England celebrate the wicket of Jake Doran
England celebrate the wicket of Jake Doran

England on course to beat Cricket Australia XI


England made good inroads towards a first win in Australia for two months as they began chasing down 259 to beat a Cricket Australia XI in their one-day warm-up in Sydney.

Having switched formats following the 4-0 Ashes defeat the tourists reached 88 for two after 16 overs at the Drummoyne Oval, Jonny Bairstow making 36 and Jason Roy following for 40.

Alex Hales, making his first appearance for England since the late night incident in Bristol which led to Ben Stokes' ongoing absence, was eight not out as he looked to press his own case for a place in Sunday's series opener in Melbourne.

Eoin Morgan's tourists turned in a polished performance in the field, with spinners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali taking three for 45 and two for 28 respectively - the latter turning in a controlled display after a punishing Test series.

Paceman Liam Plunkett also picked up two wickets, including CA captain and fellow Middlesbrough native Matt Renshaw, whose mother tutored a young Plunkett in maths.

Seventeen-year-old batsman Mackenzie Harvey caught the eye for the hosts, hitting four sixes in a freewheeling 59, including three off returning paceman Mark Wood.

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