4th Ashes Test England v Australia, Day 1: Lyon roars as Aussies dominate

Nathan Lyon stole the show as Australia produced a tight, disciplined bowling display on a sluggish pitch to reduce England to 238 for nine on the first day of the fourth Ashes Test on Friday.

Off-spinner Lyon, bowling almost exclusively from around the wicket, grabbed four for 42 to rip the heart out of the middle order after the home team had won the toss and chosen to bat first in the most northerly Test in Ashes history.

Captain Alastair Cook top-scored after grinding his way to a painstaking 51 in 164 balls before he shouldered arms to an inswinger from the recalled Jackson Bird and was trapped lbw.

"It was a great personal effort I guess and my theory for going round the wicket was to build pressure and keep everyone in the game around the bat for bat-pads and lbws," the 25-year-old Lyon told reporters.

"There wasn't much in the pitch and we are happy with the whole unit. I thought we bowled pretty well and built pressure all day."

England, who have already clinched the Ashes after taking a 2-0 lead in the five-match series, made a sound, if slow, start to the first Ashes Test to be staged in County Durham before Joe Root fell for 16 with the total on 34.

The much-maligned Decision Review System (DRS) worked well all day and the first indication of its new effectiveness came when Root was given out caught behind by Brad Haddin off Shane Watson after 'Hotspot' technology showed he got the feintest of outside edges.

Jonathan Trott, renowned for his stodgy approach, joined Cook in the middle and the number three batsman raised the tempo with a streaky four through the slips and a neat clip through mid-wicket for three.

England crept to 57 for one at lunch, Cook managing just one four in the morning session, but Trott continued to play expansively after the interval and quickly overtook his skipper.

Trott struck two fours in consecutive balls from paceman Peter Siddle and accelerated to 49 from 60 deliveries before being removed out of the blue by Lyon who cajoled him into offering a catch to short leg Usman Khawaja off bat and pad.

Kevin Pietersen came out and showed his intent from the start, lofting his first ball from Lyon into a gap at wide mid-on.

FIFTH PLACE

Pietersen then hit fast bowler Ryan Harris for two successive fours before leapfrogging Michael Atherton to take fifth place on the list of England's most prolific run scorers.

Graham Gooch (8,900), Alec Stewart (8,463), David Gower (8,231) and Geoff Boycott (8,114) are now the only batsmen ahead of Pietersen (7,731) who almost immediately became Lyon's second victim of the innings when he edged a catch to Haddin on 26.

Pietersen fell with the score on 149 and Cook followed four runs later, having just chalked up his third half-century of the series in a near four-hour vigil.

Paceman Bird, making his first appearance of the series after being preferred to Mitchell Starc, swung the ball late into the left-hander and Cook made his way back to the pavilion.

The dismissals of Pietersen and Cook in double quick time just before tea put Australia firmly on top and they rammed home their superiority straight after the interval.

Ian Bell (six) charged down the pitch to Lyon and recklessly lofted the ball to mid-off where Harris took a tumbling catch.

After a spell of mind-numbingly tedious cricket, Matt Prior (17) fell victim to the DRS.

The umpire initially gave Prior not out when he was hit on the pad by Siddle but Australia chose to review the decision and it was overturned when 'Hawkeye' showed the ball would have struck the top of leg stump.

DRS was spot on again moments later when Jonny Bairstow was given out lbw for 14 after missing an attempted sweep off Lyon.

Bairstow was initially given not out but the decision was changed when 'Hawkeye' showed the ball was going on to clip the top of off stump.

Harris picked up the next wicket when Stuart Broad, on three, mistimed a square cut and spooned a simple catch to David Warner at cover.

Graeme Swann (13) then hooked Harris straight to Lyon at deep square leg before a late flurry of runs from James Anderson (16 not out) and Tim Bresnan (12 not out) took England through to stumps.

"We're disappointed we got ourselves into a good position and then got ourselves into a bad one," said Trott. "It's a little bit uncharacteristic of us as a side.

"We put a lot of emphasis and value on our wickets and when that doesn't happen you're disappointed...250 I think is the average first-innings score here at Durham.

"But that would be the easy route to go, to say we're at par when clearly we're not," added Trott. "We probably didn't have the best of days."

EVENING SESSION

Nathan Lyon took four wickets as Australia finished on a commanding position to put England at 238 for nine in 90 overs on the first day of the fourth Ashes Test in Chester-le-Street.

England saw just one fruitful partnership between skipper Alastair Cook (51) and Jonathan Trott (49) after which England kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

K Pietersen made a quick 26 before departing whie the day ended with a few boundaries from the last pair Tim Bresnan and James Anderson who were unbeaten on 17 and 16 respectively when stumps were drawn.

Ryan Harris took two wickets late in the day.

Two more boundaries. Eng 233-9 in 89 overs.

Back to back boundaries from Anderson. Eng 222-9 in 88 overs.

Harris takes his second wicket. Australia will look to wrap it up. Eng 214-9 in 86.4 overs.

G Swann c Lyon b Harris 13 (18b 3x4 0x6)

New ball taken as England cross 200. Eng 204-8 in 85 overs.

Three overs goes without a run. Eng 199-8 in 84 overs.

Stuart Broad departs to give Harris his first wicket. Eng 197-8 in 80.4 overs.

S Broad c Warner b Harris 3 (12b 0x4 0x6)

England are 195-7 in 80 overs. Still 10 overs remain for the day.

Lyon takes his fourth wicket of the day. He has been wonderful today. Bairstow asked for a referal but things went against him. Eng 193-7 in 78 overs.

J Bairstow lbw b Lyon 14 (77b 1x4 0x6)

Another 13 overs to for the day. England would not want to lose any more wickets. Eng 191-6 in 77 overs.

It was a great referal call which clicked for Australia. Prior goes. Eng 189-6 in 75 overs.

M Prior lbw b Siddle 17 (58b 2x4 0x6)

Runs coming at a very slow pace. Just one run from the last two overs. Eng 188-5 in 72 overs.

England are 187-5 in 70 overs.

Partnership between Bairstow and Prior is 31. Eng 186-5 in 64 overs.

Two good boundaries for England from Prior. Eng 183-5 in 63 overs.

England not getting many runs. Things have completely slowed up for them. Eng 173-5 in 62 overs.

England are 170-5 in 59 overs.

Australia strike immediately. Lyon gets another to remove Bell. Eng 155-5 in 56 overs.

I Bell c Harris b Lyon 6 (17b 0x4 0x6)

AFTERNOON SESSION

Nathan Lyon grabbed two wickets and Jackson Bird claimed his first victim of the series as Australia restricted England to 155 for four at tea on the first day of the fourth Ashes test on Friday.

Ian Bell was six not out at the interval with Jonny Bairstow unbeaten on nought.

Captain Alastair Cook, who won the toss before the start of play and chose to bat, fell just before tea after grinding his way to a painstaking 51 while Kevin Pietersen made a quickfire 26 and Jonathan Trott an unusually rapid 49.

England appeared well placed on 149 for two but the loss of Cook and Pietersen gave Michael Clarke's Australia fresh heart ahead of the final session of the day.

Opener Cook was in tortoise mode throughout his 164-ball innings, continually shouldering arms to wide balls he refused to play at.

It appeared as though the England skipper was intent on delivering his first century of the series before he left a ball from paceman Bird that swung into the left-hander and trapped him plumb lbw.

Cook's dismissal came shortly after off spinner Lyon, bowling round the wicket, cajoled Pietersen into offering a catch behind to Brad Haddin.

Pietersen had dominated a stand of 42 for the third wicket with his captain.

Trott's knock was the most fluent of the day at the Emirates Durham, England's number three rattling his way to 49 before he inside-edged Lyon straight to Usman Khawaja at short leg.

Earlier, Joe Root was the first wicket to fall when he was given out caught behind via the Decision Review System after edging Shane Watson to Haddin with the England total on 34.

'Hot Spot' technology, which has thrown up a host of controversies throughout the series, showed up the tiniest of marks on the outside of Root's bat and the Yorkshireman had to go.

England are fielding an unchanged team but Australia made one alteration to the side that drew the third Test in Manchester earlier this week, giving Bird his first start of the series in place of Mitchell Starc.

The second session belonged Australia. Three wickets and things are looking good for Australia. Eng 155-4 in 55 overs.

Two new batsmen in the middle. England will need another  partnership. Eng 155-4 in 55 overs.

Australia suddenly look to be on top now. Great ball from Bird to remove Cook. Eng 153-4 in 52.3 overs.

A Cook lbw b Bird 51 (164b 5x4 0x6)

Big wicket for Australia. Pietersen was going strong and confident. Eng 149-3 in 49.5 overs.

K Pietersen c Haddin b Lyon 26 (35b 4x4 0x6)

Great  knock from the skipper. Cook takes 153 balls to get to his half century. His slowest in his career. Eng 149-2 in 49 overs.

Two fantastic boundaries from Pietersen. England 138-2 in 47 overs.

Cook reaches 40 after cracking a lovely boundary to cover.  Eng 126-2 in 44 overs.

Pietersen gets a couple of boundaries. Positive approach from him. Eng 120-2 in 42 overs.

That's a disappointment. Trott played well and got unlucky to miss his half century. Well bowled by Lyon. Eng107-2 in 39.2 overs

I Trott c Khawaja b Lyon 49 (60b 7x4 0x6)

Trott gets two boundaries to reach 49 as England cross 100. Eng 106-1 in 39 overs.

Trott, Cook going strong. Both playing patient  knocks. Eng 98-1 in 38 overs.

Cook and Trott reach the 50-run partnership. Eng 88-1 in 35 overs.

Cook reaches 32. Eng 82-1 in 34 overs.

Trott plays a fine boundary off his legs. Eng 74-1 in 31 overs.

Two early boundaries immediately after lunch. Eng 66-1 in 29 overs.

MORNING SESSION

England made an ultra-cautious start after winning the toss and deciding to bat in the fourth Ashes test against Australia in County Durham on Friday, reaching 57 for one at lunch.

Captain Alastair Cook was particularly watchful, reaching 21 not out, while Jonathan Trott was unbeaten on 13.

Joe Root (16) was the only wicket to fall. The young opener was given out caught behind via the Decision Review System after edging Shane Watson to Brad Haddin with the England total on 34.

'Hot Spot' technology, which has thrown up a host of controversies throughout the series, showed up the tiniest of marks on the outside of Root's bat and the Yorkshireman had to go.

A capacity 17,000 crowd at the Emirates Durham had to wait 52 minutes for the first boundary of the day, a sumptuous cover drive for four by Root off Jackson Bird.

Tasmania paceman Bird, 26, opened the bowling for Australia alongside Ryan Harris after being brought in for his first appearance of the series.

After Root's dismissal, Trott opened his account with a streaky four through the slips off Peter Siddle and a neat clip for three through mid-wicket off the same bowler.

A becalmed Cook managed only one boundary all morning, a straight-driven four off Watson.

England named an unchanged team before the start of play while Australia made one alteration to the side that drew the third test in Manchester last week, bringing in Bird for Mitchell Starc.

At lunch England are 57 for 1 ini 27 overs.  England just lost one wicket in the session after they won the toss and opted to bat.

Three maiden overs. Eng 51-1 in 25 overs.

Cook reaches 21 as England cross 50. Eng 51-1 in 22 overs.

England's runrate just over two. Eng 45-1 in 21 overs.

Australia earn their first success for the day. They get it through referral after umpire had gone against it. Eng 34-1 in 17.4 overs.

J Root c Haddin b Watson 16 (52b 1x4 0x6)

Australia bowlers are keeping a tidy line. England batsmen taking time and adopting a cautious approach. Eng 34-0  in 17 overs.

Good over for England. Cook gets his first boundary. 7 runs off it. Eng 31-0 in 13 overs

The first boundary comes after 12 overs. Eng 24-0

England openers taking their own time to settle down. Eng 17-0 in 10 overs.

A boundary has still not come. Australia bowlers are maintaining a good line. Eng 11-0 in 7 overs.

England taking a very steady approach. Eng 7-0 in 6 overs.

A maiden over. Aus 3-0 in 3 overs.

Cook and Root look optimistic as they open for England. Australia will look for some early wickets. Aus 3-0 in 2 overs.

Playing XI:

England: A Cook, J Root, I Trott, K Pietersen, I Bell, J Bairstow, M Prior, T Bresnan, S Broad, G Swann, J Anderson

Australia: S Watson, J Rogers, U Khawaja, M Clarke, S Smith, D Warner, B Haddin, P Siddle, J Bird, R Harris, N Lyon

Spirits are high in Australia's camp after they stopped the rot in the Ashes series by dominating England in the rain-ruined third Test at Manchester, captain Michael Clarke said on Thursday.

Australia lost the opening two games at Trent Bridge and Lord's but they were disappointed to come away from Old Trafford with only a draw after having by far the better of the exchanges despite the hosts retaining the Ashes.

"The boys took a lot of confidence from that match," Clarke told reporters on the eve of the fourth and penultimate Test in County Durham. "We certainly believed that but for the rain we would have won that Test.

"We are taking a lot of positives, guys have scored a lot of runs which is really encouraging and bowlers continue to do a fantastic job for us. The boys are full of confidence now and our goal is to continue playing that brand of cricket from tomorrow."

Clarke led from the front at Old Trafford by scoring the first Australian century of the series as his team piled up 527 for seven declared in the first innings.

"Our priority is to try to level the series, that's what we are focused on right now," he said.

"We are pretty clear with our views. We want to leave here with a 2-2 draw ... if the rain stays away."

England were bowled out for 368 at Old Trafford before slumping to 37 for three in the second innings but Clarke refused to write off the home team's strong batting line-up.

"It's nice to be getting a few of their top order out cheaply, obviously they are very good players," he said.

"It will continue to take a lot of hard work and some very good execution from our bowlers to continue that. I am not silly enough to put the mockers on any of their batters.

"One area that, as a team, we continue to talk about is consistency, especially when we are out of Australia and in different conditions," added Clarke.

"I was really pleased with the way we played in Manchester but good teams back that up day after day. That's our job from tomorrow."

Ryan Harris excelled at Lord's and Old Trafford after missing the first Test and Clarke is hoping the injury-prone fast bowler is going to be fit to play at Chester-le-Street, which is hosting an Ashes Test for the first time.

"Ryan is always important to the Australian team," said the captain. "He's a wonderful bowler and a great asset to our team.

"I think for everyone's sake it would be nice if he was available for selection and that he can continue his form."

Jackson Bird will make his first appearance of the series if Harris pulls out.

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