ENGLAND are on the brink of another crushing defeat after they repeated their doom loop of idiotic cricket and self-destruction.
First, they were powerless to prevent Australia exceeding 500 in their first innings.
And then – with utter predictability – they slumped in their second innings with a mixture of terrible judgement and poor shots.
By the close of day two of the Second Test, England were disintegrating at 134-6 in tricky conditions under the floodlights at the Gabba and still 43 runs short of making Australia bat again.
Surely, if England lose this Test and go 2-0 down in the series with three to play, there is no hope of them regaining the Ashes.
England were 177 runs adrift when they batted again and, after rushing to 45-0 in six overs before the 20-minute dinner interval, wickets soon started to fall.
Ben Duckett had already been dropped by Michael Neser from a caught and bowled chance when a shooter from Scott Boland flicked the toe of his bat and crashed into the stumps.
There was not much Duckett could have done about it.
But it continued a nightmare match for Duckett, who was out for a golden duck and 15, as well as dropping two catches.
However, there was plenty that Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley could have done about their dismissals.
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Pope played a couple of peachy drives but also several loose shots in the couple of overs before he perished. But he didn’t heed the warnings and popped back a soft catch to Neser.
Four overs later, ditto Crawley. He attempted a drive at Neser and, sure enough, the return catch was held.
So two of England’s top three were caught and bowled and the other survived a caught and bowled chance. Conclusion? Brainless batting, poor shot selection, bad execution.
To have any chance of gaining anything from the match, England needed another Joe Root century.
It wasn’t forthcoming, though, and Root edged Mitchell Starc behind. It needed an Aussie review to confirm the edge. It was Starc’s 17th wicket of the series.
Harry Brook was also caught behind. First, he was given out but the decision was overturned on review. Next delivery, he was given not out and DRS showed a clear edge off Boland.
Jamie Smith continued his grim match – 0 and 4 and a dropped catch – by aiming an extravagant drive at Starc. Nick. Wicket No.18 for Starc.
Earlier, Starc continued his incredible series by top scoring in Australia’s first innings.
If all his wickets in the first two Tests weren’t enough, he tormented England with the bat.
The tall left-hander played sensibly, punishing loose balls but also defending patiently, as Australia’s lead grew and grew.
England hoped to take the remaining four Australian wickets in the first hour of day three. But Starc made sure their innings extended well into the second session.
Neser soon edged a catch behind and Alex Carey, dropped twice on day two, was also held by Smith off Gus Atkinson.
It was Atkinson’s first wicket of the series and the first by an English-born bowler.
Starc found a staunch ally in No.10 Boland and they put on 75 for the ninth wicket, frustrating England for a further 27 overs.
Starc eventually holed out to long-off and Brendan Doggett gave Will Jacks a wicket when he edged to slip.
All eleven of Australia’s batsmen reached double figures – the first time that’s happened in an Ashes Test for 97 years. There were six partnerships of fifty or more and the last four wickets added 182 runs.
Australia might be disappointed that none of their batters went on to a century but their innings was consistency personified. Compare that to England’s first innings when three of the top seven were out for ducks.
The length of Australia’s innings meant England would begin their second innings under lights against a hard, new pink ball – the most dangerous combination for batting.
And England didn’t have the skill or resolve to resist.
