Ollie Pope Cements Claim to England Cricket's No 3 Spot with Impressive 90 Versus Lions

It is tough to know how much of the English team's practice match will prove meaningful when their Ashes campaign starts not far at Perth Stadium on the coming Friday – a brief gap in geography or duration but ages away in import and environment – but if it managed nothing more than strengthening Ollie Pope's self-belief, that by itself has made the exercise beneficial.

England's number three batsman – that point is certainly totally established – built on his initial innings hundred by adding a further 90 in the follow-up innings, and what was remarkable was not merely the quantity of runs but the style in which they were scored. At times the young batsman appeared imperious, smashing a twelve boundaries and a couple of maximums, timing the ball sweetly but with fierce purpose.

This was merely a friendly versus a Lions team that used a total of 11 pitchers during a match played in amid a few dozen of spectators in a public park, but it was still very praiseworthy. For the record, England, set a target of 202 following the Lions declared their second innings on 251 for six, succeeded by five wickets in hand once Smith sped the team past the winning target with a series of fours and sixes.

Crawley and Duckett, the other two significant first-innings' achievers, both failed in the second innings, while Root scored several more points – 31 on this time – but was not significantly more dominant, then being confused and accordingly out by Will Jacks. Harry Brook met an same fate a little later.

Bashir – who concluded the fixture having delivered 12 overs for both teams – will have found some of the strokes he confronted quite aggressive. His opening six deliveries against the Lions went for 56, with Ben McKinney taking advantage to deliveries that if not exactly poor was definitely not very threatening.

At the end the sixth of that period, the English side's remaining three pitchers had allowed almost precisely the same total of runs – 57 – from 15, though the bowler grew a somewhat less giving later on, allowing 27 from his last six. He claimed one dismissal, taking a sharp, diving catch, diving to his right, to end Bethell's knock for 70, facing 80 balls.

Bethell, compensating for scoring just three in the opening knock, was among three players with fifties in the Lions' top four. McKinney's performances from opener were more consistent than the scores of their No 3: he scored 66 in their first innings and improved by two in their second innings, facing 61 deliveries to reach his fifty, with five fours and two six-hit shots, the pair from Bashir's's deliveries. Bethell reached 68 before a poor shot to Stokes at cover position, who made a bending grab at low down.

Cox exhibited similar steadiness, and backed up his initial innings' 53 with a further 57, at just over a run a ball. There were a few exceptionally beautiful strokes during his innings, such as a drive down the ground and a hook against back-to-back Brydon Carse balls to reach his half century.

Having missed the opening day of this fixture with a illness and contributed only the most minor of inputs to the second, Carse bowled brilliantly when finally provided the opportunity, with McKinney and Cox part of his three wickets.

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