The Ashes: Baz-Ball Are Back As England Wins Headingley Test 

Baz-Ball are back, and so are England. Headingley happened once again to the Australians. Ben Stokes and the company keep themselves alive in the series, winning the third Test of the Ashes by chasing 250 with three wickets in hand. The series stands 2-1, with the Aussies leading. But Pat Cummins’ men cannot underestimate the Englishmen as all three of the Tests were pretty close encounters.

England made three changes in the eleven for this Test as Ollie Pope was injured, while James Anderson and Josh Tongue missed out. Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes and the speedster Mark Wood replaced the three. Well, one can say these changes were pretty impressive, as three of them contributed remarkably to the win.

Mark Wood stuns the Ashes with his pace

England were not up to the mark in the first two tests with their bowling. As the third Test was a decider, they had to make some changes. Mark Wood was one of those, replacing the experienced James Anderson. We all are familiar with how pacey can Mark Wood be. The man who can click 93 miles per hour consistently cannot do anything wrong, especially in this format of the game.

Well, the results say it all. Mark Wood picked up a fifer in the first innings and two in the second. His first wicket of the series was Usman Khawaja, who has been in good touch. Khawaja couldn’t have done anything against a 96 miles per hour delivery. It was a fuller delivery, and Khawaja’s bat was nowhere near the ball when it knocked off the leg stump.

Anderson seemed a bit off and managed to grab just three wickets in two Tests. So, one can say it was a pretty good change. On the other hand, Chris Woakes partnered well with Wood in the bowling as well as batting. Woakes, with his swing, managed to pick up six wickets in this Test. Also, Mark Wood had a pretty good run with the bat and showcased what baz-ball is by scoring 24 off just eight in the first innings and 16 in the second innings.

It was indeed a perfect comeback for Wood as he became the Player of the Match for his exceptional performances with both bat and ball.

The Australians have been on top in the first two Tests and fought till the end in the third as well. With Smith shinning in the first and Khawaja ruling in the second, the Aussies almost had the series. But what Ben Stokes did in the last Test was nothing but a sense of grit and determination. And the third Test was all about the result of that determination. With England still alive, the Ashes is alive and so is the Test Cricket.