Ollie Pope Reinforces Claim to England's Number Three Slot with Bold 90 Against Lions

It's tough to know how much of England's practice match will end up being meaningful when their Ashes battle kicks off 10km away at the Perth venue on the coming Friday – a short span in space or time but light years away in import and environment – but if it achieved only enhancing Ollie Pope's confidence, that on its own has rendered the endeavor valuable.

England's No 3 – that point is undoubtedly absolutely established – followed his first-innings hundred by adding another 90 in the second innings, and what was notable was not so much the total of scored runs but the manner in which they were made. At times the 27-year-old seemed imperious, smashing a twelve boundaries and a pair of sixes, connecting with the ball beautifully but with devilish determination.

It was merely a practice match against a Lions squad that employed fully 11 pitchers during a match held in front of a handful of spectators in a open field, but it was nevertheless extremely impressive. To note, the England team, chasing of 202 after the Lions declared their follow-on innings on 251 for six, triumphed by five wickets when Smith sped the team over the finish line with a series of boundaries.

Crawley and Duckett, the remaining major first-innings performers, both were dismissed in the second knock, while Joe Root scored several more runs – 31 on this occasion – but was far from more dominant, prior to being confused and accordingly dismissed by Will Jacks. Harry Brook suffered an identical end a little later.

Bashir – who finished the fixture having delivered 12 bowling spells for both teams – will have faced a portion of the strokes he faced pretty aggressive. His initial six overs against the Lions went for 56, with Ben McKinney feasting to pitching that if not completely wayward was definitely far from intimidating.

At the end the sixth over of those deliveries, the English side's other bowlers had conceded nearly exactly the equivalent number of runs – 57 – from 15, though Bashir became a somewhat less giving in time, allowing 27 from his last six. He took one dismissal, making a smart, low grab, falling to his right side, to end Bethell's knock for 70, off 80 deliveries.

Bethell, compensating for scoring only three in the initial innings, was one of three half-centurions in the Lions' leading batsmen. Ben McKinney's returns from opener were more consistent than the scores of their number three: he notched 66 in their first innings and improved by two in their follow-up, using 61 deliveries over his 50 runs, with five boundaries and a couple six-hit shots, both off Bashir's's deliveries. Bethell reached 68 prior to a mis-hit to Ben Stokes at cover position, who made a low catch at low down.

Jordan Cox exhibited similar consistency, and backed up his first-innings 53 with a further 57, at about a run per delivery. There were several exceptionally elegant hits on the way, including a straight drive and a pull against successive Brydon Carse deliveries to achieve his fifty.

Having missed the first day of this fixture with a stomach upset and made merely the most minor of contributions to the follow-up, Brydon Carse bowled superbly when eventually provided the chance, with Ben McKinney and Cox among his three dismissals.

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