CRICKET: England's Ashes hopes go up in smoke as Australia press for victory in Adelaide

ADELAIDE – Nearly four years of Ashes planning went up in smoke on Thursday as England wilted under intense heat and relentless pressure at Adelaide Oval, sliding toward a series-deciding defeat in the third Test against Australia.

On a day marked by scorching temperatures and renewed controversy over the use of the Snicko review technology, England reached 213 for eight at stumps on day two, still 158 runs behind Australia’s first-innings total of 371.

England captain Ben Stokes, unbeaten on 45, and Jofra Archer, on 30, showed resilience in a 45-run stand for the ninth wicket, but their late resistance did little to mask failures higher up the batting order.

Australia, leading the series 2-0, need only a draw to retain the Ashes urn they have held since the 2017–18 series. However, there was little indication the hosts would settle for anything less than another dominant victory following comfortable wins in Perth and Brisbane.

Australia’s returning captain Pat Cummins and recalled spinner Nathan Lyon set the tone early, combining to rip through England’s top order before lunch.

“Pretty proud of how the boys went about it,” Lyon told TNT Sports. “Pat’s been phenomenal as captain, as always, and the effort from our fast bowlers to have them 213 for eight after 68 overs is huge. We’ll rest up, recover, and have another crack in the morning.”

SNICKO IN THE SPOTLIGHT

England slumped from 3 for 5 in a collapse that may have extinguished any remaining optimism after they had earlier prevented Australia from posting a 400-plus total on a flat pitch.

Cummins, pushing his rehabilitated back hard, removed Zak Crawley for nine, caught behind in a key breakthrough, before Lyon struck twice in four balls.

Lyon’s second dismissal was a beauty, bowling Ben Duckett for 29 with a sharply turning delivery that beat the outside edge. His first, however, came as a gift, with out-of-form Ollie Pope flicking a ball off his pads straight to midwicket for three.

Pope’s brief 10-ball stay fell short of the grit Stokes had demanded when he urged his players to “show a bit of dog” ahead of the Test, and questions are likely to intensify over his place in the side.

Joe Root followed soon after, edging a Cummins delivery behind for 19 to leave England reeling at 71 for four.

Facing a daunting rescue effort, Stokes was struck on the helmet by a fierce Mitchell Starc bouncer but held firm alongside Harry Brook through much of the second session.

Their 56-run partnership ended when Cameron Green produced a superb delivery that jagged back off the seam, taking an edge from Brook’s bat through to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.

Snicko controversy, which had already dominated day one, flared again late on day two.

England wicketkeeper Jamie Smith was at the center of the confusion, first surviving a caught-behind appeal on 16 before being ruled out caught behind for 22, despite appearing to miss the ball entirely. Third umpire Chris Gaffaney adjudicated both decisions, with Snicko seemingly adding to the confusion rather than resolving it.

Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc said Snicko needed to be “sacked” following Smith’s earlier reprieve, while Smith left the field visibly angry after his eventual dismissal.

Once attention returned to the cricket, England collapsed again, losing three wickets for nine runs to slip to 168 for eight after a sharp two-wicket burst from Scott Boland. Archer then joined Stokes to carry England past the 200 mark at stumps. -Reporting by Ian Ransom in Adelaide; Editing by Peter Rutherford/Reuters