Agar strikes gold to move OZ on top
Teenage debutant Ashton Agar fell agonisingly short of becoming the first Test match No 11 to score a century but still helped give Australia the edge in their Ashes opener against England at Trent Bridge on Thursday.
England, at stumps were 80/2 leading Australia by 15 runs. The hosts were in trouble as Mitchell Starc picked two early wickets with England reeling for 11/2 at tea. Skipper Alistair Cook and Kevin Pietersen took over to stitch a 69-run partnership.
Earlier it seemed England would have a commanding first innings lead as Australia collapsed to 117 for nine in reply to the Ashes-holders’ first innings 215. But 19-year-old Agar went on to make 98 -- the highest score by any Test No 11, surpassing Tino Best’s 95 for the West Indies against England at Edgbaston last year. Together with fellow left-hander Phil Hughes (81 not out), Agar shared a Test record 10th wicket partnership of 163.
This topped the previous last wicket record stand of 151 shared jointly by Brian Hastings and Richard Collinge for New Zealand against Pakistan at Auckland in 1972/73 and Azhar Mahmood and Mushtaq Ahmed for Pakistan against South Africa at Rawalpindi in 1997/98.
Australia resumed Thursday on 75 for four, a deficit of 140 runs, after an overcast first day where seamer Peter Siddle rocked England with five for 50. But Thursday saw sunshine and blue skies which promised better batting conditions for Steven Smith, 38 not out overnight, and Hughes. James Anderson, who on Wednesday had gone past England fast bowling great Fred Trueman’s record of 307 Test wickets, made the breakthrough Thursday.
Smith, driving loosely at Anderson, gaining reverse-swing, was caught behind by wicket-keeper Matt Prior for 53. Agar, primarily a left-arm spinner and a shock selection for this Test after playing just 10 first-class matches for Western Australia with a highest score of 71 not out, then cashed in with shots worthy of a top-order batsman.
In sight of a century, Agar pulled Stuart Broad to Swann at deep midwicket to end knock which had 12 fours and 2 sixes.
