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WICKET! Archer c Labuschagne b Doggett 38 (England 333-10)<\/p>\n
Archer launches, looking for a six. The ball was back of a length and the big quick spun on his hip and sent it high into the vast outfield of the Gabba. Brisbane boy Marnus Labuschagne saw it coming early and sprinted to meet it, jumping full-length to his right and plucking the catch. Superb grab! England are ALL OUT!<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a023.17 EST<\/p>\n 76th over: England 333-9 (Root 137, Archer 38) Mitchell Starc enters the attack. Can he continue his remarkable run of dismissals in the first over of a spell? Archer attacks from the get-go, stepping out to a full delivery and driving handsomely to the rope. Great shot! Starc hangs the next one wider and it wobbles past Archer\u2019s flashing blade. Starc reclaims his line on the next three and Archer is happy to bank his boundary and watch them sail by.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 75th over: England 329-9 (Root 137, Archer 34) In his second Test, Doggett was ineffective yesterday, finishing with 0-74. He starts today with a short ball. Root pulls it but finds a fielder. He steers the second one behind square for a single. Jofra Archer adds another run to his highest Test score, swatting another short one. The easy runs for England continue as Root swipes to fine leg. Archer does likewise, ducking and hooking. Four singles, zero threat.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a023.05 EST<\/p>\n Here we go. Brendan Doggett will open the attack for Australia and he\u2019ll be bowling to Joe Root on 135.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n We have sunny skies in Brisbane and the mercury is currently at its highest level \u2013 a toasty 28 degrees. Conditions will start cooling off after the 6.32pm AEST sunset as we enter the \u201cwitching hour\u201d of pink ball Tests. Presuming Australia snatch this tenth wicket quickly, where will the home side be by then?<\/p>\n Here come the players onto the field\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Mitchell Starc might\u2019ve had Ben Duckett\u2019s measure yesterday but his opening partner Zak Crawley did much better. With Joe Root in company, Crawley stood tall for England to pile on a 117-run stand and drag his side out of the abyss of 5 for 2 and stroke them into a position of superiority at 122 for 3.<\/p>\n Crawley had carved 76 from 93 balls with 11 fours in 138 minutes before he became Michael Neser\u2019s sole victim. Simon Burnton enjoyed the big man\u2019s bounce-back from his double-duck disaster in the first Test in Perth.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Mitchell Starc continued his incredible record of striking in the first over yesterday, sending Ben Duckett on his way from the sixth ball of the Test.<\/p>\n It is the 26th time Starc has struck in the first over of a Test innings. England\u2019s Jimmy Anderson is next (19), Kemar Roach (10) and Stuart Broad (nine) follow and New Zealanders Tim Southee (nine) and Trent Boult (nine) are also first-over demolition experts.<\/p>\n Starc also got some high praise overnight from the man whose 414 Test wickets he surpassed yesterday. Wasim Akram got his 414 from 104 Tests at 23.62 while Starc has his from 103 Tests at a higher average but a superior strike-rate.<\/p>\n Super Starc! Proud of you, mate. Your incredible hard work sets you apart, and it was only a matter of time before you crossed my tally of wickets . I am pleased to give this to you! Go well, and keep soaring to new heights in your stellar career . \ud83d\ude4f\ud83d\ude4f@mstarc56<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Wasim Akram (@wasimakramlive) December 4, 2025<\/a>Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a022.45 EST<\/p>\n England\u2019s fans found some villains of their own, with no less than four of their side \u2013 Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Jamie Smith and Brydon Carse \u2013 failing to trouble the scorer. Of those donut kings, Max Rushden reserved special scorn for one English batter\u2026<\/p>\n It\u2019s impossible to write this without saying the F word repeatedly. Just leave it outside the off stump. Surely there\u2019s been some self-reflection since Perth. Surely. IT ISN\u2019T THERE TO BE HIT. The whole Ashes is disappearing before our eyes.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n But if you\u2019re English, Joe Root was the rolled gold star of the opening day. Having closely followed Root\u2019s rise and 13,551 runs since his Test debut in 2012, Barney Ronay was happy to rhapsodise about the Yorkie terrier\u2019s rescue job in Brisbane.<\/p>\n Follow the story, the craft, the jags in the road, the pieces this thing takes out of you along the way. And at the end of it you have one of those great self-contained sporting moments, the sense of emotional connection through all the surrounding hoopla, the way Test cricket in particular can make you feel you know someone intimately just by watching them move and work and fail and come back.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a022.29 EST<\/p>\n If you\u2019re a hometown supporter, Australia\u2019s selectors were the villains of day one, leaving an \u201cabsolutely filthy\u201d Nathan Lyon our of the side to play Gabba specialist Michael Neser, and Mitchell Starc was again the conquering hero.<\/p>\n Geoff Lemon paid fitting tribute to the big quick from Penrith who saved his side\u2019s blushes (again) and whose sterling six-for swept him past the 414 dismissals of the great Wasim Akram to make Starc the most prolific left-arm quick of all.<\/p>\n In a series supposed to be defined by Australia\u2019s fast-bowling Big Three, he has done the work as the sole member to make the starting line. With one English wicket left to fall and his tally on six for 46, he was on the brink of the remarkable feat of recording career-best figures for the fourth time in less than 12 months.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a022.31 EST<\/p>\n For those who came in late\u2026 here\u2019s our blow-by-blow, over-by-over coverage of day one.<\/p>\n