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

65th over: Australia 248-7 (Carey 13, Cummins 0)

Broad’s in to Carey now. There’s two slips and a gully, but no pad pad to Australia’s keeper. Carey pulls him sweetly to the boundary rider for one. Cummins then works one to backward square, via the pad, and Billings hares after it to keep it to one. Carey sees off the last.

64th over: Australia 246-7 (Carey 12, Cummins 0)

There’s a bat pad for Wood now. He nabs Starc as described. Cummins is next, and Wood is wayward down the legside but Billings gloves it brilliantly, sprawling to his left. Wood is clearly trying to shorten him up, as Cummins ducks another. So Wood comes around the wicket and he hits Cummins. The skipper wanted to duck, it wasn’t that high, and it careers into (what looks like) his forearm.

Wood bangs it in short, Starc is late on it – he top edges it and it’s caught by a backwards-running Rory Burns at square leg, easy as you like. Starc looked uncomfortable facing Wood, and Wood gets his man.

63rd over: Australia 246-6 (Carey 12, Starc 3)

Broad’s too straight, allowing Carey to tuck him off his hip to square leg for one. Some chat on radio here about who’s ahead … most agree Australia are by virtue of England missing their opportunity in the first session. Must be said the pitch does now seem decidedly more docile than yesterday. Mike Atherton is also noting that there were some whispers that Craig Overton was set to play yesterday, before Ollie Robinson was included last-minute. I write this as we watch Ben Stokes seek an inspection of the pink ball from the umpire yet again. The cricket’s back on, and Starc looks far more comfortable coming forward to Broad than the guy at the other end. Something’s going on here … Broad has to pull out of his run-up, just before his gather, and he’s immensely put off by the Fox SpiderCam, or FoxCam, or whatever it’s called. He remonstrates with it. Michael Vaughan laughs nervously, before they cut to SpiderCam.

62nd over: Australia 244-6 (Carey 11, Starc 2)

Wood’s first is timed quite nicely off Starc’s pads for one. Wood’s running in hard – though I suppose he always is. Carey gets one to fine leg. His partner Starc rides a throat ball into the ground quite easily, prods the next to mid-on looking a little jumpy, and that’s the over.

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Australia v England – 5th Test: Day 2 Photograph: Matt Roberts – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images

61st over: Australia 242-6 (Carey 10, Starc 1)

Broad accompanies Wood. Starc drives handsomely early on but Stokes moves around at mid off and throws the stumps down, too. Starc gets one for his trouble and is off the mark. Carey is trying to drive the next, but can’t beat mid off. The next one is in the same area: Carey leaves, deliberately.

60th over: Australia 241-6 (Carey 10, Starc 0)

Wood starts with a pretty sharp yorker to Carey, he jams it to square leg. Only three balls in this over, not a bad one to start with. Next one beats Carey all ends up, huge appeal, Wood is arm aloft celebrating … but then there’s doubt, and no review, and replays confirm Carey was nowhere near it. Carey defends the last to mid-off.

I said it was cloudy on screen. Well, the sun’s out now! Jerusalem is rung and sung. We’re away.

Weather update

90% chance of rain (1-3mm), cloudy, any rain will be late afternoon, evening.

It looks cloudy on screen, but everything’s in readiness to start on time.

Looks like Ollie Robinson is struggling…

Morning, afternoon, evening all. Well, we were treated to a whirlwind yesterday, weren’t we? From 12-3 and calls for Bellerive to be stripped of Test status, to a run-a-ball hundred from Head, to further delivery of The Cam Green Promise, and that ceaseless wonder about what James Anderson could and would have done with it all.

All in all, Australia finished with 241-6 – a scoreline most would be satisfied with after a full day’s play, only that this was achieved in 59.3 overs. Perhaps this isn’t quite the Chief Executive’s Wicket predicted ahead of the game.

Nevertheless, both teams will be hoping to push things on today. For Australia, quick runs and a shot at England under lights, and for England, crossed fingers that the Bellerive wicket does flatten out, as is the local promise.

How are you seeing things from your vantage point? Let me know via email at [email protected] or on the Twitters @sjjperry.

Weather and other preliminary material up next…