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England shot themselves in the foot on Tuesday with multiple dropped catches and wayward bowling, while the iconic venue turned pink in honour of Jane McGrath Day, with 46,161 in attendance.<\/p>\n
The fifth and final Ashes Test resumes on Wednesday at 10am AEDT.<\/p>\n
See the Talking Points from day three below!<\/p>\n
Touching Jane McGrath tribute at the SCG | 04:23<\/p>\n
SMITH OFFICIALLY THE BEST SINCE BRADMAN <\/p>\n
Steve Smith rolled on his back. He fidgeted. Even the glare from Brydon Carse\u2019s sunglasses distracted him at the SCG.<\/p>\n
But in a century on Tuesday that was part masterclass, part vaudeville act, Australia\u2019s stand-in skipper helped to put England\u2019s fatiguing attack to the sword and Australia into a near impregnable position in the final Test of the Ashes.<\/p>\n
His whites were in desperate need of a launder last night. But his ball striking was as clean as could be in a superb display, as Fox Cricket expert commentator Kerry O\u2019Keeffe noted.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have been watching Steve Smith for 15 years and we love him when he is in this mood,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe said. <\/p>\n
\u201cEverything is moving. The hyperbole. The hand gestures. The commentary.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is his eccentricities that have captivated everybody. It is Steve Smith at his unique best.\u201d<\/p>\n
In scoring his fifth Test hundred on his home ground, the champion No. 4 moved to second on the all-time list of Ashes run scorers when surpassing English great Sir Jack Hobbs as he scored his 13th century against the old rival.<\/p>\n
Only Sir Donald Bradman, with 19, has more than the modern-day champion, who was denied an opportunity to plunder on a couple of occasions earlier this series due to the paltry run chases set by England and to illness in Adelaide. <\/p>\n
In a Test where his English counterpart Joe Root levelled with Ricky Ponting with 41 centuries in his relentless pursue of the all-time records held by Sachin Tendulkar, Smith served a reminder of his own greatness as he marches onwards.<\/p>\n
Ashes Icon! Smith scores SCG century | 01:03<\/p>\n
Smith is now within one century of joining the top five in Test cricket, with his 37th hundred also taking him within 300 runs of surpassing Ponting in terms of becoming the leading run-scorer at the SCG.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just love batting here. Obviously it is my home deck and I know the ground really well,\u201d he said after stumps.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I get in here, I love batting here. The pace of the wicket just suits the way I play and I just love playing in front of these fans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet despite his undisputed excellence, the Barmy Army continues to shower Smith with boos when he walks out to bat.<\/p>\n
\u201cNote to the Barmy Army \u2013 stop booing Steve Smith when he walks on, it empowers him,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has done for years since Cape Town.\u201d<\/p>\n
Steve Smith of Australia. Photo by Robert Cianflone\/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Aussie great Mark Waugh was among those half-amused and part-bemused by Smith\u2019s antics in the 70s, with the veteran\u2019s sideshow when batting prompting the Fox Cricket expert to ponder he \u201cshould be in the theatre or in the circus\u201d.<\/p>\n
He told Fox Cricket after stumps that when he is active at the crease aside from putting bat to ball, he is often at his best.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just happens naturally. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019m doing it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just kinds of happens when I\u2019m out there and and I think when I\u2019m doing those things, it probably means I\u2019m in a really good place. So hopefully we can see a few more of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no disputing the effectiveness of his innings as Smith, in furthering the momentum established by Travis Head, ensured Australia built a significant first innings lead on their rivals with two days remaining in a series they lead 3-1.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was an innings of fluctuating stroke play. Sometimes he looked pretty. Sometimes he did not. But he has great hands. He just finds a way,\u201d Waugh said.<\/p>\n
Michael Hussey, who spent time working with the Australian camp at the start of the series in Perth, said that Smith had found a recipe that worked and that his hunger for runs remained extremely impressive.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just loves batting, and that\u2019s part of the ingredient that you need. And I think the other thing is he\u2019s figured out how he plays his best cricket,\u201d Hussey said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he got dropped the first time (in 2011), I think people were saying, \u2018If you want to bat in this way, you\u2019re not going to last, you\u2019re not going to survive. You\u2019ve got to bat a certain way in Test cricket.\u2019 And I think he went back to New South Wales and figured it out and said, \u2018No, I\u2019m going to bat my way.\u2019 <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd he understands very clearly what his way is, and he just stuck to it, and then the result\u2019s sort of taken care of itself from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most centuries as Test captain<\/p>\n
Graeme Smith \u2013 25 from 109 matches @ 48<\/p>\n
Virat Kohli \u2013 20 from 68 matches @ 55<\/p>\n
Ricky Ponting \u2013 19 from 77 matches @ 52<\/p>\n
Steve Smith \u2013 18 from 45 matches @ 69<\/p>\n
\u2018JUST LEAVE HIM\u2019: EX-AUSSIE CAPTAIN\u2019S GREEN PLEA<\/p>\n
As Cameron Green holed out late on Tuesday afternoon, the Western Australian displayed rare emotion as he made his way back to the SCG pavilion in disappointment.<\/p>\n
The all-rounder had batted strongly when coming in at No. 8 and looked to be on track for a significant score when he miscued a pull shot from the bowling of Brydon Carse.<\/p>\n
His 37 was a sound contribution but it was another instance where Green squandered an opportunity to demonstrate he is the world beater Australian selectors believe he can be.<\/p>\n
This was to be the summer Green cemented himself as an Australian star, with Adam Gilchrist telling Fox Cricket in November he believed he would flourish in the Ashes.<\/p>\n
Instead it has been one where the beanpole has teased with both the bat and the ball and struggled to contribute at anywhere near the level he would have hoped to.<\/p>\n
There have been examples aplenty where the all-rounder has been on the verge of an important chapter, only to squander the chance with a brain fade or mistake.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is hugely disappointed in that. He promised so much but, in the end, he is out for 37,\u201d Fox Cricket expert commentator Kerry O\u2019Keeffe said.<\/p>\n
While the 26-year-old\u2019s spot for the SCG was said to be a line-ball call, fellow Western Australian Mike Hussey and fellow great Mark Waugh remain believers.<\/p>\n
Hussey said the difficulties Green has endured this summer will toughen him up for what is to come and could well prove his making.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019ll actually really learn a lot from this series, learn a lot about himself as a person, learn a lot about himself about his game. It\u2019ll build his resilience,\u201d he told foxsports.com.au. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s someone that has to be persisted with. He\u2019s someone that can bat in the top six. He can bowl high-quality overs. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis series hasn\u2019t gone his way. Some of it to his own mistakes, but some of it, things just don\u2019t go your way. And sometimes that happens in cricket, happens in a Test series. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s had a tough series here and he will have learned a lot. We\u2019ll see the benefits of that in the next, I think we\u2019ve got 20 Test matches coming up in the next couple of years, we\u2019ll see the benefits of that in those games.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron Green of Australia. Photo by Morgan Hancock \u2013 CA\/Cricket Australia via Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Waugh has no doubt Green is worth persevering with given what he can deliver for Australia if he gets it right but said even the most talented players eventually run out of chances.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a great talent. We know that. He\u2019s capable of getting a hundred and getting a \u2018five fa\u2019. He\u2019s probably in the genuine all-rounder class when he\u2019s fit,\u201d he told foxsports.com.au.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut like anybody, you just don\u2019t give him a spot in the team. You\u2019ve got to perform and he would know that. He\u2019ll get a bit more leeway than most players because he\u2019s young and he\u2019s got talent. They see him as the number one all-rounder and I think that\u2019s right. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re comparing Webster and Green, I\u2019m taking Green over Webster. Although Webster\u2019s done well, I think Green\u2019s got more potential to get a hundred and take a \u2018five fa\u2019. I see him ahead of Webster, but he\u2019s got to start performing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Waugh also said the fact Usman Khawaja is retiring after this Test stands in Green\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suppose the other thing in Green\u2019s favour is that the batting order\u2019s not very settled \u2026 now that Khawaja\u2019s just gone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s not a lot of people putting their hands up. There\u2019s spots to be filled already without getting rid of Cameron Green, so that\u2019s probably in his favour as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former Australian captain Michael Clarke, meanwhile, has implored national selectors to position Green at No. 6 and leave him there.<\/p>\n
Clarke said it was extremely difficult for batters to find rhythm when shuffled around the order in the manner Green has this summer, with the West Aussie batting at No. 8 on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
While Alex Carey has surpassed Green in the batting order given the quality of his form over an extended period, Clarke is adamant the wicketkeeper could be just as effective at No.7.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy can\u2019t we just leave Cameron at six? Just leave him at six. Even if Beau Webster comes in, just leave him at six,\u201d Clarke said on Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlex Carey is doing a good job, but Gilly (Adam Gilchrist) was a pretty good player as well when he handled No.7.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just think No. 6 is a good spot for our all-rounder. Seven for our keeper (and) five for a batsman. I\u2019d like to see that be as consistent as it can be.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018NEED A LOCK\u2019: TRAVIS ISN\u2019T GOING ANYWHERE<\/p>\n
Travis Head was buggered and in need of a decent break leading into the Ashes.<\/p>\n
The champion batsman, whose magnificent 163 at the SCG set a new record in terms of strike rates, slumped into a chair at Allan Border Field at the start of September.<\/p>\n
It had been an extended winter for Head, beginning with the World Test Championship Final at Lord\u2019s prior to the Caribbean and white-ball series against South Africa in the top end.<\/p>\n
This in a year which started with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and included an IPL stint. And the merry-go-round was about to start again with the Ashes and a T20 World Cup to come.<\/p>\n
Port Douglas was the destination with his family, and if ever a man deserved a spell, Head had surely earned one. But this journalist feared fatigue might hinder Head in the Ashes.<\/p>\n
If that break in Queensland\u2019s tropical north proved a freshen-up, it is indisputable the shift to open this summer has proven as good as a holiday for the dashing South Australian.<\/p>\n
Head dominates to flip momentum back | 04:57<\/p>\n
From a match-winning century in Perth to his heroics at home and onto the sizzling SCG century, Head is pressing to win his second Compton-Miller Medal at home this summer, with the star saying he was loving leading from the top.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a new role for this series and I feel like I\u2019m batting well,\u201d Head told Fox Cricket at tea.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing is ever guaranteed but I just want to try to be as consistent as I can be. It\u2019s been nice to lead, I guess, from the front a little bit, to take a bit of ownership, and I am just pleased with when I have been getting in, I\u2019ve been getting good scores.\u201d<\/p>\n
A century described by Australian great Michael Hussey as a true masterclass means that the 32-year-old has now scored a Test hundred in every state, along with one in the ACT.<\/p>\n
Should Australia host Bangladesh in Darwin on one of the top Tests slated for the Top End in August, it is a fair bet that Head would be an odds-on favourite to complete the full list.<\/p>\n
The left-hander drew level with Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer and David Warner in terms of centuries scored at seven different venues in Australia.<\/p>\n
With his fifth Ashes ton, Head joins former Australian opening greats Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, along with ex-English captain Alastair Cook, with five centuries.<\/p>\n
Australian great Mark Waugh was not convinced despite his Perth heroics that Head was the solution at the top of the order given how brilliantly he has batted at No. 5 in recent years.<\/p>\n
But during his run-a-ball effort on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Fox Cricket expert analyst said he had tempered his view and noted that Head had tightened his technique as an opener.<\/p>\n
The flashes of creativity remained. Head stepped inside short-pitched balls to flick them over the slips, stepped around others to flat bat them into stands, and was deadly when cutting.<\/p>\n
But just as he did in Perth when getting going, his defence was largely superb, with the chances he offered coming after he had put England\u2019s attack to the sword when past 100.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought five was his stop, but I think he has locked it in, and given Weatherald\u2019s form has been a bit iffy, they need a lock as an opener, and he has been one. He has batted beautifully,\u201d Waugh said.<\/p>\n
Head was lauded by all-comers and received a standing ovation as he walked from the SCG having now scored 600 runs for the series at an average of 66.6, a number England would consider fitting given he has devastated their hopes of reclaiming the Urn.<\/p>\n
Former English star Isa Guha said he had been \u201carguably Australia\u2019s most important player for the last three years\u201d, which is the rarest of praise given the champions he plays with.<\/p>\n
Every Boundary! Travball dominates again | 07:34<\/p>\n
Mike Hussey highlighted his ability to deliver on the grandest stages time again, noting it is a skill that \u201cyou can\u2019t teach\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think there is going to be a game or series where he is not going to score many runs because of the way he plays,\u201d Hussey said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut with all the big series, the big situations (like) the World Cup final, somehow he finds a way to score runs. What a performance from him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Former English captain Michael Vaughan said Head\u2019s ability to switch positions and succeed identified him as a talent of the rarest kind.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look at Travis Head and he has done it at five and now he is doing it at the top of the order,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are not many players in history who have done it in the middle order and then moved to the top (with success).\u201d <\/p>\n
Despite Head\u2019s success against the new ball, Guha cautioned that he will face bigger challenges in the Test arena next summer, when Australia faces the likes of South Africa and India.<\/p>\n
Brydon Carse and Matthew Potts, who took the new ball in the first innings, wasted the shiny Kookaburra during a tame opening spell on Monday evening, repeatedly feeding Head short balls outside off stump.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not taking anything away from (Head\u2019s century),\u201d Guha said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I would like to see him against a bowling attack that has two opening bowlers that open the bowling on a regular basis.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stokes & Marnus clash late in day 2 | 07:52<\/p>\n
While Head has flourished at the top of the order, opening partner Jake Weatherald is fighting to save his Test career after an underwhelming series with the bat.<\/p>\n
Having mustered 167 runs at 20.87 this summer, the Tasmanian could be playing for his Test career in the second innings; another failure would prompt heavy speculation about his place in the national side.<\/p>\n
\u201cWeatherald deserved his baggy green, he deserved his chance, but he only has one score in nine competed innings,\u201d former Australian spinner Kerry O\u2019Keeffe told Fox Sports News\u2019 Ashes Daily.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s playing for his Test future in the second dig, regardless of his relationship with Travis at the other end.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless Jake scores 50-plus in the second dig, selectors are going to query whether he is the answer at the top of the order.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, O\u2019Keeffe acknowledged that Weatherald and Head have been an effective opening partnership this summer, with the duo averaging 44.85 together. He questioned whether it was worth injecting another opener when the current partnership was, to an extent, working fine.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a double-edged sword,\u201d O\u2019Keeffe added.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Travis and Jake Weatherald have a bond, there\u2019s a symbiotic quality to their union. They put on runs together.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe looks out of sorts at this level, Weatherald, but they still put on 57 as an opening partnership (on Monday). They hit nine boundaries in the first eight overs. There\u2019s something about them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Australian opening partnerships since David Warner\u2019s retirement<\/p>\n
* Minimum five innings<\/p>\n
44.85 \u2013 Travis Head\/Jake Weatherald<\/p>\n
26.70 \u2013 Usman Khawaja\/Sam Konstas<\/p>\n
24.85 \u2013 Usman Khawaja\/Steve Smith<\/p>\n
19.80 \u2013 Usman Khawaja\/Nathan McSweeney<\/p>\n
\u2018DECIDING FACTOR\u2019: COSTLY BLUNDERS HURT POMS<\/p>\n
Before this summer\u2019s Ashes series, former Australian captain Steve Waugh predicted the team that catches best would win the coveted urn.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s proven to be the case.<\/p>\n
England has put down 17 catches this summer, with under-pressure opener Ben Duckett the culprit on three occasions, compared to just five drops for Australia. Interim captain Steve Smith has a perfect record this summer, with 12 catches from 12 attempts, including his absolute blinder at the Gabba.<\/p>\n
The tourists missed five chances on day two of the pink-ball day Test in Brisbane, while they put down another five during Australia\u2019s first innings of the New Year\u2019s contest in Sydney.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think anyone means to drop catches,\u201d England all-rounder all-rounder Jacob Bethell told reporters at stumps.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just had to pick those boys up and help them along for a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Three of England\u2019s drops at the SCG were forgivable \u2013 one-handed chances that required as much luck as skill \u2013 but Will Jacks\u2019 blunder on Tuesday morning was inexcusable.<\/p>\n
Australian centurion Travis Head was on 121 when he hooked a bouncer towards the boundary-order at deep square leg, with Jacks spilling a regulation catch, a horror miss considering the match situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is so bad. So bad,\u201d former England spinner Alex Hartley said on BBC Test Match Special.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sums up England these past few days.\u201d<\/p>\n
“OH NO!” Poms squander routine catch | 00:54<\/p>\n
Speaking on SEN, England great Stuart Broad pondered whether the pink backdrop for Jane McGrath Day had impeded Jacks\u2019 view, but Hussey rejected the theory.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember it being difficult, no,\u201d laughed Hussey, who made his final Test appearance at the SCG in 2013.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t say I could use that as an excuse.\u201d<\/p>\n
Head, who was also dropped by Brydon Carse, added another 42 runs before falling to Bethell during the afternoon session, missing a sweep shot and trapped LBW.<\/p>\n
Former Australian batter Mark Waugh suggested the series scoreline could have looked different if England had been more disciplined in the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cTheir fielding has been ordinary,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think catching could well have cost them their Gabba Test. They dropped five catches there. It\u2019s cost them a lot of runs. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo beat good teams you\u2019ve got to take your catches. It\u2019s been costly \u2026 it could have been a deciding factor in a couple of those Test matches.\u201d<\/p>\n
Waugh also acknowledged that England fielding coach Paul Collingwood has been absent from the Test set-up this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m surprised they don\u2019t have a fielding coach,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve stripped all their staff back, so it\u2019s something for them to look at.\u201d<\/p>\n
CAREY\u2019S UNWANTED HAT-TRICK<\/p>\n
Once is back luck, while twice could be considered a coincidence.<\/p>\n
But for Alex Carey to be caught at leg slip in three consecutive Tests, as Oscar Wilde mused, \u201clooks like carelessness\u201d.<\/p>\n
On day three of the New Year\u2019s Ashes Test, Australian wicketkeeper was once again dismissed by glancing towards the fielder at leg slip, identical to how he was toppled in during previous two matches in Adelaide and Melbourne. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s poor match awareness from the left-hander, who seemingly isn\u2019t aware when rival captain Ben Stokes places someone in the unorthodox position.<\/p>\n
West Australian opener Cameron Bancroft had a similar problem during the 2019\/2020 Sheffield Shield, repeatedly caught at leg slip or leg gully.<\/p>\n
Having started the series with two fifties and a century in Adelaide, Carey\u2019s most recent scores against England have been 20, 4 and 16, with the Ashes rivals repeatedly targeting his hip bone.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s such an instinctive shot that down the leg side,\u201d Hussey said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou see it going down the leg side and you just flick it. There\u2019s no other really way you can play it, unless you just let it go. It\u2019s a bit like the pull shot for me. When I was playing, you kind of just have to play it. <\/p>\n
\u201cNow he\u2019s just going to have to try and work on where he\u2019s trying to hit it \u2026 maybe he needs to try and practise playing it a bit squarer and away from the fielder a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hussey speculated whether other teams would take note of Carey\u2019s apparent Achilles heel and also place a leg slip when he walks to the middle.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019d be frustrating, and maybe other teams are going to look at trying to attack that area, which is fair enough,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just given him something to think about. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut he\u2019s had a magnificent series with the bat and even today he looked unbelievable coming in. Behind the stumps, he\u2019s been incredible as well.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia has seized control of the New Year\u2019s Ashes Test courtesy of centuries to opener Travis Head and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":395061,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,85,41,39,42,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-395060","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-top-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topnews","14":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395060","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=395060"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395060\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/395061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=395060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=395060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=395060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}