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Starc Removes Crawley in the Opening Over
The Ashes began with action straight away. Australia bowled first, and Mitchell Starc gave them the perfect start.
He dismissed Zak Crawley in the very first over of Day 1 at the Optus Stadium in Perth.
Crawley pushed at a wide delivery, and Usman Khawaja took an easy catch at first slip.
This wicket marked the 24th time Starc removed a batter in the first over of a Test innings. Fifteen of those wickets have come after 2015.
Starc leads this category since his debut. James Anderson follows with 19, and Kemar Roach has 10.
Perfect Delivery and Poor Footwork
Starc bowled the ball in the ideal channel.
It pitched, moved away, and exposed Crawley’s footwork.
The England opener tried to punch through the covers but edged it instead.
Khawaja reacted quickly and caught it low in the slips.
Starc celebrated loudly as his teammates surrounded him.
Second Breakthrough: Duckett Falls Early
Five overs later, Starc struck again.
He trapped Ben Duckett LBW for 21 off 20 balls.
Duckett reviewed the decision, but the ball-tracking confirmed it was hitting the stumps.
Starc is leading the Australian attack in the absence of Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, who are both injured.
Steve Smith is captaining Australia in Cummins’ absence.
England Choose to Bat First
Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bat.
England went with an all-pace attack and left out spinner Shoaib Bashir.
Australia handed debuts to Jake Weatherald and Brendan Doggett.
Stokes Shares His Thoughts at the Toss
Stokes said they gathered as much information as possible before making the decision.
He added that the team wanted runs on the board early in the series.
He spoke about the long build-up to the Ashes and the excitement within the group.
Stokes also said that England have a clear goal for the tour.
Bashir missed out as England picked four seamers.
Stokes mentioned he would bowl a few overs if required.
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