England trail by 135 runs on Day 2 of 4th Ashes Test
Melbourne: Alastair Cooks unbeaten century helped England score 192/2, trailing by 135 runs at stumps on the second day of the fourth Ashes Test match against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground here on Wednesday.
Cook (104) and skipper Joe Root (49) were at the crease when umpires dislodged the bails for the day.
The duo forged an unbeaten 112-run partnership to stabilise the England innings after Mark Stoneman (15) and James Vince (17) failed to do the job.
Cook was dropped on 66 by Australia skipper Steve Smith at first slip off Mitchell Marsh but after that he played sensibly and completed his ton.
Cook and Stoneman started the innings on a positive note but Stoneman was dismissed by Nathon Lyon in the 12th over.
Pacer Josh Hazlewood then trapped Vince leg before wicket to make it 80/2.
After that, Cook and Root came together and helped their team to bounce back strongly.
Earlier, Australia resumed at 244/3 and pacer Stuart Broad picked up 4/51 to send the hosts crashing to 327 all out. He was aided by James Anderson, his new-ball partner who ended with figures of 3/61.
Brief scores: Australia 327/10 against England 192/2 (Alastair Cook 104, Joe Root 49; Josh Hazlewood 1/39)
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Brazil's Ancelotti raises doubts about whether Neymar will reach the 2026 World Cup
Sao Paulo (AP): Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti raised doubts about whether Neymar will be in his squad for the 2026 World Cup. The Italian has yet to pick the former captain since he took over in May.
“If Neymar deserves to be (in the squad), if he is, well, better than others, he will play in the World Cup and that's it. (But) I don't have debts to anyone,” Ancelotti said at a press conference in Washington on Friday following the draw.
Brazil is in Group C with Morocco, Haiti and Scotland.
“If we speak about Neymar, we have to speak about other players,” Ancelotti added. “We have to think about Brazil with or without Neymar, with or without other players. Our final list we will make after the FIFA fixtures in March.”
The 33-year-old Neymar has never fully recovered from a torn ACL in October 2023 during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. But he's been key for Santos in its fight to avoid relegation in the Brazilian championship.
On Wednesday, he scored a hat trick for Santos despite a muscular injury. He is expected to play again on Sunday against Cruzeiro.
Ancelotti said Brazil does not have a “referential player” at the moment, a tag for the most valuable player that Neymar has mainly worn since the 2014 home World Cup.
“We have one of the world's best goalkeepers, some of the best defenders, top midfielders and some players up front. I don't want players who want to be the best in the world, I want players who want to win the World Cup,” Ancelotti said.
Asked about his team's group, Ancelotti said Brazil can top it.
“We can win all three matches, our idea is very clear. We need to be competitive during the entire World Cup. Our goal is to play in the final and for that to happen you need to face very strong teams anyway.”
Brazil won the last of its five World Cup trophies in 2002.
_vb_69.jpeg)
