England sent Brydon Carse out to bat at No.3 in their second innings at the MCG, despite having recalled Jacob Bethell for the game. Here's why.
Having bowled Australia out before Tea on day two at the MCG, England had a target of 175 to win their first Test match in Australia for 15 years. After Gus Atkinson left the field early in the day with a hamstring injury, Carse was the star with the ball for England, finishing the innings with figures of 4-34.
England's regular opening pair of Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett set about knocking off the target as quickly as possible, facing a tough task on a difficult pitch to bat on. They added 51 runs in just under seven overs before Australia made their first breakthrough, Mitchell Starc breaking through Duckett's defences.
That wicket was expected to bring Jacob Bethell to the crease. England dropped Ollie Pope for the Boxing Day Test after the Surrey batter failed to make it past 26 in his previous four innings. Bethell was recalled for his first Test since England's final match of their home summer against India, but failed to impress in the first innings. He faced five balls and was caught behind off Michael Nesser for one, having survived an lbw appeal two balls previously.
However, there was some confusion when the next batter emerged from the England changing room after Duckett was dismissed. When the cameras zoomed into the player walking out onto the field, Carse was shown striding to the crease.
Why did England promote Brydon Carse in Melbourne?
The highest Carse has ever batted for England in a Test match before is No.8. While he has two first-class centuries to his name, his average from the first three Tests of the series with the bat was 13, and he was dismissed for ducks in both Brisbane and Adelaide. He would not be a natural choice to promote to No.3, and with the Tea break still a while off, he wasn't being sent in to see out a few balls before the interval.
The decision boils down to the game situation. England needed 124 runs to win when Duckett was dismissed, on a pitch which was becoming increasingly difficult to bat on. After 20 wickets fell on day one of the Test, all 10 Australia second innings wickets fell in fewer than two sessions on day two, with the match likely to finish without the need for a third day of play.
Carse has a strike rate of 74.15 in Test cricket and only Harry Brook among England players has hit more sixes in the series so far. By sending Carse in, England's hope would have been for him to clatter a few boundaries to move slightly closer to their target without sacrificing their established batters. Facing his first ball from Jhye Richardson, Carse showed that intent, running down the wicket and swiping at a short delivery.
While England's hope would have been for a quick-fire flurry from Carse, it didn't quite come off. Having reached six off seven balls, Carse had a huge heave to a length ball from Richardson, sending a steepling catch to Cameron Green at third man. England's order reverted to normal following his dismissal, with Bethell walking out one position down at No.4.
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