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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Australia on top in Sydney Test | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Australia gained a strong position at tea on day two of the final Ashes Test in Sydney with world number one Ricky Ponting settling into his innings. | |
| Ponting was 37 not out in a score of 109-2 after England had been bowled out just before lunch for only 291. | |
| The tourists declined rapidly from their overnight position of 234-4, though Andrew Flintoff - ninth out for 89 - emerged with considerable credit. | |
| Disappointingly, England's last five men only produced a combined four runs. | |
| Brett Lee, Glenn McGrath and Stuart Clark all finished with three wickets. | |
| The second new ball was taken as soon as play began on Wednesday and McGrath and Lee looked dangerous immediately. | The second new ball was taken as soon as play began on Wednesday and McGrath and Lee looked dangerous immediately. |
| Paul Collingwood was dropped by Justin Langer in the slips in Lee's first over, but in any case added just two to his overnight 25 before edging a McGrath lifter to Gilchrist. | Paul Collingwood was dropped by Justin Langer in the slips in Lee's first over, but in any case added just two to his overnight 25 before edging a McGrath lifter to Gilchrist. |
| Chris Read never settled and soon gave Gilchrist another catch off Lee, who followed up by removing Sajid Mahmood for a golden duck. | Chris Read never settled and soon gave Gilchrist another catch off Lee, who followed up by removing Sajid Mahmood for a golden duck. |
| England's number eight fended his first delivery away amateurishly for Matthew Hayden to take the easiest catch imaginable at gully. | England's number eight fended his first delivery away amateurishly for Matthew Hayden to take the easiest catch imaginable at gully. |
| Though he struggled to put bat to ball, Steve Harmison did better than his fellow tail-enders, lasting 24 balls to allow Flintoff to go from 61 to 82. | Though he struggled to put bat to ball, Steve Harmison did better than his fellow tail-enders, lasting 24 balls to allow Flintoff to go from 61 to 82. |
| The England skipper was within sight of his sixth Test century - and first since the summer of 2005. | |
| But wickets were falling and he had to take more and more risks, so it was no huge surprise when he nicked a big drive behind to be the ninth man out. | |
| And the final wicket was Shane Warne's 1,000th in international cricket, Monty Panesar missing an attempted sweep to be ajudged lbw. | And the final wicket was Shane Warne's 1,000th in international cricket, Monty Panesar missing an attempted sweep to be ajudged lbw. |
| Langer survived the one over bowled by England before lunch and emerged after the interval to play a range of shots with real panache. | |
| But having got to 26 quickly he contrived to glove a ball from James Anderson down the leg-side, Read taking the catch. | |
| Ponting and Matthew Hayden were given plenty of balls to attack - which had not been the case when England had batted. | |
| And England had to wait until the score had got to 100 before the next wicket came - Hayden lazily steering a wide ball from Harmison to Collingwood in the slips. |