England’s resistance in the first innings of the third Ashes Test came to an end after Scott Boland dismissed Jofra Archer for a hard-fought 51, wrapping up England for 286 in 87.2 overs at the Adelaide Oval on Day 3 morning.
Archer, who had already impressed with a five-wicket haul earlier in the match, played a crucial hand with the bat, grinding out his maiden Test half-century off 105 deliveries. His innings briefly revived England’s hopes of narrowing the deficit after top-order struggles left them under pressure.
The breakthrough came when Boland pitched the ball up outside off at 135.6 kph. Archer drove hard away from his body, only to find a thick outside edge that flew safely to Marnus Labuschagne at first slip, who made no mistake. The dismissal ended Archer’s resistance and effectively closed England’s innings.
Earlier, England had shown signs of a fightback through Ben Stokes’ marathon knock of 83 off 198 balls, his slowest Test fifty coming off 159 deliveries. However, Mitchell Starc shattered the momentum by bowling Stokes with a sharp nip-backer, opening the door for Australia to clean up the tail.
Boland finished as Australia’s most effective bowler in the innings, returning 3 for 45, while Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins provided key breakthroughs at crucial moments. Nathan Lyon’s twin strikes earlier had already tilted the contest firmly in Australia’s favour.
With England dismissed for 286, they trail Australia by 85 runs, giving the hosts a valuable first-innings lead as the match heads into a decisive phase.
