The Ashes: England vs Australia Day 2, as it happened

Firm favourites England take on underdogs Australia in the first Test of the 2013 Ashes series at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. Catch all the highlights here (Scorecard | Commentary):

 

23.06 (IST): See in Pics how the the second day of the first Test transpired between England and Australia.

 

23.04 (IST): And that's stumps. England end Day 2 at 80/2 with Cook and Pietersen on 37 and 35 respectively and lead Australia by 15 runs.

 

22.49 (IST): Agar tries to tease Cook into a false stroke with tossed up deliveries down the leg side but the England skipper does not fall into the trap with 10 minutes left to play.

 

22.43 (IST): Both Cook and Pietersen play more defensively without taking unnecessary risks in the last 15 minutes of play.

 

22.24 (IST): Cook (30) and Pietersen (29) have added over 50 runs for the third wicket as England reach 67/2 in 34 overs with around 35 minutes of play to go.

 

22.12 (IST): Haddin drops a sharp chance off Agar's bowling and Pietersen adds insult to injury with a boundary off the next ball.

 

22.03 (IST): News just comes in that Ricky Ponting has finished unbeaten on 169 in his last first class game. Read

 

21.55 (IST): England's fifty comes up in the 26th over. Cook and Pietersen clearly playing for stumps with a little over 17 overs left in the day.

 

21.49 (IST): It's drinks and the players take a break as England draw closer to erasing Australia's first innings lead.

 

21.37 (IST): Pattinson comes back into the attack. He's bowled 6 overs for 20 runs with no wickets to his name in this innings so far.

 

21.32 (IST): Cook and Pietersen, both on 20 off 61 and 41 balls respectively, showing signs of getting big scores as they negotiate the pace of Starc, Watson and Siddle with relative ease. England are 48/2 in 22 overs, trailing Australia by 17 runs.

 

21.24 (IST): Shane Watson bowling without any sign of discomfort. This dispels any fears that he may be injured, at least for the moment.

 

21.15 (IST): Kevin Pietersen is playing his first Test since March. He was out with injury that kept him out of this year's IPL as well. Read

 

21.07 (IST): Mitchell Starc maintaining a tight line and length to Cook in order to restrict the England captain's scoring. Cook highest score against the Aussies was 235 which came in December 2010 when England toured Down Under.

 

21.01 (IST): Ashton Agar bowling with a jump is his step after his knock of 98. He added 163 runs for the last wicket with Phil Hughes to take Australia to a commanding 280.

 

20.55 (IST): Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen at the crease looking to get set as they aim at building a partnership after losing two quick wickets.

 

20:47 (IST): Cook (14) and Pietersen (6) have made a move on here. A couple of boundaries by the skipper and one by KP as England look to thwart the charging Aussies. England 27/2 in 12 overs.

 

Also, it has become quite apparent now that Shane Watson is not fully fit. The report trickled in yesterday itself but seems for sure now.

 

20:41 (IST): Shocking revelation if true - According to reports, the side-on Hot Spot for Trott was not there because it was prepared to show the catch behind for the Root dismissal and you can't play and record Hot Spot at the same time.

20:23 (IST): Meanwhile, see the amazing knock by Ashton Agar in pictures.

 

England 11/2 at Tea, Trail Australia by 54 (Who is Ashton Agar)

 

Two in two for Mitchell Starc! Jonathan Trott goes lbw first ball. The English batsman reviewed it instantly and replays suggested an inside edge. Unfortunately for Trott, no side view of the hot-spot and he is given out! On-field umpire had given not-out. 11/2 at Tea.

 

20:08 (IST): Wicket! Mitchell Starc strangles Joe Root down the leg-side. Unlucky mode to get out but Australia will take it. 11/1.

 

20:03 (IST): All a bit quiet in Trent Bridge. Root and Cook going slow. Just the one boundary so far by the younger batsman from Yorkshire. England 10/0 after 7 overs.

 

19:48 (IST): Two maiden overs on the trot from Australia - Starc and Pattinson the proponents. England circumspect to start with. 3/0 in 3 overs.

 

19:44 (IST): A Decision Review wasted by Michael Clarke in the second over of the innings. It pitched in the middle from Starc but swung back too much. Umpire gave not-out.

 

19:38 (IST): England begin their innings, on a low presumably but Alastair Cook and Joe Root will be looking to forget about what happened just now and give them a good start. 3/0 after James Pattinson's over.

 

Australia dismissed for 280! Lead England by 65 runs.

 

Heartbreak for kid! Ashton Agar dismissed for 98 caught in the deep, playing his 'favourite' pull-shot off Stuart Broad. Graeme Swann was the fielder. What an innings though. Phil Hughes left 'stranded' on 81*.

 

19:18 (IST): 96* Ashton Agar has broken the record for the highest score by a number 11 batsman in Test cricket, goes past West IndianTino Best.

19:16 (IST): Not looking great for England. Have gone defensive against a number 11 and a batsman woefully out of form. Australia now 275/9 and lead by 60. Agar on 93 off 95 and Hughes on 81 off 126.

 

19:11 (IST): This is the 3rd innings in a row Australia's bottom 3 have outscored top 3 (via Twitter @BenWayFox)

19:10 (IST): More stats - This is now the highest ever tenth wicket partnership in Tests as Ashton Agar and Phil Hughes taking it to different proportions altogether. Ashton Agar is the 2nd highest scorer playing at number 11. The record is 95 by Tino Best against England in 2012.

19:05 (IST): 150 of the partnership comes up! Still no success for England. Phil Hughes and Ashton Agar keep on thwarting Broad and Anderson with defiance.

 

18:54 (IST): Ashton Agar is looking like he will reach a century here. Let's not jinx it though. Has batted freely after lunch too. Hit three superb fours - two off Broad and one off Anderson. Australia 253/9 and lead England by 38. (Lunch report)

 

18:43 (IST): Agar and Hughes are back after lunch. It is high time for England to make a come'back' though as the pair is looking ominous in amazing English conditions.

 

Lunch - Australia 229/9, lead England by 14 runs

 

Agar batting on 69 off 68 while Hughes solid on 63 off 105 as England with plenty to think about. Meanwhile read about who is Ashton Agar here.

 

100 partnership comes up too! Hughes and Agar are now toying with the English attack. This is only the fifth time in Test history that Australia have achieved a 100 partnership for their tenth wicket.

 

17:55 (IST): Phil Hughes too reaches fifty. Meanwhile some stats: Ashton Agar has scored the 2nd fastest fifty on Test debut by an Australian batsman (50 balls) - Adam Gilchrist holds the record (46 balls)

 

17:39 (IST): Ashton Agar reaches 50! What a knock! Agar at 19 years and 270 days is now the 4th youngest Aussie to score a half-century in Tests after Ian Craig, Neil Harvey & Archie Jackson. Agar also becomes the first no.11 to score a half-century on debut. Australia 192/9 now and trail England by 23 runs.

 

17:30 (IST): Ashton Agar is now the highest run-getter as a debutant no.11 in Tests. Previous best was 40 by Sri Lanka's Chamila Lakshitha v Bangladesh in Colombo 2002

 

17:22(IST): England, it seems, have no answers here as Ashton Agar hits another couple of boundaries off Steven Finn. Australia 178/9 now.

 

17:13 (IST): Agar looking supremely confident and England faces looking a bit nervous as Steven Finn now at the rough end of the stick. A brilliant pull for four and overall seven runs of Finn's over, whose figures read 14 overs, 71 runs and 2 wickets. Australia 164/9, 51 shy of England's 215.

 

17:08 (IST): And Ashton Agar goes big! What a shot. Graeme Swann left astounded as the youngster hits a massive straight six off him.

 

17:06 (IST): Australia's last pair of Phil Hughes and debutant Ashton Agar putting up a fight and frustrating England's bowlers. Agar has been particularly impressive, considering he his just 19. He is batting on 19 off 21 while Hughes, who has been under-fire off late, is on 35 off 68. Australia 151/9 and still trail England by 63.

 

16:51 (IST): Left-handed Ashton Agar survives a tight stumping chance. He is giving good support to Phillip Hughes, who is waging a lone battle.

16:30 (IST): James Pattinson is the 9th Australian wicket to fall. Pattinson leans forward to defend but ball hits him in front of middle. . Pattinson reviews and it goes in vain. Australia 117 for 9. Debutant Ashton Agar is the last man in.

16:22 (IST): James Anderson removes Mitchell Starc to bag his 14th five-wicket haul in Tests. Australia 114 for 8.

16:18 (IST): Graeme Swann puts down Mitchell Starc on 0 at second slip. That could have been James Anderson's fifth wicket. Well he will have to wait for his 14th fifer.

16:14 (IST): James Anderson is on fire here. Peter Siddle edges a rising delivery to keeper Matt Prior, who dives to his right to complete the catch. Australia are 7 down.

16:08 (IST): Australia lose their 6th and it's vice-captain Brad Haddin this time. He goes to backfoot against Graeme Swann and gets an inside edge onto stumps.

16:01 (IST): James Anderson bags his third and Australia lose their 5th wicket. Steven Smith, who was looking in a good touch, leans forward to drive the ball but ends up edging it to keeper Matt Prior who makes no mistake. His 53-run knock was laced with 7 fours and one six.

15:57 (IST): Steven Smith scores his fourth half-century in Tests. Australia have got a positive start on Day 2 as partnership between Smith and Phillip Hughes grows to 54. Graem Swann also comes into the attack.

15:36 (IST): Wednesday's overcast conditions replaced Thursday by blue skies above Trent Bridge promising to make life easier for batsmen. Steve Finn, James Anderson joins him. Steven Smith looks in good touch.

15:08 (IST): England paceman Stuart Broad has passed a fitness test and will take the field for the start of the second day of the first Test against Australia on Thursday, the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed in a statement.

14:45 (IST): Former Australia spinner Shane Warne will be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame on July 19 during the tea interval of the second Ashes Test between England and Australia at Lord's. (Read)

13:23 (IST): The first hour of today is expected to be tough for Steven Smith (38*) and Phil Hughes (7*). If they can survive initial pace hostilities, Australia can hope to surpass England's first innings total. The hosts, on the other hand, will hope that Stuart Broad is fit as the rivalry resumes between England and Australia on Thursday. (Day 1 as it happened)

Australia coach Darren Lehmann says his side was "here to play" after an "even-stevens" start to the Ashes series against England at Nottingham's Trent Bridge ground on first day. "It's pretty even stevens isn't it. Tomorrow (Thursday) is going to be a pretty big day -- most of them are in an Ashes series," Lehmann said. (Read more)

The opening day of the 2013 Ashes at Nottingham's Trent Bridge was dominated by bowlers on both sides as the Australia and England attacks shared 14 wickets between them. Geoffrey Boycott slammed batsmen of both sides for their inability to play the swinging ball.

Australian media bemoaned another brittle top-order batting display in undermining the good work from the bowlers on a topsy-turvy opening day of the Ashes series against England. (Read here)