RAIN PLAYS SPOILSPORT AFTER TRAVIS HEAD TON ON DAY 1

Rain played spoilsport as the third session of Day 1 of the fifth Ashes Test between Australia and England ended abruptly, here at Hobart on Friday. At the Stumps on Day 1, Australia’s score read 241/6 with Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc currently unbeaten at the crease. Resuming the third session at 215/5, Mark Wood dismissed Cameron Green on 74 runs as he got caught out by Zak Crawley, with the team’s total at 236/6.

Carey was then joined by Starc who took the team’s total to 241/6 before the rain ended the play on Day 1. Earlier before the tea break, Travis Head scored his fourth Test hundred but fell on the next ball. For Green, it was back-to-back fifties as Australia went past the 200-run mark in the second session.

After opting to bowl first, England’s seamers made the most of the new pink ball, dismissing David Warner and Steve Smith for ducks, plus SCG twin centurion Usman Khawaja for just six.

At 3-12, the home side were reeling, as Ollie Robinson (two wickets) and Stuart Broad (one) did the damage with the ball. However, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head opted to fight fire with fire, racing to 3-79 off just 21 overs on the stroke of dinner.

But Broad bowled Marnus round his legs to give England their fourth wicket of the session, seemingly justifying the call from Root to bowl first.

Brief Scores: Australia 241/6 (Travis Head 101, Cameron Green 74; Ollie Robinson 2-24) vs England.