Brisbane, Dec. 4 -- England have clawed their way back impressively after Zak Crawley and Joe Root steadied the ship with a well-composed, unbeaten 93-run partnership after the visitors suffered an early setback after Australia seamer Mitchell Starc removed Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope cheaply in the second Ashes of the five-match series in Brisbane.

At the end of the first session, England was at 98/2 in 24 overs, with Crawley (61*) and Root (32*) unbeaten.

England opted to bat first, and they found themselves in the back in the first over itself. Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc removed opener Ben Duckett for a golden duck. Duckett attempted to defend, but the ball found the edge of his bat, and Marnus Labuschagne took a simple catch at sl...