Starc and Boland break England as Australia close in on victory

A dominant display from Australia on Day 3 saw them inch closer to a series-defining win at The Gabba. Resuming the day on 378/6, Australia added 133 runs to their overnight tally to secure a 177-run first innings lead. A gritty 75-run stand between Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland left England frustrated through the afternoon before they lost six second-innings wickets under lights to end up on 134/6 and 43 runs in deficit.
After a dismal bowling and fielding performance on Day 2, England started the third afternoon on a positive note. Ben Stokes managed to get one to lift off the deck and had Michael Neser out caught behind in the third over of the day. Alex Carey, who showed a lot of promise and brought up fifty, became Gus Atkinson's first victim of the series after edging behind attempting a cut.
England's hopes of bundling out the rest of Australia's tail cheaply, however, did not materialise. As Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland began their steady resistance, the English bowlers reverted to the same patterns that plagued them the previous evening. They continued to bowl short to no avail and Starc ensured that the occasional delivery that erred too full was promptly dispatched.
Ben Stokes went redder with every over he bowled - not just because of the scorching Brisbane afternoon heat but also because of the growing frustration at Australia's dogged defiance. The ball went past the edge on several occasions and when it did catch the edge, it didn't carry.
While initially hesitant to hand the strike to Boland, Starc grew increasingly confident of not just his partner but of his own strokeplay as the partnership blossomed to fifty and beyond. Australia went into Tea on 450/8 and 116 runs ahead.
Starc notched up his fifty in the first over after the break and England continued to leak boundaries. The breakthrough finally came in the 111th over after Starc miscued a Carse delivery towards mid-off with captain Stokes holding on despite a collision with Ben Duckett. The partnership, worth 75, lasted 27.2 overs - the longest stand of the series - while Starc ended up being Australia's top scorer with his 77. The final pair added another 20 useful runs, taking Australia's score past 500 and their lead to a daunting 177.
England's second dig started with promise, in that they didn't lose a wicket in the very first over for the first time in the series. Zak Crawley got underway with a couple of boundaries after being offered freebies on the pads while Duckett, who arrived at the crease on a king pair, struggled to get going. He got an early reprieve after Neser put down a sharp return catch in the fourth over and England made it through to the Dinner break without sustaining any damage.
Duckett didn't enjoy much luck after the break though as he was bowled by a Scott Boland delivery that scooted low. Ollie Pope, who arrived next, never managed to look settled at the crease either. He struggled for timing and pushed forward feeling for the ball while attempting several wild drives. He rode his luck too after skewing one just over Josh Inglis at cover and another over the slips off a thick outside edge but eventually, his fidgety desire to reach out to the ball rather than waiting for it proved to be his downfall as he was out chipping one back tamely to Neser.
Crawley, who had played compactly for his 44, fell in the exact same fashion four overs later to leave England in a spot of bother at 97/3. Australia continued their spirited attack, buoyed by false shots and ball going past bat. England suffered another punch to the gut when Starc nicked Joe Root off for 15 in the 27th over. The wicket came following a brilliant set-up sequence from Starc where he pushed Root back with a series of short deliveries round the wicket before pitching one up to induce the edge.
Harry Brook was troubled by Boland from the outset and he survived an appeal and review for LBW early. An eventful over saw Brook survive a caught-behind decision on review, only for Australia and Boland to overturn their own review for caught-behind the very next delivery to send him packing.
The slide continued as Starc had Jamie Smith out caught behind even as Stokes remained resolute in defence at the other end. Australia reviewed another appeal for caught-behind against Will Jacks, with RTS revealing it to be coming off the thigh pad. England got through a probing little spell to end on 134/6 at Stumps.