Pope Cements Claim to England's No 3 Role with Strong 90 Against Lions

It's hard to determine how much of the English team's warm-up game will prove important when their Ashes battle kicks off 10km away at Perth Stadium on Friday – a short span in space or time but worlds away in significance and atmosphere – but if it achieved only boosting Pope's confidence, that on its own has made the effort valuable.

The English side's No 3 – that point is certainly absolutely established – followed his initial innings ton by notching another 90 in the second innings, and what was remarkable was not merely the total of runs but the manner in which they were scored. On occasion the player looked imperious, striking a twelve fours and a couple of sixes, hitting the ball beautifully but with fierce purpose.

It was only a exhibition game against a England Lions team that deployed a total of 11 bowlers throughout a contest staged in before a small group of onlookers in a local ground, but it was nonetheless extremely impressive. Officially, England, needing of 202 once the Lions declared their follow-on innings on 251 for six, won by five wickets in hand when Smith hurried the team past the finish line with a stream of boundaries.

Crawley and Duckett, the other two major first-innings successes, both failed in the second knock, while Root made additional runs – 31 on this occasion – but was far from more convincing, prior to being confused and subsequently out by Will Jacks. Harry Brook experienced an identical outcome soon afterwards.

Bashir – who ended the match having bowled 12 overs for both teams – will have faced part of the batting he bowled to rather challenging. His first six deliveries against the Lions went for 56, with McKinney tucking in to bowling that if not entirely loose was definitely not very dangerous.

After the sixth over of that period, the English side's three other bowlers had given away almost precisely the identical number of runs – 57 – from 15, though the bowler turned a somewhat less leaky as time passed, conceding 27 from his final six. He claimed a single wicket, making a smart, low-down grab, diving to his right, to end Bethell's knock for 70, from 80 balls.

Bethell, compensating for managing just three in the first innings, was a member of three players with fifties in the Lions' top order. McKinney's scores from opening batsman were more reliable than the scores of their number three: he made 66 in their initial knock and scored 68 in their second, using 61 deliveries over his fifty, with five boundaries and a couple sixes, both from Bashir's pitching. Bethell reached 68 prior to a poor shot to Ben Stokes at cover, who held a low grab at low down.

Cox exhibited similar consistency, and backed up his initial innings' 53 with a further 57, at about a run a ball. There were a few exceptionally handsome shots en route, including a drive down the ground and a pull shot against successive Carse balls to reach his 50 runs.

Having missed the first day of this game with a stomach upset and provided just the most minor of inputs to the second day, Brydon Carse delivered superbly when finally afforded the opportunity, with Ben McKinney and Jordan Cox included in his three wickets.

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