England 4/180 (68 ov. Cook 72/153b/10x4, Carberry 45) trail Australia 385 (103.3ov, Smith 111/208b/2x6 14x4, Warner 60, Haddin 55, Broad 3/100) by 205 runs on 1st inns: T3/5 D2/5 at WACA Perth.
England regrouped well to wrap up Australia's first innings for 385, and then made a good fist of chasing 385 until the Perth heat induced some errors from their batters and one from the umpires which left them well behind Australia.
Captain (Alistair) Cook's innings was gritty and determined. Michael Carberry's was more fluent, but after putting on 85 for the first wicket, when ideally 250 was needed, Carberry was bowled by Ryan Harris. Then Joe Root was cruelly given out by on field umpire Erasmus (who hesitated before deciding). This was upheld on the flimsiest of video evidence by TV umpire Hill ( Kerry O'Keefe on ABC Radio described snicko as registering a fly breaking wind) This is not how the DRS is supposed to work.
Thereafter Cook hung in, but wasn't able to impose his authority on the game against some very tight Australian bowling. Even so it was a surprise when he cut a shortish Nathan Lyon delivery to point. At 72 he'd gone some way towards making his point, but not far enough.
It was also a surprise to see Kevin Pietersen,who'd looked to be digging in for a big innings,holing out to mid on (a great Aussie Rules mark by Johnson). But then that's KP, isn't it?
England had a better, albeit not good enough, day today. Yet it's hard to see them matching Australia's first innings score let alone building a big enough lead to let their bowlers loose in a third innings on a pitch which already has some very wide cracks. And the heat is expected to continue.
<a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2013-14/engine/match/592399.html">Scorecard</a>
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