THE STORY FROM MANCHESTER: DAY 2 INSIGHT
By Phil Walker

This week, Zak Crawley enjoyed the most fruitful day of his professional life. A first Ashes hundred, his fourth in all, and a first at home since the eerily crowd-less summer of 2020. Between lunch and tea on the second day he made 106 runs from 82 balls and by the time he was done, having bagged the fastest 150 in Tests at Old Trafford, he was out of sight as the leading run-scorer in the series. By any measure it was a staggering piece of work.
The innings shifts the dial significantly. He already had the attention of the Australi...