England v WACA XI: the story of the match

6 Nov 2017 | Cricket
England made a solid start to their tour of Australia with a draw in the two-day tour match against a Western Australia XI at the Waca in Perth.

Captain Joe Root won the toss and chose to bat on day one, with the Three Lions declaring on 349/6 overnight before bowling all day on Sunday as WA XI finished 342/10.

James Anderson took four wickets as England bowled out the WA XI for 338 before they continued to bat until the close as the tourists spent the whole day in the field.

England will now move on to Adelaide for a four-day day-night tour match against a Cricket Australia XI as they build up towards the start of the Ashes in Brisbane on 23 November.

DAY ONE

England were dealt a blow when opener Alastair Cook edged behind in just the second ball of the match while Root scored only nine runs before being dismissed.

It was a largely successful day for England, though, as four players scored half-centuries as they adapted quickly to Australian conditions.

A 153-run second wicket partnership between Mark Stoneman (85) and James Vince (82) set the tone as England's batsmen spent valuable time at the crease.

Dawid Malan (56) and Gary Ballance (51) also scored half-centuries beforing retiring out, with Jonny Bairstow scoring a brisk 36 not out before stumps.

DAY TWO

England declared on 349/6 and made a slow start as WA XI opener Josh Philippe smashed 88 from 92 balls.

Craig Overton took the only wicket in the first session as the hosts went in on 124/1 at lunch.

Mason Crane then removed dangerman Philippe stumped by Jonny Bairstow before James Anderson found his groove.

Anderson took two wickets in the afternoon session and a further two in the evening to finish the match with figures of 4/27 from 13 overs.

The seamer was supported by Crane and Overton who took two wickets each.

 

England play Australia in Cardiff next summer in a One-Day International on Saturday, 16 June. Tickets are still available priced from £56 for adults and £12 for juniors.  Tickets can be purchased online at www.glamorgancricket.com/tickets or by calling the Box Office on 02920 419 311.