Day 5 preview: England will be desperately hoping rain doesn’t come in their way of pulling off a series-leveling victory over Australia on Day 5 of the fifth and final Ashes 2023 Test at The Oval, London.
Australia are set to resume from their overnight score of 135/0, with openers Usman Khawaja and David Warner batting on 69 and 58 respectively.
The pair got the visitors off to a strong start after England were bowled out for 395 in their second essay, guiding Australia to 75 for no loss at lunch and then keeping the English attack at bay an hour into the second session before rain made its way to south London and ensured no further play was available for the remainder of Day 4.
A final day washout, which was the case in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, will allow Australia to complete a 2-1 series victory — their first Test series triumph on English soil since their 4-1 victory in the 2001 Ashes.
Monday’s forecast for London, however, appears promising for England with rain expected to delay the start of the morning session on Monday but otherwise steer clear of The Oval for the remainder of the day.
England had the opportunity to level the five-Test series in Manchester, where they managed to seize a massive 275-run first innings lead, and were eyeing an innings victory after reducing Australia to 108/4 at one stage in their second innings.
Incessant rain over the next two days — which allowed only 30 overs of play on Day 4 and absolutely no action on the final day — along with Marnus Labuschagne’s defiant 111 secured a draw for Pat Cummins and Co and ensured the urn stays with them for now.
from Firstpost Firstcricketnews Latest News https://ift.tt/2FprC78
Posted in Labels: Firstpost Firstcricketnews Latest News
