Australia ahead now. Moeen Ali at No. 6. Cummins showing what pace can do. That was through Root before he could get to it
70.4
W
Cummins to Root, OUT , massive moment! Huge appeal for lbw, given not out by Erasmus, and Smith has called the review. Root falling across a full delivery, trying to play it too square, the bat got caught behind his pad. This looks very good. Smashing middle!
JE Root lbw b Cummins 15 (50b 1x4 0x6) SR: 30.00
73.4
6
Lyon to Ali, SIX , goodness me! Moeen has gone down on his back knee and fetched that from outside off with a slog-sweep which skims over the rope at deep midwicket. First six of the series
**Australia’s length **
Australia’s bid to regain the Ashes did not begin as expected. On a track that was a bit slow to start with, the hosts bowled too full: by tea, Australia hadbowled 91 balls at a full length and conceded 65 runs at 4.28 runs per over. Of the 72 balls Josh Hazlewood bowled, 24 were full deliveries and yielded 28 runs. Nine of the 13 boundaries scored until tea came off full-length deliveries. Interestingly, on England’s previous Ashes tour in 2013-14, Mitchell Johnson bowled only 13 full-length deliveries in the Gabba Test. Australia would look to bring that length back a little bit and make run-scoring a little harder for England.
James Vince on the off side
By tea, England’s No. 3 James Vince had scored 72 from 157 balls, and 75% of his runs and eight of the ten boundaries had come on the off side. Australia did not seem to have much of a plan against Vince until minutes before tea, whenNathan Lyon bowled round the wicket to the batsman and created an opportunity that Tim Paine failed to hold on to. Vince brought up his maiden Test fifty at the Gabba - before this innings, he had four scores between 35 and 42 in Tests. However, he was run out for 83 after tea, while attempting an unnecessary single.
**Mark Stoneman’s form **
Mark Stoneman came in to the Test with three fifties and a century in four innings of the three warm-up matches. He continued his good form, scoring his fifth half-century in as many innings on the tour. He played cautiously until lunch, leaving 39% of his deliveries. However, he fell in the last over before tea for 53, bowled by Pat Cummins. Stoneman’s wicket ended his 125-run partnership with Vince, England’s first century stand for the second wicket in 31 innings since Root and Cook added 185 at Manchester against Pakistan in July 2016. This was also the second time that two England batsmen making their first Ashes debut in Australia put on a century stand - the previous instance was 114 years ago, in 1903 when Tip Foster and Albert Relf added 115 for the ninth wicket.
79.4
0
Lyon to Ali, no run, another ripper! How good has Lyon been today? So close to an edge, again, as this spins from around middle stump and defeats Moeen as he plays forward
And breathe
First day was not a disaster, so that IS a positive point. Equally losing Root takes the edge off and means we are still close to a disaster in the morning with the New Ball.
Assuming the pitch was a bit slow, then can understand the slow run rate and also gives some hope our lads can exploit a more “English Pitch” themselves. Lyon’s performance makes you pine for Swanny in the team, but hopefully Moeen can get on a role against them as the game progresses.
Really torn between praising Vince for reaching 80+ and tearing in to him for a stupid run out (no matter how good the throw was)
That one extra wicket is enough to keep the jitters going all day
There is a 40% chance of showers in Brisbane on day 5. Let us hope Woakes has torn them a new one by then
Well, that will be last action of the day. The umpires have decided it’s got too dark. Steven Smith isn’t impressed. He appeared to be told three balls ago it was okay for the new ball
80.3
0
Starc to Malan, no run, huge appeal for lbw! And Smith calls the review again. This was very full. Unless he’s hit it…he hasn’t hit it, but it’s actually sliding past leg stump. Not even clipping, so that’s a review lost
80.2
0
Starc to Malan, no run, back of a length, straightens a touch on Malan who adjusts late to play to cover
80.1
0
Starc to Malan, no run, good start, full at off stump, defended…85mph
The new ball is available…and is being taken. Starc will get one over tonight
Well, after @bucks admonishment yesterday I was determined to see the first days play through, unfortunately I feel asleep on the sofa at 23:00 and didn’t wake until 04:00 in the morning (due to the missus berating me).
Still not 100% today but I will try and catch a couple of hours tonight at least.
Cheers for the updates boys.
I stayed up and watched the first session. I thought Vince batted very nicely, that knock will have done him a power of good, just a shame he didn’t get his ton.
The coverage from BT Sport is just awful. Mind numbing adverts at the end of each over so no continuity. Boycott apart, the commentary team are dreadful, Vaughan and Swan are bad enough as summarisers on TMS but as mainline commentators they are awful. Vaughan must have the most boring voice in the world and Swann sounds like a schoolboy who won a competition to be a commentator for the day. Alison Mitchell, whoever she is, is even worse and the Aussies, just as bad. The great thing about cricket coverage has always been the humour, none of that on display here. Ritchie Benaud must be spinning in his grave.
It’s pretty bad, isn’t it? I don’t mind Swann in small doses; a chirpy anecdote here and there and a bit of insight into the art of spin. But Vaughan always comes across as a bully, with no wit to his ‘banter’. Alison Mitchell is OK. But BT are covering the whole thing with shouty Premier League razzle.
I’ll cut them a bit of slack as it’s their collective first day on the job. But not too much. It’s not like cricket fans were crying out to pay even more for their coverage.
Yep, once again the Monopolies and Mergers thing has cost the fan on the street more money.
Even Sky were quite good with Gower etc al… and its not often I say that…
… in fact may be first time.
Agree with most of the BT stuff. The build up before the first over was truly shit.
Alison Mitchell used to commentate on football for 5 live and I think she did OK.
Having got to bed at 10am, I was woken up 15 mins ago by a delivery guy with a parcel. For next door 
.
That’s one thing that put me off football on BT, the fecking commentary and the punditry.
Jake Humphrey was wonderful on the BBC as a F1 presenter but football is not his thing.
Although it grieves me to say it the Sky cricket coverage is excellent. Gower, Botham, Bumble Lloyd, Warnie, Mikey Holding, all of them work brilliantly together. The BT lot are just amateurish, inane. Last night was pretty much unlistenable to be honest, and the fucking silly bookmakers adverts at the end of each over which stops any kind of continuity is truly awful. Alison Mitchell should stick to football, she just hasn’t got the knowhow or technique to be a cricket commentator, last night she was calling two runs when they ran three, she is clueless. I know this is really non PC, but this is tokenism at it’s worst. Epic fail from BT Sports.
Matt Smith was also like a fish a very long way out of water. His standout moment, describing Lyon’s throw to run out Vince:
"…it deserved something, if not a wicket, then a dismissal” 
Vaughan, Swann and Alison Mitchell need to understand that they are not on the radio. Alison Mitchell especially. Ritchie Benaud said that “The key thing is to learn the value of economy with words, and to never insult the viewer by telling them what they can already see”. Apart from the ridiculous in your face bookmakers adverts, the most annoying thing about last nights coverage was the constant inane talking when the ball was being delivered. They are too fond of their own voices.
We shouldn’t have to pay money to the likes of Murdoch and BT to watch Ashes cricket, it’s a national disgrace. In Australia all Test Matches and ODIs featuring the national team have to be available on free to air TV by law. If they can do it, why can’t we? Sickeningly ironic that Murdoch, an Australian media tycoon isn’t allowed to shaft his fellow countrymen, but is free to do it to us! Sums up our successive governments sycophantic sucking up to him, all at our expense.
Just about to drive to the shop for beers, should be a good day, or lets hope so.
Wake up to news of an England collapse. Lower order 6 wickets scrape 60 runs. No real surprise with Stokes out.
So 60 runs short of par.
Read the feed about some bloke proposing in the pool make coffee Broad gets Bancroft with a regulation full lengthy ball that did nothing.
Game on.
| Batsman | How Out | Bowler | Runs | Mins | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | (11.4 overs) | 35-for2wickets | ||||||
| — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| Bancroft | c Bairstow | b Broad | 5 | 17 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 26.32 |
| Warner | not out | 14 | 53 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 66.67 | |
| Khawaja | lbw | b Moeen | 11 | 29 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 45.83 |
| Smith | not out | 5 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 83.33 | |
| Extras | 0 | |||||||
| — | — | — |
Warner c Malan b Ball 26 (Aus 59-3)
Great Captaincy by Root. "taters were bigging up Khwaja but also saying he was crap against Spin so Root brings on Moeen and gets Usman early.
Then a great spell building pressure, 'taters talking up the importance of the Smith/Warner partnership and then Ball comes on and gets Warner with a bit of extra bounce dragging a pull shot.59-3 - wow that’s what I thought England would be.
'tater watch - Loved Boyc’s and some Aussie - got it just right, Vaughan and Swann sent me to sleep then Mitchell & an Aussie - sorry just too “bubbly” for cricket.
63-3