The home side still trail by over 200-runs but on the evidence of that session they will reach and breach that target before the day is out. England may have edged day one and piled a few more runs onto an entertaining 10th-wicket partnership this morning, but they have dropped their bundle on day two through loose bowling, a dropped catch and abysmal body language.

As Brian Withington writes in from Blighty under the gloomy headline ‘Fill Your Boots’: “The generosity of most of our batters has been surpassed by the bowlers, with a smorgasbord of long hops spiced with the occasional half volley. Bon appetit!”

Joe Root’s unbeaten 138 was magnificent but Australia have erased it in a session. Can the visitors recover their mojo after lunch and give themselves a sniff of squaring the series? Or will Australia pile on the runs and rain down more misery?

21st over: Australia 130-1 (Weatherald 59, Labuschagne 27) Stokes enters his sixth over with 0-32. He should be working on his lunchtime speech instead. It will need to be Henry V-at-Agincourt-esque to get England up for the second session. They are flatter than the Barmy Army choir right now. The run-rate is 6.19 and rising and both batters are set, stealing singles at will and slapping every loose ball to the rope.

20th over: Australia 125-1 (Weatherald 57, Labuschagne 25) Good change-up, England. Spinner Will Jacks is into the attack. Can he add a little more egg to the face of Australkian selectors who left their champion Nathan Lyon out of the XI? Not immediately he cant, as Jacks’ first ball beats everyone and runs for four byes. Now another FOUR as Weatherald taps a legside drifter to the rope with ease. A cut square yields another single. Jack now delivers a rank full toss and Labuschagne bludgeons it down the ground for another boundary.