Australia captain Michael Clarke made 187, his highest Test score against England, as the tourists maintained their grip on the third Ashes match at Manchester's Old Trafford ground on Friday. At tea on the second day, Australia, who won the toss, were 507 for seven in a match they had to win to stand any chance of regaining the Ashes after falling 2-0 behind in the five-match series.
Brad Haddin, dropped on 10, was 57 not out and Mitchell Starc 54 not out as Australia continued to pile on the runs even after Clarke was out. Australia came into this match on the back of six straight Test defeats - their worst run of results since 1984. Clarke, rather like Allan Border at the start of the Australia great's captaincy career in the mid-1980s, has spent much of his time in charge knowing that if he doesn't make a major score, few of his top-order colleagues are likely to do just that. Yet this was his 10th century in 27 Tests as captain, with his average as skipper of 65.15 well above his career mark of 52.52.
England's attack was led by Graeme Swann, the off-spinner's figures of five for 149 in 41 overs representing the 17th time in 55 Tests he'd taken five or more wickets in an innings. Meanwhile, paceman Stuart Broad took his 200th Test wicket as England finally saw the back of Clarke. But perhaps the most remarkable figures of all belonged to England spearhead James Anderson, still wicketless on his Lancashire home ground, with a return of nought for 116 in 33 overs.
Australia resumed on yet another sunny day well-placed on 303 for three with Clarke 125 not out, after scoring the tourists' first century of the series, and Steven Smith 70 not out. Clarke, on 136, drove uppishly off Tim Bresnan only for Swann, very close in at short extra-cover, to parry the fast-travelling chance above his head. A single then saw Clarke surpass his previous highest Test score against England of 136 at Lord's in 2009.
But a stand eventually worth 214 ended when Smith top-edged a slog off Swann's sixth ball Friday and holed out on 89 to Jonny Bairstow at midwicket, leaving Australia 343 for four. Smith batted nearly five hours and faced 196 balls with eight fours. His departure brought in left-hander David Warner, booed by large sections of the capacity crowd having missed the first two Tests of this series after being banned for punching England's Joe Root in a Birmingham bar in June.
But there was applause when Clarke struck three fours in as many balls off Bresnan. The first, a late cut, saw him to 150. The next was commandingly driven on the up and through mid-on before Clarke dispatched Bresnan through extra-cover. Warner, however, fell for five when an edge off Swann deflected via wicketkeeper Matt Prior's thigh to Jonathan Trott at slip. Despite the clear nick, Warner reviewed the decision but, with replays leaving no room for doubt, he walked off to yet more jeers.
Haddin was then reprieved when he under-edged a pull off Anderson only for opposing keeper Prior to drop the left-handed chance. Clarke's more than seven-hour innings eventually ended when, cramped for room, he tried to steer Broad down to third man only to play on. In total, he faced 314 balls with 23 fours. Soon afterwards Peter Siddle was bowled by Swann. But Haddin, with a 74-ball fifty and left-hander Starc, playing shots worthy of a top-order batsman in a half century compiled in just 53 balls with nine fours, saw Australia past 500.

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Australia 1st Innings (overnight: 303-3)
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S. Watson c Cook b Bresnan                 19
C. Rogers lbw b Swann                      84
U. Khawaja c Prior b Swann                  1
M. Clarke b Broad                         187
S. Smith c Bairstow b Swann                89
D. Warner c Trott b Swann                   5
B. Haddin not out                          65
P. Siddle b Swann                           1
M. Starc not out                           66
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Extras: (lb6, w2, nb2)                     10
Total: (7 wkts dec, 146 overs, 648 mins)  527
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Fall of wickets: 1-76 (Watson), 2-82 (Khawaja), 3-129 (Rogers), 4-343 (Smith), 5-365 (Warner), 6-427 (Clarke), 7-430 (Siddle)
Did not bat: R Harris, N Lyon
Bowling: Anderson 33-6-116-0 (1nb); Broad 33-6-108-1; Bresnan 32-6-114-1 (1nb, 2w); Swann 43-2-159-5; Root 4-0-18-0; Trott 1-0-6-0;

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England 1st Innings
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A. Cook not out                            36
J. Root c Haddin b Siddle                   8
T. Bresnan c Haddin b Siddle                1
J. Trott not out                            2
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Extras: (lb4, nb1)                          5
Total: (2 wkts, 30 overs, 127 mins)        52
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Fall of wickets: 1-47 (Root), 2-49 (Bresnan)
To bat: K Pietersen, I Bell, J Bairstow, M Prior, S Broad, G Swann, J Anderson
Bowling: Harris 5-1-12-0; Starc 5-2-8-0 (1nb); Lyon 10-4-21-0; Watson 5-5-0-0; Siddle 5-1-7-2;
Toss: Australia
Umpires: Marais Erasmus (RSA), Tony Hill (NZL)
TV umpire: Kumar Dharmasena (SRI)
Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SRI).
Latest score
England were 52 for two in reply to Australia's first innings 527 for seven declared, a deficit of 475 runs, at stumps on the second day of the third Test at Old Trafford on Friday. England captain Alastair Cook was 36 not out and Jonathan Trott two not out.