Fourth day of the Test: stasis and surprise

At 2-30pm the drift of this match into stasis induced a siesta in me and – when I came round – it was to one of the most extraordinary passages of cricket I have ever witnessed.

We saw two bowlers – one of whom Nathan Lyon was immobile – forced to hit boundaries as, although he hopped one single, running between the wickets was beyond him.

Why no runner?

Controversy did not end there when Mitchell Starc caught Ben Duckett, only to fall to the ground which the ball struck.

He was eventually given not out, generating a fearsome row between  Glenn McGrath and the English constituency of the Test Match Special team.

Time was when fielders threw the ball high in the air after taking a catch which would have avoided any controversy

The game is surely Australia’s but with Bazball it’s dangerous to predict.

I hope that those, like Michael Vaughan who dance on Ben Stokes’  grave, get their come-uppance but I fear we will go two down and duller red ball  cricket will be the consequence.

As I write this I am still debating whether to attend the 5th day or watch it play out on tv.

I think I will be in the watching camp as every day has exhausted me.