Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley survive for 27-0 at stumps after England’s bowlers rip through Australia

England’s late entrants to this year’s Ashes combined on a truncated third day to set up the prospect of another Headingley heist being completed today – and Australia’s series lead being cut to 2-1 in the process. 

Play was delayed until 4.45pm but when the wet weather finally relented it provided a perfect window for England to make inroads and recalled bowlers Chris Woakes and Mark Wood responded with a couple of crucial strikes apiece. 

It extended England’s comeback in this contest from a position on Friday when they trailed by 121 runs with only three first-innings standing and sets up the prospect of another epic finale four years on from the Ben Stokes-inspired chase of 359 that kept the 2019 series alive.

This ground has a habit of throwing up enthralling successful chases and they are not confined to Ashes contests alone. Last year, England cruised to 296 for three to defeat New Zealand.

Typically of this most unpredictable of series, however, Travis Head then launched a ferocious counter-attack to temporarily silence another raucous crowd, stealing the the momentum of four wickets for 39 runs in boundary-laden stands with Australia tail-enders Todd Murphy and Scott Boland to set England a target of 251 when a more modest tally looked on the cards.

Chris Woakes (left) celebrates after taking the wicket of Australia’s Mitchell Marsh

Australia’s Alex Carey arrived to boos and for just five after falling to the inspired Woakes

Travis Head top-scored for the visitors with a superb 77 run display that added crucial runs

Things threatened to get worse during that period of flurried activity but the cool headed Stuart Broad returned to pin Murphy lbw, making him the leading wicket taker in the series in the process, and then claimed Head as his 16th victim when the Australian left-hander finally mishit a short ball, having nailed two sixes off Wood in the previous over.

And in a match that England must win to retain hopes of regaining the urn, openers Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley sliced 27 runs off the requirement unblemished as the sun peaked from behind the clouds.

There is a school of thought among Australians that despite the current Ashes scoreline it is England who have had all the atmospherical advantages this series.

That is not strictly true – the passage of play at Edgbaston when England lost two new-ball wickets under the floodlights, stalling their momentum after securing a narrow first innings lead, was a significant factor in Australia scrambling to a two-wicket win.

But yesterday’s gloom-ridden delayed resumption with Australia on 116 for four, 142 runs ahead, is undoubtedly part of a pattern.

First, there was the winning of the toss that presented the chance to England’s swing king Jimmy Anderson and others to exploit the heavy cloud and artificial illumination of the pitch on the opening morning at Lord’s.

Then, after inserting again here in Leeds, idyllic batting conditions invited England to bask in the baking sun for day two’s entirety.

Both those opportunities were spurned, the latter when they lost home heroes Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow in the opening hour and the hosts became reliant on Ben Stokes to get them within 26 runs on first innings.

Ben Stokes and his England side seized the initiative on a thrilling third day of action in Leeds

Stuart Broad has bowled more deliveries than anyone else across the three Ashes contests

 Follow MailSport on Threads here: https://www.threads.net/@mailsport 

The storms clouds that hung over Headingley yesterday morning – it is hard to recall in recent memory a time when they did not – burst at an appropriate juncture, providing England’s flagging attack with some much needed time off their feet.

Understandably, Wood’s pace had been down on the second day after being asked to return to bowling just two sessions after dismissing Australia for 263, but here was almost exclusively back up above 90 miles per hour.

At 37, Broad has bowled more deliveries than anyone else across the three contests and with Ollie Robinson suffering from a back spasm, a prospect of a hard flog with the recalled Woakes lay ahead yesterday.

No doubt grateful for the respite, they were not forced into action until deep into the evening session and were greeted by perfect bowling conditions – moisture lingering and floodlights on.

Woakes did not take long to strike, securing his best match figures in a home Ashes Test in the third over of the day, shortly after five o’clock, when first-innings centurion Mitchell Marsh became his fifth victim.

Marsh was once again looking ominous, greeting the introduction of Stuart Broad from the Kirkstall Lane end following a 11-minute delay for a shower with a booming on-drive for four and then forced Woakes through the off side for another boundary.

But Woakes persevered, forcing an error next ball when Marsh popped the ball wide of the bowler at catchable height and then following that with one which exploited some uneven bounce in the Headingley surface.

Marsh attempted to raise his hands out of the way of a rising delivery but ultimately failed as

the ball brushed his glove on the way through to wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow.

And the boos for Alex Carey still hung in the air as another attempted leave resulted in a drag-on and an upgrade for Woakes to his best haul versus Australia in Tests anywhere.

Starc thought he had given Australia a breakthrough but was unsuccessful in his appeal

Zak Crawley (left) and Ben Duckett (right) survived the late Australian attack to finish 27-0

Wood then got in on the act, adding to his five-wicket collection of the first innings: Mitchell Starc shovelling a short ball behind square on the leg side and Pat Cummins testing the technology by reviewing a thick edge to Bairstow.

Questionable tactics against Head were the only downside of a session which England totally dominated.

Woakes, playing his first Test since Stokes became captain, was making the ball talk from a full length yet he and the rest of the attack ignored that whenever the left-handed Head was on strike, banging it halfway down the pitch instead.

Initially restrained, he later struck his cross-batted strokes with more power and precision than even Stokes had managed in an innings of 80 on day two that kept English hopes alive.

And they will not lack confidence, with Stokes’ record here and four 250-run pursuits last summer fresh in the memory.

Follow MailSport on Threads here: https://www.threads.net/@mailsport