Mike Atherton: Exactly thirty-five years ago, at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the best view in the house belonged to me: 22 yards away from David Gower, who made one of the loveliest of his 18 Test hundreds, all gossamer touch and timing. I was much further away this time, and the eyes may not be quite what they were, but there was an unmistakable echo of that memorable innings watching the curly-mopped Jacob Bethell ease to his maiden Test, and first-class, hundred.
• Read our chief cricket correspondent’s full report here
‘To have my family here was special’
Here’s the man himself as Jacob Bethell speaks to TNT Sports.
He said: “It still hasn’t really sunk in. To have my family here was special. There’s something about cricket — I was on 99, they bring up the field and then suddenly you’re like, oh! But nobody has more control over it [reaching a century] than you do.
“I found a real nice zone in terms of scoring. That [century] will give me the world of confidence, mainly because people will stop talking about it.”
‘Bethell is the future of English batting’
Alastair Cook has been speaking about Jacob Bethell’s brilliant knock on TNT Sports.
Cook said: “There’s been so much talk about him. We must give the selectors some credit as they’ve seen something in him. He’s had to work for his chance but my word has he taken it. He’s just shown the future of English batting. There’s a lot of Australians here purring at this.”
Justin Langer, the former Australia player and head coach, adds: “He plays like Joe Root and all the greats play. You wear them down, and you cash in.”
Elizabeth Ammon: So that is stumps and this Ashes series is going into a final day. But today was the day that Jacob Bethell proved, despite his lack of first-class experience, that he really belongs on the international stage. He has given England a chance in this Test and it has been an innings of class and determination against a relentless Australian bowling attack.
Beau Webster finished the day with three wickets and played an absolutely crucial role with his part-time spin in just his eighth Test appearance. It could be a fascinating final day.
That catch by Steve Smith to dismiss Brydon Carse was his 215th in Test cricket — just one behind Joe Root, who has the all-time record.
Elizabeth Ammon: Slightly curious tactics from Steve Smith to keep bowling the part-timers but after allowing the Brydon Carse-Jacob Bethell partnership to milk 29 in 4.4 overs, he’s turned back to a frontline bowler in Scott Boland.
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It immediately pays dividends as Carse edges to Steve Smith at slip. Alex Carey was up to the stumps keeping Carse a bit stuck on the crease.
Elizabeth Ammon: England’s opening partnership of Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett added 191 in ten innings. Only one pair who have opened together that many times in a series have done worse — John Dyson and Graeme Wood, who made 186 in ten innings in the 1981 Ashes.
The lowest aggregate opening partnership for all teams in a five-match series is 197 by Australia in 2019 — David Warner played the whole series and made 95 — Cameron Bancroft made 44 in the first two matches and was then dropped in favour of Marcus Harris who made 58 in three.
Elizabeth Ammon: So Ben Stokes finishes his series with the bat with 184 runs at an average of 18.40 — well under what he would have wanted or expected of himself. Jamie Smith finishes with 211 at 23.44.
With the wicket of Stokes, Jacob Bethell now has to take on a new role — working out how to shepherd the tail and try to get the lead up over 100 and beyond.
Ben Stokes was clearly in trouble having suffered that earlier injury and his restricted range of movement has done for him here.
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The captain, unable to move his feet, nicks the ball into the slips where the grateful Steve Smith takes a sharp catch. England slump to 267 for seven.
It’s an absolute disaster for Jamie Smith with the first ball after the drinks break, which just about sums up his tour.
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There’s a mix-up between him and Jacob Bethell after the latter pulls Marnus Labuschagne round the corner and the pair engage in a mid-pitch dance. The throw comes in to Labuschagne at the non-striker’s end and away the bails go.
CAMERON SPENCER/GETTY IMAGES
After a quiet Travis Head over, Steve Smith has thrown the ball to Marnus Labuschagne to bowl at Jamie Smith. It’s top-tier trolling from the Australia captain, to be fair.
A couple of easy singles, and Smith, who will have been having nightmares about Labuschagne, survives.
Simon Wilde: However this Test match finishes — and an England defeat certainly looks the likeliest outcome — it will be remembered for a brilliant maiden Test century by Jacob Bethell.
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Great things have long been expected of him and he has delivered with an exquisitely crafted innings that began early when Zak Crawley again fell in Mitchell Starc’s first over. Bethell always looked in control and dealt calmly with the short ball, even after he was clattered on the side of the helmet on 27 by a Cameron Green bouncer. He shared stands of 81 with Ben Duckett, 32 with Joe Root and 102 with Harry Brook to take England to a position of relative serenity at 219 for three — a lead of 36 — before Brook and Will Jacks fell in the same over to Beau Webster’s off-breaks.
The day got off to a bad start when Ben Stokes left the field inside the first half hour with an adductor injury and he did not bat in his usual position. Josh Tongue removed Steve Smith for 139 and Starc for five before Jacks ended Australia’s innings at 567, a lead of 183.
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Bethell, watched by his family, becomes at 22 years and 76 days old the fifth youngest England batsman to score an Ashes century in Australia after Jack Hearne, David Gower, Alastair Cook and Colin Cowdrey, and the sixth English player to make his maiden first-class hundred in a Test match. This is Bethell’s 28th first-class match.
Hello and welcome to The Times’ live coverage of day four of the fifth Ashes Test between England and Australia in Sydney.
It’s been a mixed bag if you’re an England fan, with Jacob Bethell’s first Test century offset by quick dismissals for Harry Brook and Will Jacks and an injury to the captain Ben Stokes.