Joe Root fell in the last over of the fourth day Sunday to leave England in deep trouble at 82 for four, chasing a massive 468 to win the second Ashes Test, and needed a historic miracle to prevent him from falling 2- 0 in the series slumped. No team has ever scored such a high in a fourth innings to win in Test cricket history — with the West Indian 418 for seven beating Steve Waugh’s Australia at St John’s in 2003 the highest. It’s an even harder task at the Adelaide Oval, where Australia’s 315 for six to beat England in 1902 remains the best chase in the fourth inning.
England’s problems stem from the fact that it was thrown out on Saturday, after a strike, for 236 in response to Australia’s 473 for nine.
They reached the end on day four with the ailing skipper Root in the last remaining of the day, leaving Ben Stokes unable to finish three.
Still 386 runs adrift, England face the near-impossible task of completing three sessions on the final day to save a draw with just six wickets left and the world’s number one ranked Test batsman back in the game. pavilion.
The hosts resumed their second innings at 45 for one and declared at 230 for nine midway through the second session, giving their bowlers a bullseye in England with the pink ball as dusk loomed.
They immediately pushed through with Jhye Richardson steaming over to Haseeb Hameed and flying the ball from his glove to wicketkeeper Alex Carey without scoring.
Dawid Malan, who hit 80 in the first innings, was dropped by Steve Smith, but only lasted three balls before debutant Michael Neser caught him lbw for 20.
Desperate for a big score after a lean spell, opener Rory Burns came to 34, but was then beaten by Richardson’s sheer pace, sending him shove to Smith on a skid.
Root hurt his abdomen during a warm-up that saw him miss the opening for 85 minutes while going for a scan.
He appeared largely undisturbed while hitting, but received a vicious blow to the same area late in the day from Mitchell Starc, causing him to squirm to the ground in pain.
Root got up cautiously, but was left with a huge blow out for 24 in the final, caught by Carey on Starc.
With England crashing out by nine wickets in the first Test in Brisbane, their hopes of going into the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne in just a week’s time have all but evaporated.
A 2-0 deficit in the five-game run means the Ashes are all but gone. The only example of a team coming down 2-0 to win the urn was by Australia in the 1936-37 series.
Hero and Villain Buttler
Previously, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head both made 51 for Australia, stabilizing the innings after England took three quick wickets for seven runs to start the day.
Interim skipper Smith could have forced the sequel late Saturday, but chose to send in his batsmen to build an unassailable advantage.
Marcus Harris resumed not out 21 on Sunday with night watchman Neser at two after losing David Warner to an amateur run the night before.
Neser survived just seven balls before a full length Jimmy Anderson delivery rattled his middle stump, and Harris headed off to a blinding catch from wicketkeeper Jos Buttler after getting a nick from Stuart Broad.
Buttler’s celebrations were short lived when he incredibly missed a legal catch from Smith the next ball, in a gaffe reminiscent of the two sitters he put down in Labuschagne’s first innings.
But he soon went from villain to hero again by taking another nice dive catch to remove Smith for six from Ollie Robinson.
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Head played with a fast clip to reach an eighth half-century of the Test with 49 balls, but then pulled Robinson to Ben Stokes in the deep end.
Labuschagne took 96 balls to reach his 50, but also made a hole to Stokes, where he became part-time spinner Malan’s first Test wicket, for late cameos prior to the statement.
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