Australia back in charge

A five-wicket haul by Shane Warne and another batting slump by England put Australia back in charge of the third Test by the end of day two.

Warne's 5/25 tilted the balance of a competitive match in Australia's favour after England had extended its lead to 100 for the loss of only two wickets.

England lost 4/29, all to Warne, to lead by 139 with four wickets remaining in a match that could be decided on Saturday.

Australia, which rarely trails on the first innings, appeared certain to concede a lead at the start of play but fought back into the match thanks to a committed ninth-wicket partnership of 66 between Adam Gilchrist and Jason Gillespie. England were possibly a little too confident in believing the innings could be quickly curtailed, as they dangerously "walked" Gilchrist by giving him singles to the sweeper at deep cover in order to bowl at Gillespie.

On a pitch continuing to offer degrees of movement off the seam and atmospheric conditions favouring swing at various times, an England first innings lead in the region of fifty would have been close to disastrous for the tourists. As such, Gilchrist and Gillespie batted with a determined commitment commensurate to the situation in which they found themselves.

At the start, both teams were on edge and playing a kind of waiting game, testing each other's patience as they recognised the importance of the session. Brett Lee tried to offer support to Gilchrist but only added one run to his overnight 3 when taken out by a sharp delivery from Tudor, who opened the bowling with Caddick, with the score at 122. Tudor made the ball rise from a good length above off stump, the pace off the pitch startling the tail-ender and causing him to fend off the shoulder of the bat to Butcher at second slip.

That heralded the arrival of Gillespie, who on merit would be batting at No.8. Gillespie clearly takes his batting very seriously and puts a high price on his wicket, well capable of defending for long periods. Since that's what Australia required it was the perfect situation for him and Gilchrist had no qualms with handing him the strike. Because of his predilection for defensive play, Gillespie does not make as many runs as the time he spends at the crease suggests he should, which is possibly why he finds himself behind Warne and now Lee.

Gradually the pressure began to ease as the concerted battle for first-innings honours favoured Australia. An hour in, Darren Gough decided to take the aggressive option, shifting his line to around the wicket to test Gilchrist's defence. Gilchrist responded in style, driving his second and third balls from around the wicket through mid off for four. Gough went back over and had Gilchrist fortuitously inside-edging past his stumps for a third consecutive four then top-edging a pull shot just short of Tudor at mid on.

The partnership pushed Australia deservedly into the lead but, just as the one-man batting phenomenon that is Adam Gilchrist appeared likely to realise a conspicuous advantage, Alex Tudor returned to succeed where Gough and Caddick, the latter somewhat unfortunately, had failed. First he found Gilchrist's edge, as the batsman attempted an ambitious booming drive and was caught at slip, to snap the partnership. Then he delivered a good length ball to McGrath, who was brilliantly held by Butcher in his left-hand at second slip, to end the innings and give a pumped Tudor his first five-wicket haul in Test cricket. Tellingly, Butcher's catch preserved England's immaculate record for the innings, as not a single opportunity was missed.

With Australia claiming a mere 5-run lead, the two innings virtually cancelled each other out and made the match a one-innings affair. England regained the lead in the 10-minute period before lunch and afterwards Atherton and Trescothick worked the score to 0/36 before the Australians showed the first signs of straining under pressure.

Atherton shouldered arms to a McGrath delivery that seamed back dramatically to trap him plumb in front as he played half-forward, but umpire Venkat did not see it that way and turned the appeal down. A frustrated McGrath was displeased but although there is no doubt it was out, it is worth remembering that he dismissed Atherton in the first innings when he was wrongly given out caught off the armguard by umpire Hampshire.

Under pressure to make a breakthrough, McGrath lost his usually impeccable line and England reached 57/0 before Marcus Trescothick fell to Shane Warne in a freakish dismissal. Trescothick's flat, square sweep cannoned into the ankle of a ducking Hayden at short leg, rebounded up, and was taken by an alert Gilchrist diving forward. The Aussies knew they had a remarkable wicket but umpire Venkat couldn't be sure the ball had struck only flesh and bone and conferred with umpire Hampshire before referring the decision to the third umpire. Ironically, the replays showed that Warne had marginally overstepped and delivered a no-ball, which the third umpire is not empowered to adjudicate on, meaning Trescothick had to be given out. The flaws in the third umpire-TV replay system had been highlighted again.

After a two-hour break for rain, Brett Lee captured the wicket of Mark Butcher for 1. In favourable bowling conditions, Lee looked dangerous with movement through the air and off the seam, which accounted for Butcher. To a ball reasonably full and swinging into line of middle stump, Butcher played across the line and was pinned in front, leaving England 59/2.

With conditions overcast and breaks for rain a reality, everything signalled a likely loss of wickets, but to the credit of Atherton and Ramprakash the pair exercised good judgement, in Atherton's case playing the ball late, and generally compiled the kind of determined yet positive partnership that England had been lacking during the second innings of the series to date.

At 115/2, the match was turning England's way again when Atherton got what he felt to be his second bad decision of the game. Defending a Warne leg-spinner, the ball turned past the bat, the Aussies appealed for caught behind, and Venkat agreed. There was a definite noise that sounded like a nick, but in a marginal decision that was all.

Warne made the breakthrough into a double-strike when Alec Stewart was carelessly bowled second ball playing on. Attempting a stiff cut shot to a short leg-break pitching outside off, Stewart was possibly deceived by the lack of turn and dragged the ball back onto his stumps.

Instead of re-commencing his vigil, the loss of Atherton and Stewart had a deleterious affect on Ramprakash and he threw his wicket away in appalling fashion. After overcoming a close lbw appeal and the ball seaming in frequently beating his defence on his way to 26, Ramprakash lost it all when he charged Warne and was stumped. There is no rational explanation for it other than to say he succumbed to the pressure, as Ramprakash advanced and recklessly heaved to leg, missing a ball that actually passed between him and the bat. The sad irony is that Ramprakash is probably England's best player of spin and the only one willing and capable of coming out of his crease to Warne.

Jason Gillespie took his bowling up another level late in the day, but it was Warne who reaped the reward when, in the last over and with a myriad of close fielders around the bat, he had Craig White edging the ball from bat and pad to silly point, where Steve Waugh got his right hand under the ball.

With England 144/6 Australia are again in the favoured position, but with 190 the highest innings total of the match to date, no run chase is going to be easy.

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