Ollie Pope Strengthens Status to England's No 3 Slot with Impressive 90 Against Lions

It's tough to determine how much of the English team's warm-up fixture will prove important when their Ashes series contest kicks off not far at Perth Stadium on Friday – no distance in geography or duration but ages away in importance and environment – but if it accomplished solely enhancing Ollie Pope's confidence, that by itself has rendered the endeavor worthwhile.

England's number three batsman – that point is certainly completely clear – built on his first-innings century by notching an additional 90 in the follow-up innings, and what was notable was less about the total of scored runs but the manner in which they were scored. Periodically the young batsman appeared commanding, hitting a dozen fours and a two of sixes, hitting the ball beautifully but with aggressive purpose.

It was just a friendly against a Lions side that used fully 11 pitchers across a game held in before a small group of onlookers in a local ground, but it was still very impressive. For the record, the England team, chasing of 202 once the Lions ended their second innings on 251 for six, won by five wickets in hand when Smith hurried the team past the winning target with a stream of fours and sixes.

Crawley and Duckett, the other two big first-innings' successes, both were dismissed in the second innings, while Root made several more runs – 31 on this instance – but was far from more assured, then being puzzled and subsequently out by Jacks. Brook met an same end shortly after.

Bashir – who concluded the match having delivered 12 bowling spells for both teams – will have encountered part of the strokes he bowled to pretty hostile. His opening six deliveries against the Lions went for 56, with McKinney taking advantage to deliveries that if not entirely poor was definitely not very intimidating.

At the end the sixth spell of those deliveries, England's other pitchers had given away roughly the identical number of runs – 57 – from 15, though the bowler became a little less generous in time, allowing 27 from his final six. He took one wicket, holding a smart, low grab, leaning to his right, to conclude Jacob Bethell's innings for 70, off 80 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell, compensating for managing merely three in the opening knock, was a member of three players with fifties in the Lions' top four. McKinney's returns from opener were more reliable than those of their number three: he scored 66 in their first innings and went two better in their second innings, taking 61 deliveries to reach his half-century, with five fours and two sixes, both from Bashir's's bowling. Jacob Bethell reached 68 before a mis-hit to Ben Stokes at cover position, who made a low catch at shin level.

Cox showed similar steadiness, and followed his initial innings' 53 with another 57, at just over a run a ball. He produced several remarkably elegant hits on the way, such as a straight drive and a pull from back-to-back Carse deliveries to attain his fifty.

After missing the first day of this match with a stomach upset and made just the smallest of inputs to the second day, Brydon Carse bowled excellently when finally afforded the shot, with McKinney and Jordan Cox among his three scalps.

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