Ashes 2023 live: England v Australia fourth Test, day two score today – cricket latest updates

A free boundary for Moeen Ali, using the pace of Josh Hazlewood, turning one around the corner off his toes down to fine leg. But that’s beautifully played, a square drive hurrying to the fence as Hazlewood over-pitches. That might just do for jumpin’ Josh, with his captain limbering up to take over.

Careful, Zak. Twice in Mitchell Starc’s over he can’t resist an airy drive outside off stump, the left-armer pushing it across England’s opener hoping to incite that a hot-headed swipe precisely of that sort. Crawley scolds himself.

Falls short! That’s a little surprising on a reasonably quick surface, particularly given Zak Crawley was going at it with hard hands towards mid-on, the batter throwing his head back in disappointment and slightly perplexed to find his edge hadn’t ended up in David Warner’s mitts. To cause further bafflement, the next ball on a similar line flies through above Alex Carey’s eyeline, perhaps just illustrating the two-pace nature of this pitch that Marnus Labuschagne referred to last night.

Crawley steps down to try and knock Hazlewood off his length, clipping merrily through midwicket for four. Mitchell Starc will continue for now.

Excited cries of “catch” from the Australia cordon as Moeen Ali chips a ball that sticks in the pitch slightly to midwicket. Pat Cummins is the closest fielder at wide mid-on, though, with Moeen safely through for a run as he and Crawley trade a single each in the over.

Starc has gone to a scrambled seam with the early swing appearing to have dissipated. Cummins looks to be starting to get warm.

England haven’t got away here, those boundary riders doing their job in preventing Zak Crawley capitalising on crisp early timing with swift runs. Almost everything has been out of the middle of the right-hander’s bat so far, but that glove down the leg side first ball remains his only boundary.

Edged but wide of Cameron Green in the gully! A first boundary for Moeen Ali arrives streakily, a genuine edge with the ball attacked with an upright blade.

A better looking shot to a slighly wider ball a couple of deliveries later is straight to backward point, but further evidence that Moeen will try to get after anything outside of his eyeline.

Moeen averages 13 at number three for England, and 16 with the bat in Test cricket in the last five years – it is an almighty gamble pushing him up into to the top order, a move as much designed to preserve the strengths of others as maximising Moeen himself. He did, of course, come through as a batter, his evolution into a bowling all-rounder coming almost entirely at Test level, and it did feel like England were in part culpable for the erosion of his natural technique by constantly moving him up and down the order. It would be a good time for him to refind his batting flow.

I don’t think Ben Duckett did too much wrong there, a thin edge behind off a high class swing bowler the sort of dismissal you are liable to get on occasion in the top order. Moeen Ali, conversely, wouldn’t have wanted to wander back to the dressing room had he got out playing that shot, a horribly wafty wave of the bat at a wide Mitchell Starc ball that hops some way over the edge of Ali’s flashing bat. He is, at least, off the mark with tickle to fine leg.

Full, swinging, a fine nick – Ben Duckett is gone!

A thing of sinuous beauty from Mitchell Starc, removing Duckett with his first ball to the left-hander. Duckett pushes forward, a little across his stumps but forced to play by the initial angle. Alex Carey takes comfortably.

Enter Moeen Ali, England’s ersatz number three.

A tight line from Josh Hazlewood, with Ben Duckett playing everything, as is his wont. The spread field affords the left-hander a sauntered single into the covers. Zak Crawley comes back for a second after another work to leg.