Ashes: Starc brilliance freezes England fightback, host 2-0 up
Australian were on a mission as Nathan Lyon dismissed Moeen Ali to leave England 188 for seven inside the first hour. From then onwards, it was only matter of time as host wrapped up a 120-run victory just before tea.
Australia go two up in the high-octane Ashes battle after a stellar performance from Mitchell Starc, picking up five for 88, helping the Kangaroos beat England by 120 runs in Adelaide. England the final day on 176 for four and needed another 178 runs to pull off a remarkable comeback victory.
When England needed the most, top tire batsmen gave away their wickets cheaply, they lost Wokes and Joe Root within the first three overs as the home side turned the screw.
Counting down the best moments of a cracking #Ashes contest! @Toyota_Aus pic.twitter.com/zSLu1F1xbf
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) December 6, 2017
Australian were on a mission as Nathan Lyon dismissed Moeen Ali to leave England 188 for seven inside the first hour. From then onwards, it was only matter of time as host wrapped up a 120-run victory just before tea.
Watch LIVE as Steve Smith speaks with the media in Adelaide #Ashes https://t.co/LBG0xkBaYc
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) December 6, 2017
The teams now head to Perth where England have only ever won once. It is going to take a miracle for Root's men to get themselves back in this series. The home side will now be targeting a clean sweep.
Brief Score:
Brief scores: Australia 442/8 decl. (Shaun Marsh 126*, Tim Paine 57; Craig Overton 3-105, Stuart Broad 2-72) & 138 (Usman Khawaja 20, Mitchell Starc 20; James Anderson 5-43, Chris Woakes 4-36) beat England 227 (Craig Overton 41*, Alastair Cook 37; Nathan Lyon 4-60, Mitchell Starc 3-49) & 233 (Joe Root 67; Mitchell Starc 5-88, Nathan Lyon 2-45, Josh Hazlewood 2-49) by 120 runs.