Australia seem to be in control after bowling out England for 185 on the opening day of the third Test in the Ashes series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground before finishing the day’s play with 124 runs adrift.
This is the 13th time in 28 innings that England have been out for under 200 for in Test cricket in 2021.
The Aussies reached 57 without losing a wicket before English pacer James Anderson had David Warner caught by Zak Crawley at gully.
The hosts closed on for 61/1 with opener Marcus Harris unbeaten on 20 and night watchman Nathan Lyon yet to score.
Australia skipper Pat Cummins made a comeback to the side in the third Ashes Test of the series after the star pacer could not play in the second Test in Adelaide due to South Australia's Covid rules and Cummins could not have asked for a better start after he picked up three crucial wickets of the English batsmen on Day One of the third Test, played in Melbourne.
Poor start
A perilous start to the English batting saw them collapse to 13 for two within the first eight overs of the game. The visitors were keenly looking towards Dawid Malan and skipper Joe Root. The duo of Malan and Root did try to fight but not for too long.
Their 48-run partnership from 115 balls did manage to thwart the early danger caused by Cummins and his men but their endeavor lost its steam after Malan (14 off 66 deliveries) was dismissed by Aussie skipper Cummins. Though, Root went on to score a half-century.
In the 25th over Malan was almost sent back to the pavilion but the edge did not carry to first slip as it was well short of David Warner. But Cummins did not have to wait for too long to bag his third wicket of the innings. In the 27th over another good-length delivery by the 28-year old forced Malan to press forward but eventually it was a nick which reached Warner.
Root (50 off 82 deliveries) was next to be dismissed in the 33rd over of the innings by pacer Mitchell Starc after the skipper chose to chase the fourth-stump line and eventually just managed to provide a thin nick to wicket-keeper Alex Carey.
Hameed's one more duck
Earlier, in the second over of the innings Cummins scalped his 100th Test wicket on home soil after he managed to send the English opener Haseeb Hameed back to the pavilion for another duck. Hameed’s poor form was seemingly predictable after he conceded a maiden from pacer Mitchell Starc without putting bat to ball.
Hameed played just ten balls after he managed to produce a nick off to Cummins for a nought. The 24-year old batter became England's 50th duck of the year.
The opener came to play the third Test with his series average of a mere 14.50 which was slightly higher than another English batter Rory Burns’ 12.75. Though, Zak Crawley was brought into the squad as one of the four changes England made, with the 23-year old coming in place of Burns as an opener.
Mitchell Starc, Cameron Green and Nathan Lyon all picked up wickets after lunch to send England to tea six wickets down.
Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow tried to put up a fight but Green was rewarded for a terrific spell when all-rounder Ben Stokes tried to lift him over the slips but picked out Lyon at point for 25.
Jonny Bairstow (35) and Ollie Robinson (22) wanted to put up a brave effort but that was not enough to provide them any kind of a boost.
