Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon leave Australia with massive advantage to press for 2-0 lead

Century stand between Joe Root and Dawid Malan raised English hopes, only for hosts to end up 237 ahead in first innings

Australia 473 for 9 dec and 45 for 1 (Harris 21*, Warner 13) lead England 236 (Malan 80, Root 62, Starc 4-37, Lyon 3-58) by 282 runs

With two full days left in the game, the potential to put England’s beleaguered batters through further floodlit examinations and the likelihood that Lyon’s spin will carry even greater threat in the fourth innings, Australia were already in prime position to press for a 2-0 lead in the series.

Starc struck twice in a seven-over spell with the old ball, and at 6 for 169 there seemed a very real possibility that England would be batting again later in the night. Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes steadied the innings through to tea but there was very little batting to come; Lyon ended the stand at 41, finding appreciable turn to bowl Woakes off an inside edge, and although Stokes briefly threatened a counterattack, he dragged Green on to his stumps to be the ninth man out.

There may have been a degree of relish as Australia took the fresh pink pill with the lights beginning to take effect, ready to dole out some medicine to the last-wicket pair of Stuart Broad and James Anderson. Starc finished the innings with 4 for 37, the wicket of Broad his 50th in day-night Tests – all at a cool average of 18.10 – while Lyon reinforced his status a week after becoming the third Australian to reach 400 Test wickets, his 3 for 58 leaving him two shy of equalling Shane Warne’s aggregate of 56 as the most prolific bowler at this ground.

After a wicketless afternoon session – the first time a visiting team had achieved that in a day-night Test in Australia, when facing a minimum of 15 overs – the turnaround in fortunes following the dinner break was swift. Root took his tally of half-centuries without converting in Australia to eight, his departure precipitating a slide of 4 for 19 during what was supposedly the most benign time of the day for batting.

Green, held back by Smith until the 38th over, was the man to provide the breakthrough, luring Root into playing needlessly outside off stump once again. Root punched his bat before walking off, fully aware that this was the sort of day on which England needed someone to go big. Australia immediately cranked up the pressure, with Green and Lyon stringing together four maidens before the return of Starc brought about Malan’s downfall for 80, slashing profligately for another catch in the slips to Smith.

With Lyon finding his groove having switched ends, England entered a familiar spiral. Ollie Pope’s struggles against spin continued as he was caught twice at short leg in the space of three balls from Lyon. He successfully reviewed the first, Rod Tucker’s decision overturned after replays showed the ball had deflected off Pope’s forearm, but then fell trying to use his feet as a thickish inside edge squirted to the lurking Marnus Labuschagne, waiting eagerly for another chance.

Stokes took a dogged approach to starting his innings, waiting until his 24th delivery to get off the mark, but there was little support forthcoming. With Lyon wheeling his way through a lengthy spell that eventually yielded figures of 19-10-30-3, Smith was able to dictate proceedings – barely needing to call on Jhye Richardson and Michael Neser, the two enforced replacements to the attack from Brisbane. Jos Buttler’s miserable Test continued as he threw the hands through an ambitious drive at Starc to be caught in the slips for a 15-ball duck. Out of a clear blue sky, Australia had grabbed the game by its scruff.