Ashes 2019: Australia wrestle back control after Joe Root and Rory Burns give England hope in fourth Test
Re-live all the action from the fourth Test at Old Trafford
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England face a fight to the keep their Ashes campaign afloat after Josh Hazlewood squashed a brave resistance from Rory Burns and Joe Root on day three of the fourth Test.
Responding to Australia's formidable declaration mark of 497 for eight, England closed on 200 for five, still 98 short of the follow-on target at Old Trafford.
Their hopes of saving the game and the urn were aided by conditions in Manchester, with morning rain and bad light in the evening allowing just 64 overs possible out a planned 98, while for long periods Burns (81) and Root (71) appeared in control of matters.
In the end the pair shared a defiant stand of 141 in nearly 53 overs - their second-century partnership and England's biggest of the series - only for Hazlewood to intervene with a late, decisive spell. Re-live the action live:
When is the fourth Ashes Test?
The fourth Test takes place on 4-8 September at Old Trafford.
What time does it start?
The toss will take place at 10:30am on Wednesday 4 September, with play due to get underway each day at 11am.
Where can I watch it?
The Test will be shown live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from 10am.
Teams
England: Burns, Denly, Root, Roy, Stokes, Bairstow, Buttler, Overton, Archer, Broad, Leach.
Australia: Warner, Harris, Labuschagne, Smith, Head, Wade, Paine, Cummins, Starc, Lyon, Hazlewood.
Good morning and welcome to another day of Ashes cricket, as England return to their default survival mode to keep the series alive.
They start Day Three on 23-1, 474 runs behind with a full day of batting ahead. If all goes to plan.
Australia have won the first two days and they accumulated a monster first innings total. England's only job is to chip away at the total and bat as long as possible.
The bad news is that the sky above Old Trafford is dark. Grey clouds and rain have been coming down this morning and a delay to the start of the day seems likely.
More rain is due to come down over the course of the morning but it should clear up into the afternoon.
This is the current view of the pitch at Old Trafford. Completely covered, the rain is expected to clear in the next hour or so... but until then it's a waiting game.
The Ashes hang by a thread after two pretty woeful days for England. They were batted into oblivion by a fantastic double hundred from Steve Smith.
England weren't without chances yesterday. Jofra Archer put Smith down on 68 with Jack Leach finally dismissing him but having bowled a no ball.
Smith was ably partnered but the Australian captain Tim Paine. He made a hard fought 58 before Craig Overton nicked him off after tea.
But Smith just batted and batted and batted some more. He made 211 and earned the respect of the Old Trafford crowd.
Day three is due to start in 15 minutes time. The rain has made that start time null and void, the forecast says it should clear around 1 o'clock so we could lose a session today at least.
Steve Smith has scored 589 runs in the series having batted just fourth times, with his innings at Lords interrupted by a concussion.
What's the secret to his success? The desire for chocolate apparently.
On his double hundred yesterday Smith said:
"I went home, had a little bit of dinner and Peter Siddle popped over to Sainsbury's and got me a big block of Dairy Milk. That's my treat - when I get a hundred I reward myself with chocolate.
"I got stuck into that. I usually finish it but I've got some left over.
"When you spend some time out in the middle, you reward yourself properly. I jut like the plain stuff."
It's official. Rain has delayed the start of play, could the weather be a saviour for England?
Hunker down, it's very, very wet out there. Even if the rain stops right now it will take some time to get the ground fit for play.
We're looking at another hour before the start at the least.
When play does resume England's two gladiators will be Rory Burns and Craig Overton. They're tasked with bringing England into a position to avoid defeat.
The good news is the outfield covers are being removed.
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