Ashes 2021-22 fifth Test, day one: Australia v England – live!

4th over: Australia 2-0 (Warner 0, Khawaja 2) It’s tight, tough cricket but the pitch is not as treacherous as it may have appeared an hour ago. Nonetheless, Robinson’s fifth ball moves a mile.

3rd over: Australia 2-0 (Warner 0, Khawaja 2) Broad changed boots and immediately tempts Warner well outside off stump, and very nearly has him chopping on several balls later. Runs are clearly going to be hard earned here. We’re going to miss these Broad/Warner battles.

2nd over: Australia 2-0 (Warner 0, Khawaja 2) Robinson starts bang on target, beating Khawaja’s bat straight up. But a lovely flick off leg from Khawaja gets things ticking.

1st over: Australia 0-0 (Warner 0, Khawaja 0) Bit of a wacky start as Broad barrels head-first into the pitch after his first ball. A maiden to kick things off for the quick, in what will surely be his final Test in Australia. What a wonderful cricketer he’s been.

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Broad hits the deck on the first ball. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

A beautiful Welcome to Country, which includes a shout out to Scott Boland (“his success will not only inspire emerging cricketers but give merit to coaches, supporters and administrators who have battled to ensure pathways are created for First Nations people, sporting pathways and pathways to reconciliation”) and then two cracking renditions of the respective national anthems. Ceremonial duties are completed and we’re ready to go.

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Boland stands under the Aboriginal flag. Photograph: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Play to begin at 3:30pm, local time.

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Sam Billings moments after getting his England cap. Photograph: Mark Kolbe – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images

An absolute no brainer.

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Pat Cummins flips the coin under the watchful gazes of Joe Root and David Boon. Photograph: Tertius Pickard/AP

As expected, just the one change for the Australians, with Travis Head replacing Marcus Harris, and Usman Khawaja moving up the order. He has an incredible record as an opener but this will be some sort of challenge.

A host of changes for England. No Anderson, who was born to bowl on pitches like this. Jonny Bairstow didn’t come up. A Test debut for Sam Billings, currently the keeper for the Sydney Thunder, and England’s 700th Test cap.

It’s raining. It’s Tasmania. But it doesn’t look too nasty. The 3pm start may be in peril, but the weather boffins remain confident the rain shouldn’t be too much of a factor today.

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Groundstaff haul out the covers in Hobart. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

Some extraordinary footage here. If rain persists, I’ll link to the longer clip where Beefy is interrogated for an hour by a bunch of angry 9-year-old Scots – up there with the funniest thing I’ve seen on the internet.

In this chilly climes, Brendan from Sydney reminds us that Onslow in Western Australia yesterday recorded Australia’s hottest ever temperature – 50.7 degrees. Not sure how our English readers would cope with that. Not ideal conditions for swing bowing either.

Holy heck! Every half-decent seamer from Hobart to Hull just started short circuiting. A rare sight on these shores.

Hello all, and welcome to our over-by-over coverage of the opening day of the fifth Ashes Test. Weather permitting, and it rarely permits in this part of Australia, play kicks off in Hobart at 3pm local time – that’s 4am in the UK.

“We’re here preparing for the biggest sporting event Tasmania has ever seen,” the State’s Minister for Recreation and Sport said earlier this week. And indeed, there’s lots to be excited about in the Apple Isle. It’s first Test match in the state for five years. It’s the first ever Ashes Test in Tasmania. And it’s Hobart’s first day/night Test. The ball is pink. The pitch is greener than Bob Brown. The skies are temperamental. There’s plenty to look forward to.

The rest of the country, it must be said, has other concerns. Covid is rampant, the supply chains are breaking down, the federal government is dithering, and the national mood is bleak. The smirking mug of Novak Djokovic leads the news every night. A Test cricket match, dead rubber notwithstanding, is a welcome distraction from all that.

A bruised and battered England side is looking to win its first Test in Australia since 2010-11. The fourth Test was an absolute doozy and the visitors will be looking to go one better and salvage something from what’s been a dire month and a bit. Australia’s record in pink ball home Tests is extraordinary – nine Tests, nine wins. The bookmakers have them as prohibitive favourites. For the rest of us, something resembling the final day in Sydney would do nicely.