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

It is hard to gauge how significant of England's preparatory game will be remotely meaningful when their Ashes series campaign starts 10km away at Perth Stadium on Friday – a brief gap in geography or duration but light years away in significance and environment – but if it managed only strengthening Ollie Pope's self-belief, that by itself has made the exercise beneficial.

The English side's number three batsman – that point is surely completely clear – followed his initial innings hundred by notching a further 90 in the follow-up innings, and what was impressive was less about the total of runs but the manner in which they were made. At times the young batsman appeared dominant, smashing a dozen boundaries and a pair of sixes, hitting the ball sweetly but with fierce purpose.

It was just a exhibition game versus a England Lions squad that employed fully 11 pitchers during a match held in amid a small group of people in a public park, but it was nevertheless extremely praiseworthy. To note, England, chasing of 202 following the Lions closed their follow-on innings on 251 for six, won by five wickets in hand after Smith hurried the team across the finish line with a series of fours and sixes.

Crawley and Ben Duckett, the other two significant first-innings' achievers, both were dismissed in the second innings, while Root scored additional points – 31 on this time – but was not enormously more assured, prior to being bemused and duly bowled by Jacks. Brook experienced an same fate soon afterwards.

Bashir – who ended the match having bowled 12 overs for each side – will have found part of the hitting he faced rather challenging. His first six overs against the Lions cost 56, with McKinney tucking in to deliveries that if not entirely wayward was definitely not overly dangerous.

At the end the sixth of those overs, the English side's three other bowlers had allowed roughly the same number of points – 57 – from 15, though the bowler became a slightly less generous in time, allowing 27 from his final six. He claimed a single wicket, making a clever, diving catch, leaning to his right side, to conclude Bethell's batting stint for 70, off 80 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell, compensating for managing merely three in the initial innings, was among a trio of fifty-scorers in the Lions' leading batsmen. Ben McKinney's returns from opener were more consistent than those of their No 3: he made 66 in their first innings and went two better in their follow-up, facing 61 balls to reach his half-century, with five boundaries and a couple six-hit shots, both from Bashir's's pitching. Jacob Bethell got to 68 prior to a poor shot to Stokes at cover position, who took a low grab at ankle height.

Jordan Cox exhibited similar consistency, and built on his initial innings' 53 with another 57, at slightly more than a run per delivery. He produced several outstandingly elegant hits en route, featuring a straight drive and a pull shot off back-to-back Brydon Carse balls to attain his fifty.

Having missed the opening day of this match with a stomach issue and contributed just the most minor of efforts to the follow-up, Brydon Carse delivered brilliantly when finally afforded the shot, with Ben McKinney and Jordan Cox among his three wickets.

The coverage may be updated