Ollie Pope Strengthens Position to England's Number Three Role with Bold 90 Against Lions

It's difficult to know how much of the English team's practice fixture will prove important when their Ashes series campaign begins not far at the Perth venue on Friday – a short span in space or time but light years away in significance and environment – but if it achieved only strengthening Pope's assurance, that on its own has made the effort beneficial.

England's number three batsman – that much is certainly absolutely clear – built on his initial innings century by scoring a further 90 in the second innings, and what was remarkable was not merely the number of scored runs but the manner in which they were accumulated. At times the 27-year-old appeared imperious, striking a dozen boundaries and a couple of maximums, connecting with the ball sweetly but with aggressive intent.

This was merely a friendly versus a Lions squad that used exactly 11 bowlers during a game held in amid a few dozen of people in a local ground, but it was nevertheless very impressive. To note, England, needing of 202 once the Lions closed their follow-on innings on 251 for six, triumphed by five wickets after Jamie Smith hurried the team past the conclusion with a flurry of boundaries.

Crawley and Duckett, the remaining significant first-innings performers, both fell short in the follow-up, while Root made several more points – 31 on this time – but was not significantly more convincing, prior to being puzzled and subsequently dismissed by Jacks. Harry Brook suffered an similar end soon afterwards.

Bashir – who finished the fixture having bowled 12 overs for both teams – will have found part of the batting he bowled to pretty aggressive. His opening six overs versus the Lions went for 56, with Ben McKinney tucking in to pitching that if not completely loose was surely not very dangerous.

After the sixth over of those overs, England's remaining three pitchers had allowed roughly the same number of points – 57 – from 15, though the bowler turned a somewhat less generous in time, giving up 27 from his last six. He claimed one dismissal, making a clever, low catch, falling to his right, to finish Bethell's knock for 70, off 80 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell, compensating for achieving only three runs in the initial innings, was a member of three fifty-scorers in the Lions team's top order. Ben McKinney's performances from opener were more consistent than the scores of their number three: he made 66 in their first batting effort and went two better in their second innings, using 61 deliveries for his 50 runs, with five fours and a couple six-hit shots, each against Bashir's bowling. Bethell reached 68 then a poor shot to Ben Stokes at cover, who made a bending catch at ankle height.

Cox displayed similar steadiness, and backed up his first-innings 53 with a further 57, at just over a scoring rate of one. There were several remarkably beautiful shots during his innings, featuring a straight hit and a pull off successive Carse deliveries to reach his half century.

Having missed the initial day of this match with a stomach issue and made just the smallest of inputs to the follow-up, Brydon Carse pitched excellently when at last given the opportunity, with Ben McKinney and Cox part of his three scalps.

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