Steve Smith's cat-like reflexes amaze Will Jacks as Australia draw first blood on Day 4
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Australian stand-in skipper Steve Smith, known as one of the finest fielders of this generation, has once again proved his title right. The right-handed cricketer dove to his left to dig one out of the ground, as a ball flew past Will Jacks' outside edge.
The Ashes have always been considered for thrilling Test action, but England have failed to look promising in the Australian islands, since they have yet to win an Ashes game since their last win back in 2010/11.
Coming into this Ashes, England has lost a game and is on the brink of another loss against what the former English players called the weakest Australian team in the history of the Ashes. These performances have come without their most premium players in Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.
WOW!! Steve Smith brings Australia back into the game with an unbelievable grab
Australians had already broken the back of the English batting order; however, skipper Ben Stokes and Will Jacks were looking firm during the first session of Day 4's play at the Gabba in Brisbane.
The 7th wicket stand, which took England past the trailing score, was broken when Michael Neser's delivery caught the outside edge of Will Jacks' bat and Steve Smith, who stood in first skip, dove to his left and almost dug one out of the ground.
That catch from Steve Smith was extraordinary, as he grabbed a travelling ball, since he stood closer to the batter than he should have while fielding for a medium-paced bowler. An extraordinary effort from the skipper almost turned the tide in Australia's favour.
NO WAY! NO WAY STEVE SMITH! WOW!#Ashes | #PlayoftheDay | @nrmainsurance pic.twitter.com/4ziSJChGd4
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 7, 2025
England fumbles again in the second innings to register a modest target
Once again, the Englishmen fumbled in the second innings of a Test match. While batting in the first innings, Zak Crawley and Joe Root helped England pass a 300-run mark, but in return, significant contributions from Jack Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Alex Carey, Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc helped Australia to 500+ runs without a single batter breaching the three-figure score.
England came out to trail by 177 runs already, and at one stage it looked as if Australia would claim the point with an innings. With every Aussie pacer troubling them, England's top order hurried back to the pavilion. The only partnership that helped them rebuild was between skipper Stokes and Jacks.
However, after Jack's wicket, Nesser got the better of the England captain and also picked the final wicket of Brydon Carse to wrap the England innings for 241 with a target of 65 runs.
Michael Neser picks maiden 5-wicket haul in Test cricket
With his recent performance, Michael Neser picked up his maiden 5-wicket haul. Previously, he had played in just 2 Test matches for Australia and picked 7 wickets with the best figures of 5/56 in a match.
However, this time he has 6 wickets in the game and has his first five-wicket haul, that too with the pink ball in a Day/Night game, which is an extraordinary effort to pull. Mitchell Starc amassed 77 runs and picked 8 wickets in the game.
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Australia National Cricket Team England National Cricket Team Australia vs England England vs Australia Steve Smith Will Jacks Michael Neser The AshesAbout the Author
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