ANALYSIS: In a Test match being played at breakneck speed, one thing became clearer than ever — if the Australians are to win the Ashes, they're going to have to go through Ben Stokes,' Dean Bilton writes.
The bowling plans become muddled and the nine fielders on the boundary redundant as ball after ball whips over their heads.
Australia will set a target on day three of this Test, if the weather allows it, and then England will set about chasing it. A fine evening session on day two means that chase might not be as tough as England once feared, but even if this third Test doesn't turn into another thriller, at some point in the remainder of the series we'll reach the same fork in the road.Ben Stokes's body is struggling to hold it together, but his play remains incredible.
At the minute, the plan consists of bowling as fast as humanly possible at their heads. It is generally not very successful. There are no easy answers. Australia isn't doing much wrong, but when faced with a generational talent whose internal drive is up there with any of the greats of world sport, the slightest error will be magnified.
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