Travis Head and Steve Smith’s centuries assist Australia shut on 518-7 on day three of fifth Test, the England bowler gazing an undesirable report and Usman Khawaja’s emotional reception: ASHES BREAKFAST

Centuries from Travis Head, his third of a dominant series, and Steve Smith, his first, combined to grind England into the SCG dirt on the third day of the fifth Ashes Test.

Resuming on their overnight 166 for two, Australia made largely untroubled progress to reach stumps on an imposing 518 for seven, a lead of 134. 

Head made 163, taking his series haul to exactly 600 before missing a sweep against Jacob Bethell, while Smith walked off with 129 to his name, his 13th Ashes century and a telling retort to the 160 made the day before by Joe Root, his fellow Fab Four member. It was one-way traffic, from start to finish.

England had arrived in Sydney hoping to build on their two-day win in Melbourne and close the gap to 3–2, but now face a struggle to avoid a 4–1 defeat, which will heap pressure on the ECB to make meaningful changes to the administrative and coaching staff once they consider what went wrong on this trip.

And it was another day of English misadventure, summed up by a horrible drop from Will Jacks on the square-leg fence to reprieve Head on 121. Head had miscued a flick off Brydon Carse, before Jacks – perhaps sensing his proximity to the boundary – made a mess of the chance, almost dropping it over the rope for four.

It was a dismal moment, and it summed up England’s tour as surely as Jamie Smith’s dismissal to Marnus Labuschagne had 24 hours earlier: an unforced error, inexplicable and yet strangely predictable.

Travis Head scored another century to help Australia dominate England on day three in Sydney

He scored 163 while Steve Smith (pictured) is unbeaten on 129 to see Australia close on 518-7

Either side of Jacks’s clanger, England used up their last two reviews trying to prise out nightwatchman Michael Neser – first for a caught-behind appeal from Josh Tongue when the noise the fielders heard was bat on turf, then for an lbw shout from Carse, when Neser was hit outside the line.

By the time Neser finally edged one of his many swishes outside off stump, he had made a priceless 24 and helped Head put on 72 in nearly 24 overs. At 234 for three, Australia trailed by 150.

Head followed soon after lunch, getting too far across his stumps as he tried to paddle-sweep Bethell’s left-arm spin. He walked off to a standing ovation, having become only the sixth Australian (Don Bradman did it twice) to reach 600 in a home Ashes. Australia kept chipping away at the deficit, more effectively than England protected it. Matthew Potts in particular was enduring a nightmare on his Ashes debut, either too short or too full, and without the speed to compensate. By lunch, his figures were gruesome: 17–1–104–0.

By stumps, he had none for 141, which was close to being the worst analysis by an England seamer in Test history. Five others have gone wicketless while conceding more in an innings, though none has come close to Potts’s economy-rate of 5.64.

Then again, what did England expect after he prepared for this Test with a grand total of 58 overs between the end of the county season in September and this game, his first of the series? He has bowled poorly, sure, but neither has he been prepared properly.

Carse, his Durham team-mate, pinned Usman Khawaja – treated to an emotional reception from the crowd in his final Test – with a yorker for 17, and it was 366 for six when Alex Carey was again caught at leg slip, this time off Josh Tongue for 16.

If that gave England, still in front by 18, a glimmer of hope, Smith had other plans, putting on 71 with Cameron Green, before Green – on 37 – pulled Carse to Ben Duckett at deep midwicket and bashed his bat against his pad in fury.

Moments later, Smith tucked Bethell round the corner for three to bring up three figures in the city of his birth. He has now made five Test hundreds here, and averages north of 70.

And, to England’s despair, he is not done yet, as he and Beau Webster – as low as No 9 because of Neser’s nightwatchman duties – put on an unbroken 81 before stumps.