By: Drcricket7 Staff
It was supposed to be another good day at the office for England. But instead, they had to be satisfied with a mixed day. Mostly, it was Australian batsmen who made their presence felt. Otherwise, England saw off Australian openers Chris Rogers and David Warner, as the home team bowlers were able to justify their captain Alastair Cook’s decision to field first.
When the stumps were drawn the visitors were 287 for three on the opening day of the fifth Ashes Test against England at Kennington Oval on Thursday. On a pitch that was relatively green and with overcast conditions, Australia were expected to surrender meekly like they did on the opening day of the fourth Test in Trent Bridge.
In the end, it was a much better performance by the Aussies. They didn’t look the like the same team, which has already lost the Ashes and trailing in the series by a 3-1 margin. The only thing that looked the same was the form of the Australian captain Michael Clarke, who is playing the last Test match of his career. He could only make 15.
Before Clarke’s dismissal both Rogers (43) and Warner (85) added 110 runs for the opening wicket. Later, Steven Smith, who is batting on 78, and Adam Voges (47 not out) steadied the Australian innings. For England, Stuart Broad, the previous Test match hero, was fractionally short and couldn’t get that much of success. But Mark Wood and Ben Stokes took one wicket apiece.
