England had an emphatic outing on Day 3 of the fifth Ashes Test at Kennington Oval, London, as they accumulated a healthy lead of 377 runs at the close of play. Fifties from Zak Crawley, Joe Root, and Jonny Bairstow helped the hosts to get into a position of dominance before they suffered a collapse. England lost their last five wickets for 47 runs as Stuart Broad and James Anderson remained unbeaten at Stumps.
The 37-year-old Stuart Broad shocked the cricket world shortly after the end of the day’s play as he told the official broadcasters that he would hang up his boots after the fifth Test. Since then, the cricket world has showered the pacer with good wishes and tributes.
India’s head coach Rahul Dravid lauded Broad, calling him a “terrific bowler”, and also mentioned how his bowling partnership with Anderson will always be remembered.
“He has been a terrific bowler. I think his partnership with Jimmy Anderson is something that will always be remembered,” Dravid was quoted as saying by Sportskeeda.
Stuart Broad has been in top-notch form in the Ashes, as he has picked up 20 wickets already, the highest among the English bowlers. He also entered the 600-wicket club in Test cricket during the fourth Test in Manchester.
England aim to draw the Ashes
England lost the first couple of Tests and dug themselves into a hole. Ben Stokes’ men bounced back to win the third Test. The fourth Test was dominated by England, but relentless rain on the last two days of the encounter denied them a probable victory. Australia retained the Ashes urn by virtue of the result as they entered the series as the defending champions.
With the series poised at 2-1 in favour of Australia, England can only draw the series from here. They are in a good position to do so as they have a 377-run lead with one wicket remaining. Two days of cricket are still left to be played, and there are chances of rain on both days. The home side would be hoping that rain doesn’t play spoilsport once again.