Ashes 2017-18: 1st Test, Day 4 – Statistical Highlights

Australia are set to take a lead in the Ashes series after dominating the 4th day at the Gabba with both the bat and ball. Nathan Lyon and Mitchell Starc took three wickets apiece to wrap up the England innings on 195. Joe Root’s fifty could only help his side to set a 170-run target in front of the home side. An unbeaten 114-run stand between David Warner and debutant Cameron Bancroft for the first wicket nearly finished the chase on the 4th day.

Here are the stats and numbers from the 4th day’s play of Brisbane Test.

1 – Bancroft became the first Australian opener to score a fifty in the 4th innings on Test debut. Kepler Wessels’ 46 against England at this very ground in 1986 is the previous highest for an Australian opener in the 4th innings on debut. Overall, Bancroft is only the 5th Australia with a fifty on debut in 4th innings with the last one being Justin Langer’s 54 in 1993 against West Indies in Adelaide.

4 – Number of catches Steven Smith took in the 2nd innings. There are the joint 2nd most catches by an Australian in a Test inning. Vic Richardson took five catches against South Africa in the 2nd innings of 1936 Durban Test.

4 –  Smith’s four catches are the joint most by a fielder in an innings in the Ashes. The last fielder to claim four catches in an Ashes innings was Michael Slater in 1998 in Melbourne. Smith is only the 2nd player with a century and four catches in an innings in the same Ashes Test. England’s Frank Woolley made 133* and took four catches in an innings in 1912 in Sydney.

51* – Cameron Bancroft is the first Australian to score a fifty while making Test debut in Brisbane since Adam Gilchrist in 1999. Ten Australians made debut in this period at the Gabba but none of them scored more than 34 in an innings. Gilchrist scored 81 against Pakistan on his debut.

51 – Test wickets Nathan Lyon has picked in 2017 so far. He is the first Australian spinner to claim 50 Test wickets in a calendar year since Shane Warne’s 96 in 2005.

114* – David Warner and Cameron Bancroft’s century stand is the 12th by an Australian opening pair in the 4th innings. Last of the previous 11 came in 2014 between Warner and Chris Rogers against South Africa in Centurion while the last one at home was back in 1995 between Michael Slater and Mark Taylor against England in Sydney when they put on 208.