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Sport Nation
How to tune into Sport Nation“Black Friday”: England hold the aces amidst batting calamity
SEN • November 21st, 2025 11:24 pm
At different stages today it felt as though England's Bazball style was leading them to yet another bleak summer in Australia, but it didn't take long for the Aussies to divert the attention onto themselves.
The speed of today's play felt more akin to One-Day cricket to start as England pounded away despite the consistent loss of wicket, mainly to Mitch Starc (7/58) who was outstanding with career-best figures.
Damien Fleming and Gerard Whateley praised England's bowling while lamenting the Aussie's batting all the same.
“I just didn’t know England’s attack would be this disciplined… the variety of the attack even though they’re all right-handers. They have bowled beautifully together,” Fleming said on SEN.
“It’s been a Black Friday for Australia’s batting… as they hand the ascendancy back to the visitors,” Whateley claimed.
It was then up to the home side to prove this wicket had runs in it, a test they failed dismally.
Usman Khawaja ineligible to open the batting, Jake Weatherald falling for a duck on debut, Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith battered and bruised while a lack of game smarts cost the middle order and tail end with some more than questionable wickets.
In just 71.5 overs of play, 53,531 people at Perth Stadium saw 19 wickets tumble on a deck that appeared a bat-first pitch.
England captain Ben Stokes collected 5/23 in just six overs. After removing Travis Head for 21 with his first wicket, it took Stokes just 47 minutes to add another four victims to his tally.
Whether it be a sign of the way Test cricket is trending or some hidden gremlins in a wicket that seemed to play fair all day, it's fair to say today will be remembered as one of the more shambolic first days of an Ashes series.
An interesting sub-plot that will soon be front-of-mind is England's approach to Scott Boland.
The Victorian went wicketless from 10 overs and conceded 62 runs in some of the worst figures of his career to-date.
Opener Ben Duckett came at Boland early, with his length from then on often too full to both Harry Brook and Ollie Pope.
Damien Fleming and Stuart Broad discussed Boland’s start on SEN Cricket.
Fleming: “The story for the Australians is Boland hasn't been able to set in that line. I think, England's game plan against him is working.
“Even Duckett, when he advanced down, he wasn't trying to smash it for four, but you know that really messes with your length.
“Brook's intent is enough. He's after them, isn't he?
Broad: “It's actually interesting with Boland. I wonder with those little steps that Duckett took early, whether that puts him off on his delivery stride and he sort of panics in that moment and goes fuller?
“Normally when someone walks at you, you drop a bit shorter, you've got more chance of it being a dot ball cos someone's advancing at you generally to hit you down the ground.
“It’s definitely a game plan from England to try and hurt Scott Boland, we know how brilliant he is at hitting length and hitting an area, and if you let him do that, he'll do it all day and he'll cause you pain.
“They're trying to put him off.”
Boland should get his chance to redeem himself much earlier than anticipated.
Australia trail England by 49 runs with one wicket in hand heading into Day 2.
