Pope Cements Claim to England's No 3 Role with Strong 90 Versus Lions

It is tough to know how much of England's preparatory match will prove meaningful when their Ashes contest begins 10km away at the Perth venue on the coming Friday – a short span in space or time but worlds away in import and atmosphere – but if it accomplished only strengthening Pope's confidence, that alone has made the exercise beneficial.

England's No 3 – that much is certainly absolutely established – built on his initial innings century by notching an additional 90 in the follow-up innings, and what was impressive was not merely the quantity of runs but the manner in which they were scored. Periodically the player appeared commanding, smashing a twelve boundaries and a pair of sixes, timing the ball sweetly but with aggressive determination.

This was merely a exhibition game versus a Lions squad that deployed exactly 11 bowlers throughout a match played in before a handful of people in a local ground, but it was nonetheless hugely noteworthy. For the record, the England team, set a target of 202 after the Lions declared their second innings on 251 for six, triumphed by five wickets in hand when Jamie Smith sped the team past the finish line with a stream of fours and sixes.

Zak Crawley and Duckett, the other two significant first-innings performers, both were dismissed in the second innings, while Joe Root scored further runs – 31 on this time – but was not significantly more convincing, then being bemused and accordingly bowled by Jacks. Brook met an similar end soon afterwards.

Shoaib Bashir – who finished the match having bowled 12 bowling spells for each side – will have encountered some of the strokes he bowled to rather aggressive. His first six overs against the Lions went for 56, with Ben McKinney tucking in to pitching that if not completely wayward was definitely far from dangerous.

At the end the sixth over of that period, the English side's remaining three pitchers had allowed almost precisely the equivalent amount of runs – 57 – from 15, though Bashir turned a little less leaky later on, giving up 27 from his remaining six. He secured one dismissal, taking a sharp, diving grab, leaning to his right side, to finish Bethell's batting stint for 70, off 80 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell, compensating for managing just a small score in the opening knock, was a member of a trio of half-centurions in the Lions team's top four. McKinney's scores from opening batsman were more consistent than those from their No 3: he made 66 in their first innings and improved by two in their second innings, facing 61 balls over his half-century, with five and two six-hit shots, each against Bashir's's deliveries. Bethell reached 68 then a mis-hit to Stokes at cover, who held a low grab at shin level.

Cox showed comparable reliability, and built on his first-innings 53 with a further 57, at about a run a ball. There were some exceptionally beautiful hits on the way, featuring a straight hit and a pull from consecutive Brydon Carse deliveries to reach his 50 runs.

Having missed the first day of this fixture with a stomach issue and provided merely the least significant of inputs to the follow-up, Carse delivered excellently when at last afforded the shot, with McKinney and Cox included in his three wickets.

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