Wicketkeeper Alex Carey's Brilliant Century Helps The Baggy Greens Recover After An Early English Ashes Onslaught.

After the frenzy from Perth and Brisbane's pink-ball palooza, an outbreak of familiar style regarding the longest format was witnessed on the turf of the Adelaide ground. For the home crowd, the day proved a day to enjoy, with their boy Alex Carey notched up a sparkling century at his home ground to help the home side edge the first day's play.

Not that The touring English side, trailing 2-0 and clinging on in the contest, were entirely disheartened. Ben Stokes lost out on what seemed like an ominous toss and, despite being not at their best, his bowlers continued plugging away under sweltering heat. By the close of play, Australia were 326-8 off 83 overs – runs on the board but surely below their ambitions when Pat Cummins got the toss first thing.

The Pace of Archer Leads The Tourist's Fightback.

The most impressive performer among the tourists proved to be speedster Jofra Archer. Figures of three for 29 from 16 overs were a strong riposte against the criticism directed at him his way. On this day he visibly spearheaded the bowling unit, averaging 88mph (142kmh) with the speedometer while providing his captain a combination of control together with obvious menace. Only at the very end of play – during a single over using the second new ball – that he appeared somewhat weary.

Having bounced out opener Jake Weatherald early on, the fast bowler's initial over post-lunch accounted for Marnus Labuschagne followed by Cameron Green in the space of three balls. Green's golden duck was a reminder of how cricket can swiftly bring even a celebrated player back down to earth, coming from weak chip to mid-wicket occurring less than a day after securing a record £1.5m deal in the Indian Premier League.

The Keeper's Invaluable Innings Steadies The Ship.

Carey's performance, in contrast, was nothing short of invaluable, peaking at late afternoon when he elegantly drove Ben Stokes through the covers for three runs which prompted the crowd rose in a huge roar. Coming off his virtuoso display with the gloves in Brisbane, his counterattacking 106 runs from 143 balls ensured that the mid-innings stumble to 94 for four failed to develop into a complete crisis. The 34-year-old is a serious cricketer these days.

Australia did leave some runs on the field, though. Gone was that pronounced pace and bounce of the first two Tests replaced by just a hint of nibble if a good length was located.

The pitch also offered a bit of grip for Will Jacks, although his control was that of a part-timer – resulting in figures of two for 105 off 20 overs – and the balls that did to turn sharply will give hope to Australia's own spinner, Nathan Lyon.

Solemn Context with A Late Switch.

The day's play was inevitably an emotional day for the host nation, arriving so shortly in the wake of a devastating terrorist attack in Bondi. The minute’s silence observed before the start of play was perfectly observed, broken only by musician a rendition performing an emotional version of the anthem True Blue.

By this stage, the hosts were also forced into a change to their announced starting eleven. Steve Smith was withdrawn due to dizziness and nausea in the morning – an apparent recurrence of the vertigo that has intermittently affected him since he was struck by a Jofra Archer bouncer at Lord’s years back.

His place was taken by Usman Khawaja, just 24 hours after many felt his Test career may be finished. Until Carey's arrival, Khawaja had expertly held the Australian innings together, coming to the crease with the score on 33/2 before finessing 82 from 126 balls just a day from turning 39. Partnerships worth 61 runs with Labuschagne plus another of 91 runs with Carey proved significant.

The Tourist's Frustration Persists.

Aside from Archer's efforts, and notwithstanding the energy-sapping conditions, it remained yet another frustrating day from England’s attack. Brydon Carse rather rolled over his inconsistent form of the series, picking up figures of 2/70 off his 13 overs, while the incoming Josh Tongue picked up one for 63 in 15 overs.

Carse was erratic when tasked with sharing the new cherry first thing, no-balling on five occasions but still removing Travis Head for just 10 runs courtesy of a sublime one-handed catch from Zak Crawley in the covers. It rather encapsulated the day for both teams: moments of brilliance mixed with periods of sloppy play.