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It was a brilliant day of Test cricket at the Oval, where Australia dominated both with the bat and ball. Early in the day, Australia won the toss and chose to bowl first. England had a good start with an opening partnership of 62 runs. Although Australia had a chance to get an early breakthrough when David Warner dropped Ben Duckett on 30 in the slips, it wasn’t costly as Mitchell Marsh later dismissed Duckett on 41.
England then faced a setback, losing two quick wickets in succession, and were struggling at 73/3 with the dismissals of Zak Crawley and Joe Root. However, Harry Brook and Moeen Ali steadied the innings, putting up a strong partnership of 111 runs for the fourth wicket.
Todd Murphy eventually broke the partnership by dismissing Moeen Ali. Subsequently, England faced more setbacks with the early dismissals of Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow. The Australian bowling attack was in fine form, with Mitchell Starc taking four wickets and Todd Murphy and Josh Hazlewood taking two wickets.
Harry Brook emerged as the highest scorer for England, contributing a valuable 85 runs. Despite being in a tough position at 212/7, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood managed to add some valuable runs, helping England reach a total of 283 runs in their first innings.
Australia’s batting started well, reaching 61/1 in 25 overs at stumps, trailing England by 222 runs. Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne remained unbeaten and are set to resume batting on Day 2. In the final session, Chris Woakes made a crucial breakthrough, removing David Warner for 24. Warner’s form has been a major concern for Australia throughout the series.
Looking ahead to Day 2, Australia will aim to add more runs to their total, while England will be eager to take quick wickets and gain control of the game.
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