LONDON — If the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston was a slow-burn thriller, the opening of the second at Lord’s was a firecracker tossed into a petrol station. In just four overs of pure, unadulterated chaos, England’s top order was left in tatters at 5 for 2, with the wrecking ball once again being the left arm of Australia’s Mitchell Starc. It was a start that defied belief, a whirlwind of edges, near-misses, and raw pace that left the home crowd in stunned silence and set a tone of relentless drama for the day.
The Perfect Storm at the Home of Cricket
England, having lost a nail-biter in Birmingham, chose to bat first under overcast skies at Lord’s, a decision that immediately came under the microscope. The conditions were tailor-made for swing, and in Mitchell Starc—recalled after being controversially omitted at Edgbaston—and the metronomic Josh Hazlewood, Australia possessed the perfect attack to exploit them. The stage was set for a classic, tense opening session. What unfolded was anything but a cautious probe; it was a full-blown assault that nearly decided the match in its first twenty minutes.
Four Overs of Mayhem: A Ball-by-Ball Catastrophe
The carnage began from the very first ball. Starc, charging in from the Nursery End, found vicious shape back into the right-handed Ben Duckett. The second ball was even more devastating—a full, swinging delivery that Duckett could only edge to a gleeful Steve Smith at second slip. England were 0 for 1 after two balls, the Lord’s Long Room still settling into its seats.
The chaos was only beginning. The very next ball, to new batsman Ollie Pope, was a carbon copy—full, fast, and shaping away. Pope flirted with it, the ball flying between second and fourth slip where Cameron Green, with a stunning one-handed leap to his right, pulled off a catch that will be replayed for generations. From 0 for 0 to 0 for 2 in three balls. The disbelief was palpable. As commentator and former England captain Michael Atherton exclaimed, "That is an absolute blinder! England in disarray at the very start!"
Somehow, Joe Root survived the hat-trick ball, but the reprieve was brief. In Starc’s next over, the fourth of the innings, Root himself fell victim. Chasing a wide one that he might have left alone on another day, Root feathered another edge through to Alex Carey. England were 5 for 3, or so everyone thought. In a moment that compounded the madness, Starc had overstepped. A deafening no-ball call saved Root, a lifeline in a sea of sinking English hopes.
The sequence of events in those 24 balls was almost incomprehensible:
- Ball 0.1: Starc beats Duckett’s inside edge.
- Ball 0.2: Duckett caught Smith, bowled Starc. England 0/1.
- Ball 0.3: Pope caught Green, bowled Starc. England 0/2.
- Ball 2.4: Root caught Carey, bowled Starc – but it’s a NO-BALL.
- Ball 3.5: A huge LBW shout against Root from Hazlewood, turned down and Australia burn a review.
The Man of the Moment: Mitchell Starc
The architect of this mayhem was unequivocally Mitchell Starc. His recall was a statement of intent from Pat Cummins’ Australia—a shift from the controlled patience of Scott Boland to the explosive, wicket-taking threat of Starc’s full, swinging deliveries. His figures of 2 for 8 from those first four overs barely told the story; he could easily have had four. The spell was a masterclass in aggressive new-ball bowling, exploiting the conditions and the pressure of the occasion to its fullest. It was a vindication of his inclusion and a reminder of his unique ability to shatter innings before they begin.
A Turning Point That Wasn't?
The no-ball that saved Joe Root loomed as a potentially series-defining moment. Had Root departed, England would have been 5 for 3 with their two most experienced batters back in the pavilion and the fiery Harry Brook walking to the crease. The psychological blow might have been insurmountable. As Australian coach Andrew McDonald later reflected, "You take those opportunities when they come. We created enough in that period to have them four or five down, which would have been an ideal start."
Yet, the drama of those overs had a dual effect. While it crippled England’s scoreboard, it also seemed to galvanize their resolve. The reprieve for Root, and his subsequent partnership with the pugnacious Brook, shifted momentum. England, true to their ‘Bazball’ ethos, decided counter-attack was the only form of defence. The scoreboard began to tick over at a frightening rate, the chaos of the first four overs transforming into a different kind of chaos entirely.
Aftermath and the Long Shadow
While England would recover through centuries from Root and Brook, the shadow of those first four overs never truly left the day’s play. It had imposed a scoreboard pressure that forced England’s aggressive hand, perhaps contributing to later dismissals. More importantly, it stamped Australian authority on the match from the outset, a psychological foothold in a game they desperately wanted to win to take a 2-0 series lead. The session was a microcosm of the modern Ashes: unrelenting, skill-filled, and played on a knife-edge of emotion and error.
In the end, the “four overs of chaos” did not decide the match in that single burst, but they defined its character. They served as a brutal reminder of the fine margins at the sport’s highest level—a missed edge, a millimetre overstep, a flying catch taken. For England, it was a nightmare start narrowly averted. For Australia and Mitchell Starc, it was a statement of ferocious intent, a burst of cricketing violence that ensured the 2023 Ashes, once again, would be remembered for its unforgettable, heart-stopping drama.