The Ashes 2023: Mark Wood's hitting, Ben Stokes' confidence & Chris Woakes' heroics
- Published
England win third Ashes Test after nail-biting finish
England kept their hopes of winning the Ashes alive with a dramatic three-wicket victory in the third Test at Headingley.
An impressive knock of 75 by Harry Brook on his home ground, aided by quick runs from Chris Woakes and Mark Wood, saw England chase 251 to make it 2-1 to Australia with two Tests to play.
England must win the two remaining matches to regain the Ashes. The fourth Test at Old Trafford starts on Wednesday, 19 July.
Stat of the day - Wood's wonderful whacks
Mark Wood was named player of the match
As former England fast bowler Angus Fraser once said on BBC cricket podcast Tailenders, "Give it a whack." At Headingley, with bat in hand, England bowler Wood did exactly that.
After scoring 24 runs off just eight balls in the first innings, he followed that up with another quick-fire 16 off eight in the second innings to help England get over the line.
Overall, he hit two fours and four sixes from the 16 balls he faced in the Test.
As per CricViz's data, Wood's total of 40 was the 21,169th time in which a player has scored 40 or more in a Test.
Wood's blistering strike rate was higher than any of the 21,168 previous 40+ scores in a Test match on record, holding a strike rate for the match of 250 per 100 balls faced.
Essential day four reading
Quote of the day - 'Yes'
"Yes."
Short and sweet from England captain Ben Stokes after his side's Headingley triumph.
Stokes was asked by BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew whether he feels England can win the final two Test matches to clinch the series 3-2 and regain the urn.
While his response was brief, it showed a bullish confidence, with England aiming to be the only team since Australia in 1936-37 to win the Ashes after losing the first two Tests.
Image of the day - Woakes wins it
Chris Woakes celebrates after hitting the winning runs in the third Ashes Test at Headingley
It was a Test match to remember for Woakes as he and fellow bowler Wood made big contributions with both bat and ball to give England their first Test victory against Australia since the 2019 win at The Oval.
Woakes, batting at number eight, came in with England needing 80 runs to secure victory and put on a 59-run stand with Brook before he and Wood added a further 24 runs to get the hosts over the line.
The 34-year-old hit four fours on his way to 32 not out and had all of Headingley on his feet when he hit the winning runs.
And finally...
Starc & Cummins combine - and almost collide - to remove Brook
There were plenty of nerves for England's fans and players when Brook was caught by Australia captain Pat Cummins on 75, with England still requiring 21 runs to win.
However, there were more nerves as Cummins and bowler Mitchell Starc almost bundled into each other, with both going for the catch.
Despite a minor collision, Cummins did enough to grab hold of the ball, with he and Starc making light of it seconds later.