Jonny Bairstow was stranded one short of a dazzling Ashes century as England hammered home their advantage on day three of the fourth Test at Emirates Old Trafford.
Building on Thursday’s 189-run blitz from centurion Zak Crawley, England piled up a huge score of 592 – their fifth highest home total against Australia and their biggest against their rivals since 2011 in Sydney.
That established a handsome 275-run lead, with Mark Wood removing Usman Khawaja just before tea to leave the tourists on 39 for one as they clung to the prospect of bad weather saving them over the weekend.
England were 67 in front overnight and 120 ahead when Bairstow arrived at the crease on 437 for five, but he piled on the agony with a fearsome knock of 99 not out in 81 balls.
He hit four violent sixes and 10 boundaries, doing some major damage to both the scoreboard and the ailing morale of the visiting attack.
A brilliant ton was at hand but, after expertly managing the tail for the majority of his innings, he left himself stuck one short at the non-striker’s end after deciding against taking a risky second.
Last man James Anderson was trapped lbw by Cameron Green’s next ball, stopping Bairstow in his tracks and making him just the third English batter to finish an innings undefeated on 99.
Sir Geoffrey Boycott (1979) and Alex Tudor (1999) are the only others to suffer that fate, but Bairstow was grinning broadly as he left the pitch having enjoyed his delayed retribution against Australia.
He has been eyeing a measure of revenge ever since his controversial stumping in the second Test at Lord’s and helped himself to a healthy portion here.
He showed off his mighty ball-striking ability in the afternoon session, flogging Pat Cummins for two muscular sixes and dealing out one apiece to Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, despite a ring of nine fielders nominally protecting the boundaries.
Bairstow also took some liberties against fellow wicketkeeper Alex Carey, the man who controversially threw down his stumps to kick off a rumpus about the spirit of cricket at Lord’s. In a bid to shield Anderson from the strike, Bairstow charged through for a bye on several occasions despite the ball carrying cleanly through to Carey’s gloves.
To the audible delight of the crowd, Carey repeatedly failed to hit the target from exactly the same range he had done so two games ago.
Anderson’s dismissal left England with 12 overs to begin making inroads and Wood got the job done with his second ball after replacing James Anderson.
Tempting Khawaja into an indiscretion outside off stump, he snared a thin edge which everyone on the field appeared to hear except the batter.
Khawaja called for DRS and watched as UltraEdge confirmed his fate.
England had earlier started the day in typically lively fashion, with Ben Stokes (51) and Harry Brook (61) banking half-centuries in a morning session that contained 122 runs and four wickets in 24 overs.
Hazlewood finished with five-for as he mopped up but conceded 126, while fellow seamers Starc and Cummins shelled 137 and 129 respectively.
