Australia thrash England in the First Test Encounter at Gabba

There were expectations of a high-stakes encounter on the fourth morning of the Ashes opener in Gabba. England had shown resilience yesterday through Joe Root and Dawid Malan's century stand. The pair had cut Australia's lead down to 58 and walked out to bat under clear blue skies. But all of that bluster came to nought as England tumbled rather dramatically to lose 8 for 77 over the first session.

The half-centuries posted by Root and Malan went in vain, as they turned out to be the only batsmen who fought to save the match. Root proved again why he is currently the world best test batsman, registering the 1500 run landmark for him in this calendar year.

Australia were given a 20 run target by the visitors, which they polished with the loss of a wicket. Now, they lead the series 1-0 .

Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon reached the 400 wickets landmark and registered his name in the record books. In his comeback match, Travis Head won the Man of the Match Award for his stunning century.

Brief scores: Australia 425 & 20/1 beat England 147 & 297 (Joe Root 89, Dawid Malan 82; Nathan Lyon 4-91) by 9 wickets

MOM: Travis Head

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