Ben Duckett briefly countered with a pair of elegant boundaries off Scott Boland, but Starc trapped him lbw for 21. Joe Root’s long-standing quest for a century in Australia suffered another blow when he edged a seaming delivery to Marnus Labuschagne for a duck, leaving England reeling at 33/3.
Ollie Pope (46) and Harry Brook (52) tried to steady the innings, guiding the visitors to 105/4 at lunch. But momentum shifted again after the break. Brook launched Boland for a six in the first over of the session, only for Starc to return and bowl Stokes for six. Brook completed a counterattacking half-century before debutant Brendan Doggett dismissed him with a short ball, earning his maiden Test wicket.
Starc then ran through the tail, adding to Gus Atkinson’s dismissal and sealing his 17th five-wicket haul. Doggett finished with 2-27 as Australia wrapped up the innings with ruthless efficiency.
England, who haven’t won an Ashes series in Australia for 15 years, opted for an all-pace attack, omitting spinner Shoaib Bashir — a call that now looks costly as Australia seize control of the Test.


