Ashes: England Stuns Australia with Nail-biting 3-Wicket Victory

Woakes struck the decisive boundary in the late afternoon session against Starc, helping England reach a total of 254-7. Woakes remained unbeaten on 32 as he confidently smashed the ball towards the jubilant Western Terrace.

With Australia leading 2-1, the fourth test is scheduled to take place at Old Trafford on July 19. During the morning session, England advanced to 153-4, closing in on their target of 98 runs. This scenario mirrored a memorable victory at the same venue four years ago, where Ben Stokes played a crucial role.

However, the match took a turn in Australia’s favor shortly after lunch. England captain Stokes was dismissed for a mere 13, caught behind, followed by Jonny Bairstow (5) who was bowled. Both wickets were taken by Starc, who concluded the innings with impressive figures of 5-78.

Stokes’ dismissal was a gentle edge down the leg side, resulting in the home team losing their inspirational captain and the mastermind behind their remarkable Ashes victory in 2019.

At the start, England’s openers cautiously added 15 runs to the score, taking it to 27 without losing any wickets. However, Ben Duckett (23) was trapped in front of the stumps by Starc, resulting in an lbw dismissal aimed at hitting the leg stump.

To everyone’s surprise, Moeen Ali came in at No. 3 instead of Brook, marking a significant promotion from his usual position at No. 7. Although Ali has performed well in this role before, it has been almost five years since he batted this high in the order, back in November 2018.

This decision was a typically bold move by the Brendon McCullum-led management, but it did not work out for Ali. He managed only five runs from 15 deliveries and was unable to counter a rapid 90 mph delivery from Starc, which crashed into the stumps after evading his modest shot.

Brook’s partnership of 38 runs with Root seemed to provide some stability to the chase, but just before the lunch break, Root was unexpectedly dismissed. Trying to pull a delivery from the returning Pat Cummins, Root gloved it through to the wicketkeeper, resulting in a disappointing end to his innings on 21 runs.

Also Read

WATCH: Young Pakistani fans enjoy Ashes 2023 match in an unusual way

A group of young cricket fans in Pakistan watched the game on...