England had a major victory within their grasp in the Third Ashes Trial; the home side continued 27-0 on Wednesday, needing 224 more runs to beat Australia and make it 2-1 in the series; watch live on Sky Sports Cricket from 10:15am (first ball at 11am)
21:41, UK, Saturday 08 July 2023
We gauge how the potentially crucial Wednesday of Tuesday’s Ashes Test is shaping up as England secure a crucial win over Australia at Headingley to keep the series going…
What does Britain need to do?
Quite simply, England need 224 more runs to win the Third Test, and they’ve got their hands on all 10 championship runs after openers Ben Duckett (18no) and Zak Crawley (9no) overcame them 27-0 at the end of the third day.
The hosts are chasing a 251 goal to win and keep the Ashes alive, with Australia currently leading 2-0 in the best series of the year after winning by two goals against Edgbaston and 43 times. run before Lord.
Time is on England’s side as they have two days to start the runs, although it’s hard to imagine them spending time in this ‘Bazball’ era, and Ben Stokes’ side certainly will finish winning as soon as possible.
What happened on the third day?
The best action of the day at Headingley closed with England 27-0 in a 251-score chase to keep Ashes championship hopes alive.
The match didn’t take place in Leeds until 4.45pm due to persistent rain throughout the morning and afternoon, but British pitchers made the most of favorable conditions as the game finally resumed.
Seam duo Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes finished with three shots each, while Mark Wood’s quick pace saw him win two shots in the dark as the second inning of the game saw him win two shots in the dark. Australia finished with a score of 224.
But a brave 77 from Travis Head, before he was caught by Duckett off the Broad, ensured Australia could post a reasonable target for Britain to chase.
What are England’s chances of winning?
According to WinViz, Britain has a 75% chance of winning that they need to keep their hopes of retrieving the Ashes from Australia alive, with travelers having a 25% chance of a win that will help them keep the urn.
Their 251 goal is within reach of the hosts, who chased the seemingly improbable 362 to win at Headingley over the same opponent four years ago. It was the most successful Test Run chase at this location.
The fourth inning goal of more than 296 runs has been successfully pursued five times by Leeds in first-class cricket since 2017, only Dunedin in New Zealand has done it and an England team has gone 12 games. last match. months to make beautiful chases will not be discouraged by what awaits.
Woakes: We can’t always count on Stokes
Chris Woakes won his first racket of the day, with day three of the third Ash Test affected by rain
Part of the reason England still had a chance to win was captain Stokes’ first-half score of 80, which ensured they were still within walking distance of Australia as the tourists started the second half. . However, the all-round Woakes know that the rest of the team must hit the mark if they are to succeed in this chase.
“Obviously we still have 220 more runs to chase to win this Test match, but I think if we were given this chance at the end of the first inning I think we’d take it. it,” Woakes said.
“We don’t want to rely on Ben all the time, we want to give our best in the batting squad.
“Even though he’s superhuman, he doesn’t always make it. He’s a world-class player, but from 1 to 11, we all need help.”
Head: There’s a lot on the table
Australian player Head is expecting England to strike when play resumes on Sunday, although he believes the holidaymakers still have a chance to end the series after his No 77 helped they get to the goal of winning after 250 runs.
Head said: “Today I had to fight through it for a lot of time and put pressure on them in the late stages. “We’re in a position to win this Test match, so you take it.
“I was just trying to hit the target and it was unpredictable. We did a great job. I don’t think you can compare me to Stokes.
“We know how they’re going to attack things, but we have to be honest with how we hit the ball. Headingley does weird things but hopefully tomorrow there will be some clouds and we can make it happen. the ball sways a little. There’s a lot of things on the table.”
How to track Wednesday
The fourth day of the Third Ashes Test goes live once again cricket sports sky, with coverage starting at 10:15 a.m. and the first ball game at 11 a.m. You can keep up with the action and watch video clips via our live blog on Sports sky applications and websites. Also streaming on NOW TV.
