Murphy stands tall after first bout with Stokes

Considering his history with Australian off-spinners at Headingley, Ben Stokes had good reason to fancy himself against Todd Murphy when the Ashes debutant was thrown the ball by Pat Cummins early on Friday afternoon.

This is of course the venue where Stokes broke Australia's hearts in 2019, where Nathan Lyon was a central player in the dramatic one-wicket defeat following an infamous fumble and a turned-down lbw appeal.

Yet Murphy, after being given a baptism of fire by the same batter in equally destructive form on an equally balmy Leeds afternoon as the one four years ago, can now say he has done something his injured mentor Lyon has not.

That is: get Stokes out at Headingley.

One Ashes wicket, compared to Lyon's 110, is hardly enough of a sample size to make a judgement on whether the presumed successor to the Test spin-bowling throne will be able to match the longevity and adaptability that saw Lyon play 100 consecutive Tests before tearing his calf at Lord's last week.

Nor would Murphy necessarily claim bragging rights over Stokes just yet, given England's wounded captain deposited him for five sixes and was only dismissed when he attempted a sixth with his side nine wickets down.

However, the resolve shown by the 22-year-old in his captivating second-day duel with Stokes was a sign the Aussies are in good hands for the rest of this series.

While he had played just 12 first-class games leading into his maiden trip to England, Murphy had shown over the course of the four-Test series in India that he had the mettle to handle the world's best.

Thrown in the deep end against the world's best players of spin, he started the tour with a seven-wicket haul in his first Test innings and finished it with Rahul Dravid declaring he had (along with Lyon and Matthew Kuhnemann) formed part of the best visiting spin attack to India in a decade.

It was why Cummins had no hesitation repeatedly putting his faith in Murphy, who dismissed Virat Kohli in all four of the Tests played in February-March, even as Stokes ripped away the momentum of a match that Australia had been firmly in control of.

As coach Andrew McDonald put it: "We threw him the ball – that speaks everything."

It was a trademark innings from Stokes, who thrives when circumstances conspire against him. On this occasion, a right hip injury to go with his long-standing left knee issue, combined with the lower-order combusting around him, were the barriers he needed to overcome.

So as the England captain narrowed his focus and calculated the various risk-versus-reward equations, he went all-in on the option he deemed the most appealing; Murphy.

Stokes farmed the strike to ensure he faced all but 10 of the 45 deliveries the young spinner sent down in his first Ashes spell, deciding Australia's least experienced bowler was also the most gettable.

Murphy's tidy initial four-over burst, in which he quickly corrected a too-leg-side line (perhaps having anticipated more turn), saw him initially find a pace and trajectory Stokes found difficult to line up. The left-hander's attempts to slog- and reverse-sweep him proved fruitless.

But the real battle came later when Murphy was brought back on in the second session after England had launched 55 runs from the first 23 balls bowled by old-stagers Cummins and Mitchell Starc after lunch.

Immediately, Murphy created two chances in as many balls against the hobbled Stokes. Cramped up for room, Stokes skied another slog-sweep attempt (Starc was unable to make enough ground to take the catch) before Murphy dropped a tough return catch.

"He created the opportunities and if you take them, then it's a totally different picture you face," McDonald lamented.

Now Stokes had Murphy’s measure.

And for a moment, Murphy looked to be faltering.

The first two balls of the next over were overpitched, and both went for six. This was extreme pressure; the world's premier heat-check hitter was going after Murphy, an adoring crowd was cheering every Stokes blow, and a pitch offering little turn was doing the Victorian no favours.

It was here that Murphy's teammates intervened. Along with Alex Carey, Cummins ran in from the mid-wicket boundary to counsel him. There was another huddle at the beginning of the next over also involving Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne.

"The discussion was whether to take (Stokes) wider or to go up and over down the middle of the wicket," said McDonald, adding that the group resolved the optimal solution to be "probably a combination of both those" options.

"They showed him great support."

Image Id: FD1F93337220416E82395A73B8991CA6 Image Caption: Todd Murphy returned 1-36 from 7.3 overs in his first Ashes innings // Getty

The ensuing three sixes were the type of shots few bowlers in the world could have stopped.

Twice Stokes walked across his stumps and shovelled Murphy for six, while another blow saw him charge down the pitch, get nowhere near the pitch of the ball and muscle it over the straight boundary anyway.

As his senior players had spoken about, Murphy went slower and wider. Stokes again skied one and this time Smith was under it to complete the catch.

"It's a tough entry into Ashes cricket," said McDonald. "This is his first Test match in an Ashes environment and he'll be better for that."

With a first Ashes series win abroad in two decades in reach and Stokes looming large over the fourth innings of this match, Australia will hope their new off-spinner leaves Leeds with fonder memories than their old one.

2023 Qantas Ashes Tour of the UK

First Test: Australia won by two wickets

Second Test: Australia won by 43 runs

Third Test: Thursday July 6-Monday July 10, Headingley

Fourth Test: Wednesday July 19-Sunday July 23, Old Trafford

Fifth Test: Thursday July 27-Monday 31, The Oval

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David Warner

England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood