An emotional Alex Carey slammed a majestic 106 on his home ground and Usman Khawaja hit a defiant 82 Wednesday to put Australia in the driving seat of the third Ashes Test against England.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Batting after captain Pat Cummins won the toss as temperatures topped 36 Celsius at Adelaide Oval, the hosts were 326-8 at stumps on day one after the shock of Steve Smith being ruled out with illness.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Mitchell Starc was not out 33 and Nathan Lyon yet to score.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"To make a hundred here in front of home fans and family was special," an emotional Carey told Australian TV.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
As he celebrated his maiden Ashes ton, Carey gestured towards the sky in a nod to his father Gordon, who died from cancer in September.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I guess you know as well why I was looking to the heavens. I'm trying not to tear up. But, no, it was great."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The wicketkeeper's wife Eloise was spotted in tears by TV cameras as he celebrated.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"To have, mum, brother, sister, Eloise, the kids (here), it was a special moment," Carey added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
A tireless Jofra Archer ended with 3-29 on a tough day for England's bowlers in the field.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I thought it was a good performance from our bowlers, the heat took us a bit by surprise," said England bowling coach David Saker.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"The boys toiled away.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"(Archer) had a point to prove, he sustained his pace and bowled at the stumps, and he was well supported."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
- Khawaja reprieve -<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Australia lead the five-Test series 2-0 and will retain the Ashes if they win or draw, after back-to-back eight-wicket thumpings in Perth and Brisbane.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Smith, who has more than 10,000 runs, had been feeling unwell in the lead-up but was on Tuesday named in the side.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was on the field during the morning warm-up but left 20 minutes before the toss shaking his head.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
His absence gave an unexpected reprieve to Khawaja, who turns 39 on Thursday and had been overlooked as opener in favour of Travis Head and Jake Weatherald.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Khawaja, who missed Brisbane after suffering back spasms in Perth, grabbed his chance in a stoic knock.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He was eventually out just before tea, slog-sweeping to Josh Tongue in the deep off the spin of Will Jacks.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Carey picked up the mantle, first alongside Josh Inglis (32), then Pat Cummins (13), and latterly Starc, who once more showed his prowess with the bat.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Carey hit eight fours and a six in his third Test century, bringing up the milestone in front of family, friends and 56,298 fans -- the biggest cricket crowd ever at the venue.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
- Archer burst -<\/p>\r\n\r\n
A blistering first over after lunch from Archer had left Australia reeling at 94-4.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He removed Marnus Labuschagne for 19 with his first ball after the interval.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Two deliveries later Cameron Green was gone, with Brydon Carse collecting catches at midwicket to dismiss both.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Inglis and Cummins fell in the final session to Tongue and Carse respectively.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Players from both teams wore black armbands as a mark of respect to the victims of the Bondi Beach mass shooting.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
A moment of silence was held before the game with security tightened and flags flying at half-mast.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
At the start, Weatherald raced to 18 off 27 balls but his gung-ho approach cost him against the pace of Archer, who fired down a bouncer and induced a top edge to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Head followed next over for 10, with Zak Crawley taking a sensational instinctive catch low to his left off Carse.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Khawaja, on five, was fortunate to survive when Harry Brook dropped a sitter at second slip and went on to bring up his 28th Test 50 to big cheers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Carey had a life on 52 when Carse put down a difficult chance in the covers and the 34-year-old made the most of it before falling when he top-edged Jacks to Smith just before the close.<\/p>\r\n", "image": "https:\/\/img.cricketnmore.com\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Alex-Carey-3rd-Ashes-Test-2025.jpeg", "alt_img": "Alex Carey 3rd Ashes Test 2025", "alt_title": "Australia vs England 3rd Ashes Test Adelaide Day 1 Report", "image1": null, "video": null, "seo_title": "Carey Century, Khawaja Resistance Power Australia to Strong Day One at Adelaide On Cricketnmore", "seo_desc": "Alex Carey\u2019s emotional home-ground century and Usman Khawaja\u2019s defiant 82 put Australia in control on day one of the third Ashes Test at Adelaide.", "seo_keywords": "Alex Carey, Usman Khawaja, Ashes 2025-26, Adelaide Oval, Jofra Archer, Australia Vs England", "tag": null, "tagging": "Alex Carey,Usman Khawaja,Ashes 2025-26,Adelaide Oval,Jofra Archer,Australia Vs England,", "status": "1", "img_rpt": "0", "google": "1", "standout": "0", "edapps": "0", "pulse": "0", "no_index": "0", "feed": "0", "fixture": null, "slug": "australia-vs-england-3rd-ashes-test-adelaide-day-1-report", "user_id": "0", "read_count": "1", "ians_date": null, "ians_time": null, "server_time": null, "trash": "0", "view_count": "636", "page_break": "0", "instant_articles": "1", "auto_link": "1", "created": "2025-12-17 14:23:08", "updated": "2025-12-17 14:23:08", "img_from": "Image Source: Google", "img_source": null, "schedule_publish": null, "news_keywords": "Alex Carey, Usman Khawaja, Ashes 2025-26, Adelaide Oval, Jofra Archer, Australia Vs England", "livescore_text": null, "livescore_link": null, "btn_text": null, "resend_feed": "0", "google_feed": "0", "read_more": "1", "posted_by": "19", "jio_date": "2025-12-17 14:23:08", "scheduled": "0", "news_now": "1", "breaking_news": "1", "google_date": null, "featured": "0", "pred_match_id": "Select", "article_content_type": null, "england_cricket": "0", "link": "https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/cricket-news\/australia-vs-england-3rd-ashes-test-adelaide-day-1-report-184187" }