Australia 371 and 271 for 4 (Head 142*, Carey 52*) lead England 286 (Stokes 83, Archer 51, Boland 3-45, Cummins 3-69) by 356 runs
For Head, who was dropped on 99 by Harry Brook at gully, it was the continuation of a magnificent run in Adelaide which has brought four of his 11 Test centuries, all of them coming in his last six innings at the ground. This one could also have gone a long way towards cementing him as an opener following his hasty promotion in Perth and the blazing hundred which followed. Overall it was Head’s fourth hundred against England and by the close his career-best 175, which also came in Adelaide, was looming into view.
Having been forced to take the second new ball to wrap up England’s innings, where Stokes threatened to play one of his game-changing innings before falling to Mitchell Starc for the 12th time in Tests, Australia then lost Jake Weatherald before lunch. He was lbw to Brydon Carse, who produced his best spell since the first day in Perth either side of the break, although Weatherald would have been saved with a review as the ball pitched outside leg.
Head was able to freely collect runs square of the wicket throughout his innings as England fed him outside off while they also tried the short-ball ploy with well-spread fields. Head barely scored straight down the ground off the quicks, but jumped out to England’s spinners, sending Will Jacks over long-off then doing the same to Joe Root to bring up his century from 146 balls.
Jacks, a part-time spinner who kept his place ahead of Shoaib Bashir after a promising show with the bat in Brisbane, had managed to remove Khawaja with a short, wide delivery when the left-hander edged a cut shot. But by the end of the day his match figures read an eye-watering 3 for 212 from 39 overs. Stokes, meanwhile, did not bowl himself at all while Archer sent down 10 economical, but largely unthreatening, overs.
Australia’s batting was not without its blips. Labuschagne laboured through 45 balls before being squared up by Tongue and edging low to slip in a manner that revived memories of the struggles that led to his omission earlier this year. However, perhaps more significant in the shorter term was the dismissal of Green who edged a half-volley from Tongue to slip to complete a poor match with the bat.
Having clipped limply to midwicket in the first innings, Green avoided a pair with a well-timed drive first ball against Jacks, but did little to quell concerns over being a poor starter when he was beaten on the drive by Tongue before edging the next delivery. His Test average in Australia now sits at 28.62 from 18 matches. With Khawaja in the runs this week, an expectation that Steve Smith will be fit for Melbourne and Beau Webster part of the squad, the selectors could face another tricky decision for Boxing Day.
England had resumed the third day on 213 for 8 and were so far behind that it was difficult to see a way back, but Stokes and Archer extended their partnership to such an extent that thoughts were just turning to what could be possible. Having clung on to see out the second day, Stokes showed much greater intent when play resumed, driving Scott Boland through the covers in the opening over.
Between times Archer, who Stokes felt no need to protect from the strike, had launched Lyon over deep midwicket for six on his way to a maiden Test half-century from 96 balls in what became the highest ninth-wicket stand in an Ashes Test in Australia since 1925.
Australia weren’t desperate but there was a growing sense of urgency to wrap things up. Starc, up to this point wicketless, produced the piece of magic when a wobble-seam delivery jagged back past Stokes’ inside edge and castled off stump, in an almost carbon-copy of the first innings in Perth. As his stumps were splattered, Stokes let out a roar of anguish, threw his head back and tossed the bat in the air. At that stage he had kept England afloat, but by the end of the day they were sinking again.
Andrew McGlashan is a deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo
