Bazball is on the brink in Brisbane as Australia’s quicks leave England reeling on Day 3

England’s unprepared approach to their Australian tour is producing some brutal results for the visitors, leaving the team’s radical strategy hanging by a thread.

Bazball is on the brink after Mitchell Starc’s all-round brilliance and a Michael Neser cameo left an ill-disciplined and underprepared England at breaking point.

Long a place where English Ashes dreams go to die, the Gabba was once more an unhappy hunting ground for the tourists on Saturday as Australia tightened its grip on the second Test and a seemingly inevitable 2-0 series lead.

Having started the day just 44 runs in arrears, England allowed Australia’s tail to wag and then some, with Starc’s 77 hauling the Aussies to a 177-run first innings lead and subjecting England to little over a session under the tricky Brisbane lights.

An uptempo opening stand from Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett yielded 48 runs but that was as good as it got for England, who capitulated to lose 6-80.

Duckett was bowled for 18 off the toe of his bat by Scott Boland before the controversial Neser inclusion yielded a double blow as Ollie Pope (26) and Crawley (44) both cemented their reputations as teases by offering return catches to the pink-ball specialist Queenslander.

Joe Root (15) and Harry Brook (15) were sucked in by the jagging pink Kookaburra, with Starc and Boland respectively drawing edges to send England’s trump cards packing, both from overturned reviews during a period of several poor on-field umpiring calls.

Starc knocked off Jamie Smith via another nick to leave England reeling late on day three at 6-128.

Left-armer Starc is having an astonishing series with both ball and bat, with his Saturday night strikes coming despite the 35-year-old displaying visible signs of distress as he shouldered a heavy load in the sapping Queensland heat.

Australia had earlier been bowled out for 511 deep into the day’s middle session.

In a consummate team effort, all 11 Australian batters reached double figures, just the third occurrence of such a feat for the Aussies in almost 150 years of Test history.

Former Australian star Adam Gilchrist, commentating on this series for Kayo Sports, criticised England’s bowling showing.

“Their bowling didn’t ever quite seem disciplined enough. The runs were always flowing freely, and that, in combination with not taking chances, is not going to result in too many positive situations,” Gilchrist told this masthead.

Boland was responsible for dispatching Harry Brook. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Gilchrist added that England’s decision not to play in the pink ball Prime Minister’s XI match last weekend had left them wide open to scrutiny.

“Match practice is significantly different to net practice. That decision to take that approach allows criticism, should it not come to fruition in the match.”

Alex Carey continued his excellent match, becoming the fourth Australian to reach 50 for the innings, before England grew visibly frustrated in the field.

Ben Stokes had been tireless, removing Neser to an edge for 16 early in the day, but was left outwardly fuming after Aussie No. 10 Boland dropped one into the off-side to get off strike with the first ball of the 94th over.

It appeared as though Stokes’ frustration was directed at pace ace Jofra Archer, seemingly asleep at the wheel in the field.

Carey was eventually caught behind for 63 - providing Gus Atkinson his first wicket - having been stellar with the gloves on day one.

Starc dominated with both bat and ball. Picture: Gareth Copley/Getty Images

But Australia’s tail showed resolve. By the time Starc skied a Brydon Carse delivery to Stokes (who just dodged a collision with Duckett) at mid-off, Australia’s lead was 157.

While Australia’s over rates had been even slower than that of England, the Aussies’ ability to bowl the tourists out inside 80 overs meant they escaped the threat of losing World Test Championship points.

By making it to the second new ball, Australia tipped England into the danger zone, generating another potential blow to the tourists who had been an underwhelming sixth on the WTC table heading into this match, having never previously qualified for the decider.

By late in the first session very little was going right, with an Pope shy at the stumps leading to an overthrow.

Paceman Carse, whose wild day two featured three wickets and a dropped catch, continued his wayward bowling performance on day three, with England unable to properly capitalise with the second new ball.

Originally published as Bazball is on the brink in Brisbane as Australia’s quicks leave England reeling on Day 3