Australian player Marnus Labuschagne dove to his left to take a blinder of a catch as he dismissed Ollie Pope off Pat Cummins' bowling. Ollie Pope continued his weak patch of form in the Ashes, while England struggled in the mammoth 400+ chase.
Australia are already in the driving seat, as they have managed to take an early 2-0 lead in the home Ashes series. Having played without their lead pacers Josh Hazlewood and the skipper Pat Cummins, Australia never seemed a less dominant side in this Ashes.
England is struggling to keep their hopes alive in the series, as they need to win or atleast draw the Adelaide Test in order to keep their hopes alive in the series. However, considering the match circumstances, it's either England chasing the target or Australia defending it; there's no chance of a draw in this game.
Marnus Labuschagne takes a blinder to dismiss Ollie Pope
Australia managed to post a target of 435 runs in front of the Englishmen, as Travis Head cruised past the 150-run mark alongside Alex Carey, who also contributed significantly with his half-century.
Coming into bat, England lost their opener, Ben Duckett, on the very second ball of Pat Cummins. The left-hander has struggled with form in this Ashes series, as he has yet to make it count in any of the games.
Following Duckett's dismissal, Ollie Pope came in to bat, and he too could not break out of his lean patch after being dismissed by Pat Cummins again. The ball edged between the first and second slip, and Labuschagne, who stood in the second slip, almost flipped back and grabbed a stellar catch.
MARNUS ARE YOU KIDDING! WOWWWWW!#Ashes | #PlayoftheDay | @nrmainsurance pic.twitter.com/vikW0O7B6L
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 20, 2025
England's middle-order takes control at Adelaide
After the English top order struggled with the bat, the middle order, comprising veteran cricketer Joe Root and vice-captain Harry Brook, stabilized the innings alongside the opener, Zak Crawley.
Zak Crawley has been firm with a half-century in the innings, as England are four wickets down after some meaningful partnerships for the third and fourth wickets between Joe Root and Harry Brook, alongside the English opener.
After their dismissal, the captain Ben Stokes and England's highest scorer from the first innings have come down to take their innings forward alongside Crawley, who looks settled and will be eyeing his maiden hundred of the series.
Can the Aussies dominate Day 5 to win the Ashes in Adelaide?
The Adelaide Test marks the Third match of the Ashes series. Stand-in skipper Steve Smith missed the Test due to ill health; however, Pat Cummins returned and took command of the Australian team.
Nathan Lyon also marked his return to the Australian side, and the Test has been historic for him. He bowled stunningly across both innings and picked up crucial wickets with a beauty every time his team needed him to.
Lyon also went past former Australian legend Glenn McGrath on the list of most Test wickets for Australia. With half of the England side back on Day 4, Australia is most likely to dominate on the final day of the play to seal the Ashes series win.
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