A soupy second day here was a return to the more natural rhythms of Test cricket; the other side, if you will, of the culture clash that has made this Ashes series so intriguing. Usman Khawaja compiled a delightful century to banish a few personal demons on these shores and with this Australia made England toil in the main.
As the players left the field after three hard-fought sessions, the tourists were 311 for five from 94 overs. Though still trailing by 82 runs after England’s jet-propelled 393 for eight declared the previous day, they had held firm in their trusted conventional approach. And through Khawaja’s 126 not out from 279 balls, plus an impish unbeaten 52 from Alex Carey, the match is evenly poised.
Khawaja was a treat. The 36-year-old has struggled in England before – the 54 made at Lord’s in 2013 his previous best – but he is a different beast these days. Over the course of three sessions, under a thick cable-knit jumper, he looked completely at ease, defending with a full face, pulling handsomely and driving languidly. Everything was done serenely bar reaching three-figures at 4.40pm, Khawaja letting out a guttural roar and tossing his bat high in the sky in celebration. What a moment for him.
Another came before the close when faced with the second new ball he was clean bowled by Stuart Broad with 112 runs to his name. But on a day when Broad struggled with the front line it soon became apparent this was the sixth time the 36-year-old had overstepped, the noise sucked out of the ground as Marais Erasmus held out his right arm and Khawaja turned back on his heels.
Things had started so promisingly for Broad when he removed David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne in successive deliveries and underlined why his retention in the side ahead of Mark Wood was probably prudent. Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson went wicketless in their first outing since injury niggles, while Ben Stokes, battling that knee problem, sent down only seven overs. That said, the England captain did claim the prized pelt of Steve Smith along the way.
With Moeen Ali’s return delivering the expected mix of threat and profligacy for figures of two for 124 from 29 overs, Australia were able to harvest their runs at 3.3 per over and move into a healthy position. They may have adjusted their bowling plans but when it comes to batting, to skew Bill Woodfull’s quote about Bodyline, there are two teams out there; one is playing Bazball and the other is not.
The morning session was the liveliest of the three once a whisper of humid mizzle had passed through and caused a five-minute delay. Stokes deployed seven bowlers before lunch – including Harry Brook for an over of his wrong-footed right-arm stuff – and saw three precious breakthroughs. Among them was the captain’s removal of Smith lbw for 16 runs, underlining that while that left knee may be barking like a dog, his right arm remains golden.
Smith could not believe what he was seeing when the big screen confirmed Australia were 67 for three in the 27th over, with the HawkEye projection returning three reds for a ball that struck him above the knee roll. Stokes was celebrating like Jack Grealish and Edgbaston was rocking once more, having briefly taken a collective breath following Broad’s earlier removals of Warner and Labuschagne.
This latest addition to Broad’s Ashes highlights reel was vintage stuff, even if it started with a bit of a gift. Bogged down by a string of maidens first thing, and having survived a late examination the night before, Warner was bowled off the inside edge in the seventh over of the day attempting an ugly hoik. There was no question about the follow-up however, Labuschagne irked by a police officer moving behind the bowler’s arm, Broad whipping up the crowd, and the outside edge duly tickled.
Here it was then, the fabled outswinger Broad said he had designed specifically for Australia’s No 3 two months ago. This was also a fine bit of bluff from bowler and captain – leg-slip and short midwicket suggesting a straight one was coming – plus a wonderful one-handed diving catch from Jonny Bairstow. Not that the Yorkshireman had it all his own way, missing a chance to stump Cameron Green second ball during the afternoon and seeing a sharp edge off Carey (26) go down late on when Joe Root was twirling away before the second new ball.
The first of those chances came as Australia dominated the second session, adding 110 runs to their lunchtime score of 78 for three for the loss of one wicket. Moeen was the bowler denied on a day when his qualities and limitations were both embraced fully by Stokes. The England captain had kept his off-spinner on and the field up during an assault from Khawaja and Travis Head, his patience rewarded when the latter, having just reached his half-century, skewed an intended six to short midwicket.
While Green survived his own early rush of blood and began to play himself in, Moeen eventually bowled the giant all-rounder for 38 after tea with a beauty that drew his mark forward with a ball that dipped and spun back into the stumps. This classical off-spinner’s dismissal may also augur well for England when it comes to the fourth innings – that is if they can first keep the cost of those late reprieves to a minimum.
