Pope Cements Status to England's Number Three Spot with Strong 90 Against Lions

It is tough to gauge how significant of England's practice match will end up being relevant when their Ashes contest begins not far at Perth Stadium on Friday – a short span in space or time but light years away in importance and environment – but if it managed only strengthening Ollie Pope's confidence, that on its own has rendered the exercise worthwhile.

The English side's number three batsman – that much is undoubtedly totally certain – followed his initial innings hundred by adding a further 90 in the second, and the most impressive was not merely the quantity of runs but the manner in which they were made. Periodically the player seemed dominant, striking a twelve fours and a pair of sixes, timing the ball perfectly but with devilish determination.

This was merely a friendly versus a Lions team that used a total of 11 pitchers throughout a game staged in front of a handful of people in a local ground, but it was nevertheless very impressive. For the record, the England team, set a target of 202 after the Lions ended their second innings on 251 for six, triumphed by five wickets after Smith sped the team across the winning target with a series of boundaries.

Zak Crawley and Duckett, the remaining major first-innings' achievers, both were dismissed in the second knock, while Joe Root scored several more points – 31 on this time – but was not significantly more assured, then being puzzled and subsequently dismissed by Jacks. Brook met an identical end soon afterwards.

Bashir – who ended the match having bowled 12 overs for either team – will have found a portion of the hitting he confronted rather challenging. His first six deliveries against the Lions conceded 56, with Ben McKinney tucking in to deliveries that if not exactly wayward was surely not very dangerous.

At the end the sixth spell of those deliveries, the English side's other pitchers had given away nearly exactly the identical number of runs – 57 – from 15, though the bowler turned a little less generous as time passed, giving up 27 from his final six. He took one dismissal, holding a smart, diving grab, diving to his right side, to conclude Jacob Bethell's innings for 70, from 80 deliveries.

Jacob Bethell, compensating for scoring merely three runs in the initial innings, was one of a trio of fifty-scorers in the Lions' top four. Ben McKinney's scores from opening batsman were more reliable than those of their number three: he scored 66 in their first innings and went two better in their second innings, taking 61 deliveries to reach his half-century, with five and two maximums, each from Bashir's bowling. Bethell made 68 prior to a mishit to Ben Stokes at cover position, who took a low catch at shin level.

Cox displayed like steadiness, and backed up his initial innings' 53 with an additional 57, at slightly more than a run a ball. He produced some outstandingly handsome hits on the way, such as a drive down the ground and a hook off successive Carse balls to reach his half century.

Having missed the opening day of this match with a stomach upset and contributed just the most minor of efforts to the follow-up, Carse pitched excellently when eventually afforded the shot, with McKinney and Cox included in his three wickets.

The update could change