Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Joe Root starred with 135*, his maiden century on Australian soil.
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: The second day of the opening Test was chaos incarnate in this series. The less said about what happened in Perth, the better, as far as England are concerned. This is a new Test, they have batted well on the opening day, just about hold the advantage with some late hitting, and finally managed to break Joe Root’s Aussie duck by seeing him score an excellent century despite coming in to bat as early as the 3rd over.
Root’s 135* so far has been the backbone of the innings. He settled things down and helped England fight back from being down 5/2, as he stitched together key back-to-back partnerships with first Zak Crawley then Harry Brook. After Brook’s dismissal, England lost their way just a touch: Mitchell Starc did what he has been doing best, just being effective with taking wickets, delivering for Australia whenever he is called upon. Starc took six as England collapsed to 264/9, a score that would have been under-par on a surface where batting is expected to get tougher.
Instead, Jofra Archer joined forces with Root and swung his bat around a little bit, with both batters connection often enough for a 61-run stand overnight. From here, every run will be seen as a bonus, more to put pressure on Australia with.
Now, Day 2 will be about Australia’s batting response: can England’s bowlers find the way with the pink ball? How will Australia approach this innings? Do England have an answer to Travis Head? And will we have at the very least a heavy favourite by the end of the day, even if the Perth-esque two-day fate is avoided by this match.
Australia vs England 2nd Test Playing XIs
Australia Playing XI: Travis Head, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith (c), Josh Inglis, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, Brendan Doggett
England Playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer
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Root’s 135* so far has been the backbone of the innings. He settled things down and helped England fight back from being down 5/2, as he stitched together key back-to-back partnerships with first Zak Crawley then Harry Brook. After Brook’s dismissal, England lost their way just a touch: Mitchell Starc did what he has been doing best, just being effective with taking wickets, delivering for Australia whenever he is called upon. Starc took six as England collapsed to 264/9, a score that would have been under-par on a surface where batting is expected to get tougher.
Instead, Jofra Archer joined forces with Root and swung his bat around a little bit, with both batters connection often enough for a 61-run stand overnight. From here, every run will be seen as a bonus, more to put pressure on Australia with.
Now, Day 2 will be about Australia’s batting response: can England’s bowlers find the way with the pink ball? How will Australia approach this innings? Do England have an answer to Travis Head? And will we have at the very least a heavy favourite by the end of the day, even if the Perth-esque two-day fate is avoided by this match.
Australia vs England 2nd Test Playing XIs
Australia Playing XI: Travis Head, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith (c), Josh Inglis, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, Brendan Doggett
England Playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer
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Dec 05, 2025 9:00:59 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Half an hour to start of play
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Australia will want to snap up that final English wicket quickly, and be ready to bat sooner rather than later. Not too far from when that should take place, as final preparations go ahead before play begins. Head and Weatherald expected to open for the Aussies.
Dec 05, 2025 8:52:28 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Express pace and effort needed from Archer and co.
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Remember, no Mark Wood for team.England still have three seamers to turn to as well as Ben Stokes’ golden arm – but they know they can’t let the second innings drift at all. Proactive throughout the need of the hour, and key for that will be Jofra Archer. Archer looked in sublime touch in the first innings in Perth but didn’t rise to top of the reckoning in the second innings. An even better effort needed.
Dec 05, 2025 8:40:24 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: But focus on Australia’s batting
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Pink ball matches tend to follow a path which sees them become tougher and tougher to handle as the match progresses and that will be Australia’s challenge over the course of this match. They will require focus from their top order but also positivity and application: Travis Head showed them the way in Perth, and it will be all about following that example in Brisbane.
Dec 05, 2025 8:30:03 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Plan for Day 2 – can England approach 350?
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: 260-odd for nine down and having suffered a late collapse, England looked to be heading back into the dressing room short of what would have been par. The Aussies had the upper hand, but once Archer and Root both started swinging, runs began to flow. It’s a balance and competitive first outing from England, who have ensured that there is work to be done for the Australian batting.
Dec 05, 2025 8:15:17 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Mitchell Starc hits bullseye again, takes 6 wickets
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: There seems to be nothing that can stop Mitchell Starc from taking bulk wickets at the moment. Everything worked out for Starc: a chop-on from Ollie Pope, two wild weird slashes from Harry Brook and Will Jacks, snapping up Gus Atkinson thanks to a truly spectacular catch by Alex Carey. It wasn’t the prettiest set of wickets, but Starc came back time and again and made a difference – an ability worth its weight in gold to any captain.
Dec 05, 2025 8:12:24 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Zak Crawley impresses at the top of the order
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Root was given able support by Zak Crawley, who had a pair in Perth and was on the chopping block. He showed up at the Gabba: down 5/2, he looked and played confidently, playing some positive strokes and keeping the runs moving along to put the pressure back onto Australia. A key innings to settle some of his nerves on a big series.
Dec 05, 2025 8:10:49 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Joe Root’s 135* the story of the day
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: Joe Root ended his Aussie hoodoo with his first century down under. He quietly made his way through the runs, innocuous at first, but then gradually took charge of the innings and looked at his very best by the end of day’s play.
Dec 05, 2025 7:22:34 AM IS
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: HELLO AND WELCOME BACK!
Ashes 2nd Test Day 2 LIVE Score, Australia vs England: An exciting and captivating start to the second Test yesterday, and more of the same to look forward to on today, the second day, as well. England are in a good position at 325/9, but we won’t be too far from the Australian first innings where much of this match will be decided. Much to think about on an interesting day for cricket!
