Head century drives England closer to Ashes defeat

Third Ashes Test, Adelaide Oval (day two of five)

Australia 371: Carey 106, Archer 5-53 & 271-4: Head 142*, Carey 52*

England 286: Stokes 83, Archer 51; Boland 3-45

Australia lead by 356 runs

England were pushed towards the precipice of the fastest Ashes series defeat in more than 100 years as a Travis Head century maintained Australia’s grip on the third Test in Adelaide.

Head was dropped on 99 by Harry Brook and spent eight balls one run short of a hundred before belting Joe Root down the ground for four to draw a deafening roar from his home-town crowd at the Adelaide Oval.

The left-hander moved Australia’s second innings to 271-4 and their overall lead to 356 at the end of the third day.

If England’s third loss in as many Tests is completed on Saturday, it would mean the Ashes have been decided in 10 days of cricket.

Not since 1921, when Australia needed only eight days of play to win in England, has the destination of the urn been settled so swiftly.

Head’s inevitable ton snuffed out brief England hope that was raised when captain Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer added 73 runs in the morning session.

Stokes made 83 and Archer 51 in a stand of 106, the highest by an England ninth-wicket pair in Australia since 1924.

By creeping to 286 all out, 85 behind on first innings, England could have left themselves an outside chance by dismissing Australia for a total below 240 in their second innings.

At 53-2 and 149-4, England clung on before being cut adrift by Head. At some point, England will be tasked with pulling off the highest successful chase on this ground in order to keep the Ashes alive.

Realistically, England’s fate in this match and the series was sealed by their batting on the second day.

It needed a trademark Stokes miracle to keep his team from their destiny and, despite how well the captain and Archer have personally performed in this match, Stokes might have exhausted his escape acts.

There will be questions over all-rounder Stokes’ physical state for the rest of the series. Never one to avoid work when his team need him, there were times when he was bent double in the field.

Bar the 90 minutes of resistance England mustered in the morning session, this day went as expected – Australia batting under minimal pressure, grinding England into the dirt.

England’s effort cannot be faulted, they are simply being outclassed. They are suffering a slow death in the City of Churches, a prolonged post-mortem of the Bazball project.

Head’s elevation to open the batting on the second day of the first Test will go down as one of the defining moments of the series. His match-winning century in Perth gave Australia a momentum they have never looked like relinquishing.

This ton was memorable for different reasons. Like Alex Carey on day one, Head is another South Australian enjoying an Ashes moment on home turf. This was his fourth successive century in Tests at the Adelaide Oval.

He had to endure a lively England burst with the new ball, particularly from Brydon Carse. With the storm weathered, Stokes absent from the attack and Will Jacks unable to hold an end, Head cashed in.

England tried different plans, at one point packing the off side with seven fielders, but Head still found ways to score. He added 84 for the fourth wicket with Usman Khawaja, who made 40 to further his case to be retained for the fourth Test.

The chance to Brook, off the bowling off Archer, was a powerful slash to gully. It would have been a smart catch, though should have been taken. In the next over, Head lofted Root’s off-spin down the ground to complete his 11th Test ton.

Stokes and Archer are among the few England players to have performed so far on this tour. Their tight relationship goes back to the 2019 World Cup final.

When Stokes was captured on camera on the second morning giving Archer a tounge-lashing for his bowling, it was an example of how Stokes knows he can get the best from his paceman.

From 213-8 overnight, and with 12 overs in the morning before the second new ball, the ninth-wicket pair were more expansive than the previous evening.

Stokes drove Scott Boland for four from the third ball of the day, Archer swiped Nathan Lyon over long-on for six.

Stokes’ 50, from 159 balls, was his slowest in Test cricket and the slowest by any England batter in the Bazball era. Archer, who took five wickets in Australia’s first innings, made his maiden half-century in Tests and the second-highest score by an England number 10 in Australia.

Stokes deserved a hundred only for Mitchell Starc to hit the stumps through the gate. Stokes roared in frustration, while Archer chased the captain all the way to the boundary to pat him on the back.