Joe Root and Harry Brook produced a defiant unbeaten partnership to put England in a strong position against Australia on a rain-affected opening day of the fifth and final Ashes Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday.
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The pair added an unbroken 154 runs as England reached 211 for 3 before bad light forced players off the field shortly before tea. Persistent rain and the threat of lightning later brought an early end to the day’s play.
After winning the toss, England captain Ben Stokes elected to bat, but the tourists slipped to 57 for 3 as Australia’s all-pace attack made early inroads. Ben Duckett scored a brisk 27, Zak Crawley made 16, and Jacob Bethell was dismissed for 10 before lunch.
Root and Brook then took control on a pitch offering little assistance to bowlers. Showing patience and authority, they rotated the strike well and capitalised on loose deliveries, both reaching deserved half-centuries under gloomy skies.
Root was unbeaten on 72 at stumps, while Brook remained not out on 78 after surviving a close call earlier in his innings. Root’s fifty was the 67th of his Test career, placing him second only to Sachin Tendulkar on the all-time list.
“We’re in a very good position,” Brook said after play. “Hopefully we can make the most of that going into tomorrow. It’s a good wicket.”
Australia surprised by opting for an all-pace bowling attack, leaving out off-spinner Todd Murphy and drafting in all-rounder Beau Webster in place of injured quick Jhye Richardson. It was the first time in nearly 140 years that Australia had played a Sydney Test without a frontline spinner.
England made one change, bringing in seamer Matthew Potts for the injured Gus Atkinson, while spinner Shoaib Bashir again missed out.
The match comes after England’s four-wicket victory in Melbourne ended a 15-year wait for a Test win in Australia. However, Australia have already retained the Ashes after securing series victories in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide.
