Summary

  • England close day four on 114-4, needing 257 further runs to win

  • Duckett caught by Starc on 50 but overturned after replays show ball scraped along turf

  • Cummins bowls Brook for four with a peach

  • Root fends fierce delivery from Cummins to slip for 18

  • Crawley caught down leg side off Starc, who then bowls Pope with a beauty

  • Use audio icon at top of page to listen to Test Match Special commentary

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Live Reporting

Sam Drury and Tom Mallows

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    I thought England wanted to entertain? Short balls with batters not engaging is the most boring cricket possible.

    John

    Not very entertaining viewing with the short pitched bowling. Does the 'entertainment' promised by Bazball only apply when England bat?

    Anon

  2. Stephan Shemilt
    BBC Sport chief cricket writer at Lord's

    Ollie Pope was having a hit in the nets at lunch. Throws from Trescothick and Collingwood. Gentle at first, no helmet, then cranked up. He looks OK.

  3. Aus 236-5

    Lead by 327

    Ohhh, Ollie Robinson goes around the wicket and Alex Carey nearly feathers through to Jonny Bairstow down the leg side.

    England respond by bringing a short leg in place as a straighter delivery very nearly squares Carey up and they run a single.

    Robinson has bowled well since lunch.

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    Bouncer based cricket is boring and needs addressing? Am sure I heard this around 1982 when the West Indies were pinging it around our ears.

    Mike Kelcey, Romania

  5. Aus 234-5

    That's a good shot from Alex Carey as he cuts Ben Stokes through point for four. He made the most of the extra width there.

    Australia doing well to pick off the bad balls and evade the short stuff at the moment.

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    The short ball appears to have broken Twitter.

    Mark, Leeds

    It wasn't just me then!

  7. No for now, is the answer.

  8. Aus 228-5

    There's another example of the uneven bounce as the ball dies on Jonny Bairstow and flies through his legs for a bye. The next delivery, also short, is taken over his head.

    The new ball is now available. Will England take it?

  9. Sir Alastair Cook
    Former England captain on BBC Test Match Special

    I know Australia dominated this game and England lost the last game but they should've won that game, Australia will be very aware of England's batting. On this wicket, that 318 runs is a lot of runs. If they put the hammer down and say let's take a few risks and get the scoreboard moving and the lead is suddenly 370/380, there would certainly be a lot of respect for how they could play.

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    Would it be fair to say that Bazball is still fairly new, England are up against the best team in the world, and they're still learning how best to apply it against such opposition?

    Rob

  11. Aus 227-5

    Lead by 318

    Ben Stokes bowls a well-directed short ball into Alex Carey, who does well to fend it off for a single, though Stokes had overstepped.

    The England skipper persists with the short stuff but Cameron Green is not interested.

  12. Andy Zaltzman
    Cricket statistician on Test Match Special

    Having batters on someone shoulders in this Test might make a finer balance between bat and ball.

    Shorter balls have figures in this match of 9-163, anything fuller is 11-646. The short ball is clearly working as a strategy but as a spectator sport, it basically limits cricket to nothing. The rule is two bouncers at head height maximum an over, maybe, they need to tweak that.

  13. Aus 225-5

    Ollie Robinson is desperate to get into a slanging match with Cameron Green.

    He is banging the ball in short and tries to engage with the big Aussie all-rounder after each delivery, but Green just turns away.

  14. Here are more examples of that variable bounce that made things tricky for the Australian batters this morning.

  15. Sir Alastair Cook
    Former England captain on BBC Test Match Special

    Judging by all that is coming out the camp that "we do not play for draws," eventually they may have to abandon that.

  16. Andy Zaltzman
    Cricket statistician on Test Match Special

    This is the second Test of the 2023-2025 Test World Championship. England are currently on -2 points, due to slow over rate.

  17. Aus 225-5

    Lead by 316

    The pitch still has some uneven bounce as Alex Carey does get to keep on top of a short delivery and push into the off side for two.

    Whatever target Australia set it will not be easy for England on this surface.

    You know they will go for it though.

  18. Cheers, Sam.

    Mine is a coffee, plenty of milk, no sugar. Thanks.

  19. Time for an early change for us in this session, I'm off to get a cuppa so it is over to Tom Mallows for the remainder of the afternoon session.

  20. Sir Alastair Cook
    Former England captain on BBC Test Match Special

    I forgot about Lyon's batting, I can't imagine he will be batting. England need four more wickets and Lyon's on crutches.