{"id":331200,"date":"2025-12-06T14:45:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-06T14:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/331200\/"},"modified":"2025-12-06T14:45:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-06T14:45:08","slug":"gabba-test-australia-vs-england-second-test-day-3-talking-points-mitchell-starc-batting-and-bowling-ollie-pope-frustrations-brydon-carse-nathan-lyon-video-highlights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/331200\/","title":{"rendered":"Gabba Test, Australia vs England Second Test Day 3 Talking Points, Mitchell Starc batting and bowling, Ollie Pope frustrations, Brydon Carse, Nathan Lyon, video, highlights"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australia is on the verge of taking a 2-0 lead in the Ashes series after an all-round masterclass from Mitchell Starc on day three at the Gabba.<\/a><\/p>\n

England is reeling at 6-134 at stumps, still trailing by 43 runs, with captain Ben Stokes and all-rounder Will Jacks unbeaten in the middle.<\/p>\n

Earlier on Saturday, the hosts posted 511 courtesy of a gutsy knock from Starc, who top-scored with a 141-ball 77 to frustrate England\u2019s fatigued bowlers in the harsh Brisbane heat.<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s seamers wreaked havoc with the pink Kookaburra under the floodlights during the evening session, with Starc, Scott Boland and Michael Neser each snaring two wickets.<\/p>\n

Day four of the second Ashes Test begins on Sunday at 3pm AEDT.<\/p>\n

Watch The Ashes 2025\/26 LIVE and ad-break free during play with FOX CRICKET on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

‘Challenging Day’ Trescothick on England | 06:54<\/p>\n

STARC TORMENTS POMS IN \u2018CRUSHING\u2019 SESSION<\/p>\n

England speedster Jofra Archer arrived at the Gabba on Saturday with a pillow wedged under his arm, perhaps an indication he expected to enjoy a nap after wrapping up Australia\u2019s first innings.<\/p>\n

In the end, the pillow wasn\u2019t required.<\/p>\n

Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland were Australia\u2019s unlikely heroes during the afternoon session of day three, holding down the fort for nearly 29 overs in a gritty 75-run partnership for the ninth wicket, extending Australia\u2019s first-innings lead beyond triple figures. Incredibly, it was the longest partnership of the series thus far.<\/p>\n

The duo\u2019s two-hour stand allowed Australia to unleash the shiny, pink Kookaburra during the twilight session, when the floodlights were starting to take effect. The shadows grew longer in the Gabba outfield with every over Starc and Boland soaked up, also ensuring conditions were cooler when they bowled their opening spell later in the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course you want to be bowling as close to twilight and under lights with a ball that is hard as possible, and they did that really well,\u201d England assistant coach Marcus Trescothick told reporters at stumps.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s full credit to them. They\u2019ve done it and put us in a tricky position.\u201d<\/p>\n

Early in the session, Starc protected his partner from the likes of Archer and Bryson Carse by farming the strike, rejecting easy singles to keep Boland at the non-striker\u2019s end.<\/p>\n

In an attempt to get Boland on strike, England captain Ben Stokes emptied the slips cordon and spread the field, allowing Starc to dictate the game. He crunched wide balls through the covers, nudged expertly through square leg and even struck a couple of powerful lofted drives down the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Starc) is creating all sorts of headaches for Stokes and his men,\u201d former Test wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist said on Fox Cricket commentary.<\/p>\n

Ex-Australian all-rounder Brendon Julian added: \u201cIt has been a crushing session for England.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, England\u2019s fatigued fast bowlers were forced to toil away in the harsh Brisbane heat, and courtesy of the team\u2019s aggressive approach to the batting, the quicks knew they were unlikely to get a lengthy break to rest their weary legs.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of the biggest issues for England\u2019s Bazballers, with their bowling attack often riddled by injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s one of the better first sessions of Test cricket I\u2019ve watched in a while,\u201d wounded Australian captain Pat Cummins smirked in commentary.<\/p>\n

\u201cPumping a few more overs into the bowlers in the hot Brisbane sun \u2026 the more overs we put into the bowlers, the more it compounds in our favour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trescothick added: \u201cOur bowlers had been in the field for best part of 100 overs come the back-end.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the heat for the majority of today, obviously in the sun, of course that makes it more challenging.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starc notches up his half-century | 00:26<\/p>\n

ENGLAND QUICK\u2019S UNWANTED 71-YEAR LOW<\/p>\n

Despite taking four wickets during Australia\u2019s first innings, England seamer Brydon Carse had another day to forget at the Gabba.<\/p>\n

He finished with figures of 4-152 from 29 overs, making it the most expensive spell from an England fast bowler in Australia since 1954.<\/a><\/p>\n

The 30-year-old was repeatedly guilty of dropping short and offering width, with Australia\u2019s batters feasting on his wayward bowling. Even tailender Boland looked completely unfazed by the South Africa-born quick.<\/p>\n

An outspoken critic of Carse\u2019s on Friday, Australian great Mark Waugh declared the Englishman was \u201call over the place\u201d on day three.<\/p>\n

\u201cLoose bowling, that\u2019s been the story of the whole innings,\u201d Waugh said in commentary.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s just the wrong length to bowl.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former England seamer Isa Guha continued: \u201cSix balls, six different lengths.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking to Fox Cricket, former Test spinner Kerry O\u2019Keeffe suggested that Carse struggled to adjust his length when bowling to left-handed batters, identifying his Achilles\u2019 heel.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know whether the statistics back it up, but I reckon Carse has a real problem with the left-hander, just a trend that I\u2019ve noticed,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just seems to give off-side width so often.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe looks far more comfortable bowling to the right-hander.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis fella is the weak link when the opposition is packed with left-handers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statistics indeed back up the theory – during this series, right-handed batters have maintained a strike rate of 67.3 against Carse compared to 108.3 for the southpaws.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t know what channel to bowl,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis guy doesn\u2019t like bowling the lefties.\u201d<\/p>\n

Atkinson claims his first of the Innings | 00:33<\/p>\n

\u2018LOOK AWAY\u2019: LYON\u2019S FRUSTRATION HEIGHTENED<\/p>\n

Will Jacks\u2019 first delivery after the dinner break on Saturday raised plenty of eyebrows.<\/p>\n

The pink Kookaburra turned sharply off the surface and generated plenty of bounce, prompting oohs and aahs from his English teammates.<\/p>\n

Jacks had only bowled two overs in the match up to that point, but the off-spinner remained at the Stanley Street End for the remainder of Australia\u2019s first innings, beating the outside edge on multiple occasions.<\/p>\n

Nathan Lyon, donning an orange vest, watched on from the dugout with gritted teeth.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook away now, Nathan Lyon,\u201d Australian legend Adam Gilchrist said on Fox Cricket commentary.<\/p>\n

The veteran tweaker\u2019s shock omission had already prompted plenty of debate in Brisbane, but the sight of Jacks unearthing turn drew the ire of O\u2019Keeffe.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s grip, there\u2019s bounce, there\u2019s pace,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s exactly why a finger spinner at the Gabba is crucial after day three.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Jacks) bounced it a couple of times, which heightens Nathan Lyon\u2019s frustration.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Keeffe believed that Jacks should have been brought into the attack earlier, questioning why the Surrey all-rounder only produced six balls across the first 97 overs of Australia\u2019s innings.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just thought there were chances to bowl him, even (Friday) night,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was so much sameness about the (English) attack, blokes bowling 130km\/h and the same trajectory, every ball.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe can\u2019t have been picked just to bat at No. 8.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Keeffe also called for Jacks, who finished the innings with 1-34 from 11.3 overs, to play the third Test at Adelaide Oval, arguing he had leapfrogged forgotten spinner Shoaib Bashir in the pecking order.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got enough to play in Adelaide,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe added.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe loops it. He bowls outside the off stump and looks to go through the gate, and he has the one that holds its line towards slip.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a bit about Will Jacks, and I just hope that McCullum and Stokes get more out of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018RECKLESS\u2019: ENGLAND NO. 3\u2019S MINDSET \u2018BRINGING HIM DOWN\u2019<\/p>\n

Ollie Pope was living a charmed life at the Gabba on Saturday evening.<\/p>\n

The England No. 3 never truly looked settled in the middle, repeatedly pressing at length deliveries with minimal to no foot movement. An edge dropped short of the slips cordon, while on multiple occasions his drives were airborne, narrowly evading fielders.<\/p>\n

His dismissal felt like an inevitability, chipping a return catch back to hometown hero Michael Neser, gone for 26.<\/p>\n

And Pope\u2019s stubborn willingness to continue driving on the up in bouncy conditions didn\u2019t go unnoticed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou just can\u2019t play that way at this level,\u201d former England captain Michael Vaughan said on BBC Test Match Special.<\/p>\n

\u201cEngland will always play this way, but surely if they want to be a good team, they have to go up and down in the gears.\u201d<\/p>\n

Across seven Tests against Australia, Pope has averaged 18.71 with no fifties. Starc boasts a higher batting average in the Ashes furnace.<\/p>\n

\u201c(Pope\u2019s) desire to keep attacking and keep imposing himself on the bowling unit is what\u2019s bringing him down,\u201d former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist told Fox Cricket at the Gabba.<\/p>\n

\u201cTonight was reckless. It just looked like reckless cricket.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all a little bit too predictable from what we\u2019ve seen in four innings so far (this series).<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a bit for him to think about before he goes to Adelaide.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pope lost the vice-captaincy ahead of the Ashes tour, while the Surrey product remains at risk of losing his spot at No. 3 to young all-rounder Jacob Bethell.<\/p>\n

However, during recent tour matches against the Cricket Australia XI, Prime Minister\u2019s XI and Australia A, Bethell has posted scores of 44, 16 and 19, so he\u2019s hardly bashing the door down the selection.<\/p>\n

But England\u2019s selectors may be tempted to make a change if Pope doesn\u2019t turn things around in Adelaide next week.<\/p>\n

Starc claims the Wicket of Root for 15 | 00:38<\/p>\n

THIS IS STARC\u2019S SUMMER<\/p>\n

Five days into the Ashes, it\u2019s already clear this is Mitchell Starc\u2019s summer.<\/p>\n

The left-hander\u2019s feats with the ball across the first two Tests have been awe-inspiring, taking 18 wickets at 13.11 including a career-best performance of 7-58 in Perth.<\/p>\n

But Starc has also now produced a heroic performance with the bat. <\/p>\n

The New South Welshman top-scored in Australia\u2019s first innings with 141-ball 77 that featured 13 boundaries. It was his third-highest score in Tests, while it was the most delivered he\u2019s faced in an innings since 2013.<\/p>\n

Starc has faced more deliveries in this series than Ollie Pope, Ben Duckett, Jamie Smith and Harry Brook, while he\u2019s taken more wickets than Bryson Carse, Gus Atkinson and Jofra Archer combined.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the history of Test cricket, has there ever been a time where at the end of game two, the presentation party has announced the man of the match and the man of the series?\u201d Vaughan asked on BBC Test Match Special. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey might as well give it to Mitchell Starc now.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Keeffe continued on Fox Cricket: \u201cHe gives 100 per cent every time.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a golden summer he\u2019s having.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe could get wickets with a soggy tomato.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starc is approaching his 36th birthday, but he just seems to be getting better and better, with the ball and the bat.<\/p>\n

More than fourteen years after making his Test debut, Starc is finally getting the recognition he deserves.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a warrior, incredible,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe added.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt 35, playing the best cricket of his life, his numbers with the ball just haven\u2019t diminished. His pace hasn\u2019t diminished. His strike rate is getting better.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to say you peak at 35 as a fast bowler. Mitchell Starc could be.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a champion. We\u2019ve underrated him for too long. This bloke is an out-and-out warrior.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starc\u2019s domination comes just days after he usurped Pakistan legend Wasim Akram for the most Test wickets taken by a left-armed quick.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a special player. He doesn\u2019t like to admit it, but he is the GOAT, the greatest lefty of all time,\u201d Australian teammate Michael Neser told reporters at stumps.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe does it with the ball, the bat, and to be next to him, witnessing what he does is just amazing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat last spell he bowled today was probably his quickest spell of the whole game.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just shows what sort of athlete is and what a competitor he is. He is amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia is on the verge of taking a 2-0 lead in the Ashes series after an all-round masterclass…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":331201,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[139006,3443,6074,113041,185174,11638,63,689,3600,136008,138039,185187,20341,143302,47303,651,2090,185179,161840,185186,185190,162833,76112,24163,185176,185194,185191,185178,185184,2105,24161,43,113273,120441,38709,33835,17066,185193,124540,124996,17055,31024,185087,12136,29547,44,677,185183,185182,185171,185173,1948,46,185177,185175,701,185192,52900,185185,3247,1934,167518,182095,1183,1124,18780,185188,11545,7663,185189,5338,41,39,42,40,185172,185181,3439,185180,164185],"class_list":["post-331200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-adam-gilchrist","tag-adelaide","tag-africa","tag-afternoon-session","tag-all-round-masterclass","tag-ashes-series","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-australian-legend","tag-australian-spinner","tag-australian-wicketkeeper","tag-batters-feasting","tag-ben-duckett","tag-bowling-unit","tag-brendon-julian","tag-brisbane","tag-british-broadcasting-corporation","tag-bryson-carse","tag-career-best-performance","tag-comfortable-bowling","tag-dinner-break","tag-england-speedster","tag-evening-session","tag-fast-bowler","tag-fatigued-fast-bowlers","tag-finger-spinner","tag-floodlights-starting","tag-foot-movement","tag-getting-turn","tag-getty-images-inc","tag-gus-atkinson","tag-headlines","tag-hometown-hero","tag-isa-guha","tag-jacob-bethell","tag-jamie-smith","tag-joe-root","tag-left-handed-batters","tag-mark-waugh","tag-michael-neser","tag-michael-vaughan","tag-mitchell-starc","tag-morning-session","tag-multiple-occasions","tag-nathan-lyon","tag-news","tag-oceania","tag-off-side-width","tag-offering-width","tag-orange-vest","tag-outspoken-critic","tag-pat-cummins","tag-perth","tag-pope-frustrations","tag-presentation-party","tag-queensland","tag-real-clever-cricket","tag-real-problem","tag-right-handed-batters","tag-robert-cianflone","tag-scott-boland","tag-shoaib-bashir","tag-slips-cordon","tag-south-africa","tag-south-australia","tag-southern-africa","tag-stand-out-star","tag-strike-rate","tag-talking-points","tag-test-day","tag-the-gabba","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-twilight-session","tag-veteran-tweaker","tag-western-australia","tag-wounded-australian-captain","tag-young-all-rounder"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=331200"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/331200\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/331201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=331200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=331200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=331200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}