Twitter reactions: Rory Burns’ ton keeps England in firm command

Steve Smith‘s fightback helped Australia stay alive in the game on first day, but England had a stellar reply on cards for their oldest rivals on the second day. With Rory Burns registering his first Test hundred, the hosts very cautiously played out the second day. The Aussies struggled to make an impact and most of their plans were getting nullified.

There was some early joy for the Australians with James Pattinson dismissing Jason Roy. But Joe Root and Rory Burns made life very difficult for the bowlers. Root had a fantastic campaign in the World Cup and the confidence was showing with the willow while he was in the middle. He looked in complete control of what he was doing, thus helping Burns do his business smoothly.

The duo batted sensibly till the end of the session and steered the side past the 150-run mark right after the lunch break. Burns and Root had completed their half-centuries and the duo added 132 runs for the second wicket. Once again, the English skipper’s poor conversion rate in Tests came into limelight as he now has 42 scores between 50 and 99.

Burns and Stokes end the day on a high

Denly found it difficult to get going and Pattinson made merry of his adversity. Pat Cummins came back into the attack to dismiss Jos Buttler cheaply as the Australian quicks found some much-needed momentum before heading into the final session. The quick flurry of wickets wasn’t helping Burns, who was inching closer to a maiden hundred.

Ben Stokes provided the support which was necessary for the 28-year-old to complete his ton and after some hours of hardships, the joy was palpable. The likes of Nathan Lyon and Pattinson failed to capitalize on the little momentum they had and allowed Stokes and Burns to build another partnership.

Ben Stokes, who had a final to remember at the Lord’s a fortnight ago, looked fairly comfortable in the middle and tackled the new ball beautifully as well. Cummins and Siddle too couldn’t do much with the second new ball as England finished the day losing just four wickets. Although they didn’t surpass Australia’s first innings score yet, that will only be a formality on Saturday. Burns remained unbeaten on 125 off 282 deliveries while Stokes will continue at 38 off 71 on the third day.

Here’s how Twitter reacted to an action-packed day’s play.