Head Belts Curran For 30 Run To Give Aussies Flying Start

## Head Belts Curran for 30-Run to Give Aussies Flying Start ### Australia's first-ever day-night test began exactly as they would have hoped, with the bowlers making the most of favorable conditions to reduce England to 184 for 4 at the Adelaide Oval. Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood struck early to leave England at 29 for 2; only 30 runs had been added when James Anderson was dismissed to leave England wobbling at 59 for 3. Then, just when Joe Root and Ben Stokes looked to be steadying the ship, the introduction of part-time spinner Glenn Maxwell saw Root caught at slip. Crucially, Australia held onto the catches that came their way, with Usman Khawaja taking a sharp grab at gully to dismiss Anderson off Hazlewood. The moment of the day, though, belonged to Hilton Cartwright, who took a stunning diving catch at mid-wicket to end Stokes' innings and leave England with a mountain to climb. ### Sam Curran: A Lone Warrior Root and Stokes had taken England to 154 for 3 and looked to be taking the game away from Australia, but the introduction of Maxwell proved inspired. Root, who had looked assured throughout his innings, edged a ball that didn't bounce as much as he expected and was caught by Shaun Marsh at slip. The dismissal of Stokes was even more impressive, as Curran drove the ball powerfully, only for Cartwright to dive brilliantly to his right and take a stunning low catch. ### Australia in Command The dismissal of Stokes left England in real trouble, and they will need a big innings from Curran if they are to avoid being bowled out for a very low score. The introduction of the second new ball is also likely to aid the Australian bowlers, and England will need to show a lot more resilience than they did in the first innings of the Brisbane Test to avoid a similar fate. ### Conclusion Australia will be delighted with their start to the day-night test, and they will be confident of taking a significant first-innings lead. England, meanwhile, will need to dig deep and show a lot of character if they are to avoid a heavy defeat.