Well, England avoided the follow on. That's about all that can be said for their batting on the second day in Sydney, where Australia's fast men bowled perfectly to exploit the seam movement off the pitch and Nathan Lyon also played his role in securing a 171-run lead for the hosts and bringing a 5-0 clean sweep ever closer. Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle each claimed three wickets as England were skittled for their lowest total since their first innings of the series.
It all finished on 155 when Johnson bowled the No.11 Boyd Rankin, but England were fortunate to even have scored that many. Rankin made 13 and was one of several men in the lower order who offered some resistance - Ben Stokes top scored with 47 and Stuart Broad remained unbeaten on 30 - and it only highlighted further what a disastrous start to the day England had endured when they slipped to 5 for 23.
None of their top five batsmen reached double figures and while the pitch offered some seam movement it was not extravagant; Australia's bowlers just exploited it far better than England's attack. Bowl full, let it swing and if it doesn't it might seam, draw the batsman forward. It was textbook stuff.
England's 2 for 8 should have become 3 for 8 when Ian Bell edged his first ball to slip off Harris but was reprieved by Shane Watson, who spilled a chance he should comfortably have taken. It barely mattered, for Australia were creating so many opportunities that it was only a matter of time.
The nightwatchman James Anderson was worked over by Johnson. Bouncers lobbed off the bat into gaps, another one jammed his right hand onto the handle of the bat and when Anderson edged a regulation catch to second slip off Johnson he must have been glad to get out of there.
There had been other close calls - a couple of reviews, a few balls that didn't go to hand for the fielders - but at 5 for 23 England's all-time lowest Test total of 45 looked in danger regardless. But two of England's newest Test cricketers, Stokes and the debutant Gary Ballance, showed enough resistance to get the team through to lunch without further loss, although a Johnson bouncer to the helmet left Ballance uneasy.
Soon after the break he was outdone by Lyon, who had Ballance prodding forward and edging behind to Haddin for 18. At 6 for 62, England weren't even halfway to avoiding the follow-on. Jonny Bairstow was far from at his best but managed to score 18 before he tamely drove Siddle straight to the catching man at short mid-on, a poor stroke given the field placement, and later in the same over Stokes was bowled shouldering arms to Siddle.
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