Chris Woakes ,England could not afford to lose the current Test at Old Trafford in order to maintain their prospects in the continuing Ashes 2023. In spite of Moeen Ali’s struggles with the bat thus far in the series, they are trusting him to fill the role of number three and re-included James Anderson in the squad for the fourth Test. The host team wanted to get off to a strong start on Day 1 because bowling has been a significant problem for them in the first two Test matches of the series.
Notably, Usman Khawaja struggled to get going once more as Stuart Broad defeated the southpaw. Thus, Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith bore full accountability for the situation. In the middle, the pair was steadily forming a solid combination, but Smith regrettably missed Mark Wood’s lightning strike as he walked back after scoring 41 runs.
David Warner received the much-needed start but was unable to capitalize on it as Chris Woakes sent him back to the pavilion.
However, like Warner and Smith, the left-handed batter was unable to extend his innings. Later, Travis Head took matters into his own hands and shifted the momentum back in Australia’s favor. Later, Mitch Marsh and Labuschagne both scored magnificent half-centuries, but the first day of play was more or less defined by the English bowlers’ tenacity.
Cameron Green, who was back, and stumper-batter Alex Carey were unable to have much of an impact because Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins were in charge. As Australia ended the day with 299 runs on the board and the loss of eight wickets, Starc stood out with the bat.
On the other side, when legendary pacer Stuart Broad claimed his 600th Test wicket on Day 1, history was being made. Throughout the entire series, he has been outstanding and took two wickets on the first day.
Here’s how Twitter reacted –
Chris Woakes took four wickets as England kept a check on Australia on Day 1 👀#WTC25 | #ENGvAUS | 📝 https://t.co/62758TXq5D pic.twitter.com/RciOJB2hBX
— ICC (@ICC) July 19, 2023
Congratulations @StuartBroad8
Incredible achievement and a lot more wonder spells to come I’m sure! 🙌 https://t.co/kM3ktysL67— Tammy Beaumont (@Tammy_Beaumont) July 19, 2023
600+ Test match wickets for #StuartBroad
It’s been a long herculean journey since 2006. Hoping @StuartBroad8 breaks many more records!#ENGvAUS #TheAshes #barmyarmy pic.twitter.com/HrimPAjFdP— Basit Subhani (@BasitSubhani) July 19, 2023
What a fantastic achievement – Stuart Broad reaches the milestone of 600 Test wickets in a Test career that has spanned nearly 16 years.
.#Cricket #Ashes2023 #Cricket #AsiaCup #Ashes #PakvSl pic.twitter.com/kccivGim0a— Sher Ali (@SahabShero) July 19, 2023
If England don’t win the #Ashes it will because of Australia’s tail batting vs England’s tail
— Hannah Swithinbank (@hannahswiv) July 19, 2023
India
