After a 95-minute delay for rain, Vince played more expansively and started to take more risks. He moved past his highest Test score of 42 with a back-foot drive on the up off Cummins that nearly fell into the hands of short extra-cover.

Soon afterwards, Vince collected his first Test fifty and Stoneman continued to look unruffled at the other end. The Surrey batsman has passed 50 in every innings on tour and he extended that sequence on his debut Ashes knock, but added only three more runs before he was beaten for pace by Cummins and bowled through the gate. Stoneman looked utterly dejected, sinking to his haunches and gazing at the pitch before shuffling back to the pavilion.

Had Tim Paine’s glovework been sharper, Stoneman would have been Australia’s third wicket. Vince had made 68 when Lyon found the outside edge, only for the ball to clang against the gauntlets and bounce to safety.

Paine had been brought back for his first Test since 2010 precisely because he was supposed to provide security behind the stumps. How the Australia selectors must have winced.

Realising he could not rely on his team-mates, Lyon decided to take matters into his own hands. With only 17 needed for his hundred, Vince pushed Josh Hazlewood into the off side and attempted a risky single. Lyon charged around from point, collected the ball cleanly and threw down the stumps, before celebrating extravagantly as most of the 35,000 inside the Gabba roared their approval.

Photo: Getty Images
Photo: Getty Images

Lyon was soon restored to the attack and managed to tie down Root, who was keen to push the score on but could not unsettle his adversary, a former team-mate in club cricket in Adelaide. The skipper looked uncertain and was relieved to see debutant Cameron Bancroft fail to claim a tough chance and short leg when Root had 15. Root did not add to that score, however, as he played across one from Cummins that thundered into his pads and ended his innings on review.

The top order had shown great caution against Lyon but Moeen was never likely to be as circumspect, and he produced one of the moments of the day with a slog-sweep that sailed over the ropes in front of square.

The Aussies believe Moeen has a weakness against the short stuff, though, and it was no surprise when Cummins welcomed him to the crease by whistling one past his grille. The new ball brought the review against Malan before the umpires took the players off, much to the annoyance of Aussie captain Steve Smith.