With the Ashes gone, Australia batsman Steve Smith, whose 143 put the tourists in the driving seat, hopes his side can give retiring skipper Michael Clarke a good send-off by winning this game.
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England boast an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-Test series, having recorded crushing wins in Cardiff, Birmingham and Nottingham.
Smith flashed hard at the very next delivery from Finn and Buttler took the catch but the bowler immediately returned to the crease to check his footmark and replays confirmed that he had overstepped by several inches.
“The bowlers today, it’s the best we’ve bowled all series”.
Warner was somewhat relieved to put together a solid contribution in the first innings at The Oval, with 11 fours in his 131-ball knock before he nicked a ball from England spinner Moeen Ali to slip.
Steve Smith reckoned that Australia’s performance with the ball on the second day of the fifth Ashes Test at The Oval on Friday was their best of the series so far.
Moeen Ali and Mark Wood did manage to see out the day and will both resume on scores of eight on Saturday, with England now 107-8.
But with the Ashes already decided after Australia were bowled out for just 60 at Trent Bridge as they took the fast route to innings defeat there, this time they were in no mood to go quietly.
Warner went to a 76-ball fifty when he cover-drove Steven Finn for his seventh four.
In the first ball of the last scheduled over before tea, Lyon got some turn and beat the outside edge of Cook’s bat.
Smith received good support in a fourth-wicket stand of 146 with Adam Voges (76), while Mitchell Starc (58) helped him add 91 for the eighth wicket.
Adam Lyth opened the door to more trouble with an ill-executed pull to Siddle’s second delivery, resulting in a catch at mid-on. Ben Stokes also fell after making 15 when he was caught at fine-leg off Mitchell Marsh.
He responded by upper-cutting his first ball, from Siddle, over the slips for four. It’s a good wicket, but Australia have got more out of it than we did.
“But there is no getting away from the fact we have had a very poor day”.
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“That’s the ideal we have bowled all collection, we created strain, made them earn their runs and acquired eight wickets so it speaks for itself”, Smith advised Sky Sports. We knew early on it was going to be very tough conditions for us and I think there were 19 or 20 runs scored in the first hour, so positive signs for us moving forward for tomorrow.
