Jonny Bairstow falls one run short of a century after hammering 99 runs from 81 deliveries; England end day three with 162-run lead and Australia 113-4; watch day four live on Sky Sports Cricket on Saturday; Build-up starts at 10.15am with the first ball at 11am
Saturday 22 July 2023 09:15, UK
Jonny Bairstow's brilliant 99 runs from 81 deliveries and Mark Wood's three wickets helped England's push for victory as they lead by 162 after day three of the fourth Test at Emirates Old Trafford.
After Zak Crawley laid the groundwork on day two, Bairstow made himself the star of day three as he came heartbreakingly close to a well-earned century, ten fours and four sixes the standout moments from a sublime innings.
Combining with Lancashire's finest Jimmy Anderson (5), he powered England's lead past 250 but was ultimately left cruelly short of triple figures after his partner was dismissed lbw to a Cameron Green (2-64) delivery, leaving England on a healthy 592 and with a lead of 275.
The England No 7's place in the side throughout this entire series has been a hot topic of debate and so it was a moment for him to savour as he found the explosive form with the bat that made him the face of 'Bazball' in the summer of 2022.
With doubts over how much play will take place over the weekend due to heavy rain forecast, England looked to remove Australia's top order as efficiently as possible and Headingley hero Mark Wood (3-17) did exactly that, taking out the dangermen Usman Khawaja (18), Steve Smith (17), and Travis Head (1) as his partner in crime Chris Woakes (1-18) got David Warner (28) to leave Australia 113-4 and England leading by 162.
England resumed day three on 384-4 and Stokes (51) and Brook (61) made quick work of adding some more runs to an ever-growing tally, a half-century partnership coming from just 83 balls before the captain fell to Cummins (1-129) for his first wicket of the innings, Brook then hooking a Hazlewood (5-126) delivery to Starc on the boundary after reaching his third 50 of the series.
With Australia opting to take the new ball, wickets then started to fall in quicker succession, Woakes (0) and Wood (6) unable to make an impact as Hazlewood motored towards his five-for, England entering lunch 506-8 with a lead of 189 and 122 runs added.
During the Pakistan series, Stokes said to Sky Sports Cricket's Nasser Hussain 'Why would we send Jimmy Anderson out to bat?' rather than go for an aggressive declaration, but after Broad (7) fell for Hazlewood's fifth wicket of the innings, the skipper did exactly that.
Opting against an Edgbaston-esque declaration, Stokes sat back as England's No 11 got off the mark by smashing a four before playing an amusing, albeit scrappy, secondary role in Bairstow's rapid innings.
Bairstow worked at lightning speed, back-to-back sixes powering England past a lead of 250 as Anderson stole byes much to Australia's frustration.
However, the innings ultimately came to a cruel end as Anderson fell to Green with Bairstow just a single run short of triple figures. There was ample consolation in a lead of 275, six of England's top seven scoring 50 runs or more for the first time since 1930.
With the ever-present threat of bad weather lingering over the weekend, there was a sense that England wanted to make quick work of taking Australia's 10 wickets and with the Emirates Old Trafford crowd reaching fever pitch, England's first breakthrough came from Wood's second delivery as Khawaja got the faintest of edges behind to Bairstow, leaving Australia 39-1 at tea.
Woakes was then the next to strike, Warner chopping on to the stumps after a brilliant delivery, before Wood got back into the action again to take his 100th Test wicket at a pivotal moment, Smith playing a nothing shot for Bairstow to take and leave Australia 97-3.
Wood wasn't done there and claimed his three-for, Travis Head sending his 91mph delivery up and into the arms of the waiting Ben Duckett at gully and reducing Australia to 108-4.
As rain threatens to hamper the remainder of play, England will be looking to utilise every opportunity to rattle through Australia's remaining six wickets and keep alive their hopes of squaring the series at 2-2 and forcing an Ashes decider.
Watch day four live on Sky Sports Cricket on Saturday. Build-up starts at 10.15am with the first ball at 11am. Stream The Ashes and more with NOW for £21 a month.
