England take control over Australia at Lord’s

Second Ashes Test, Lord's (day three, stumps): England 425 and 311-6 v Australia 215. England are poised to take a historic win as the first side to beat the Australians at Lord's for 75 years, after a producing an emphatic lead of 521 on the third day of the second Ashes Test yesterday. After bowling out Australia for 215, they held a 210-run lead but opted against enforcing the follow-on - and put the tourists' bowlers to task again.

Despite a cautious session between lunch and tea by Ravi Bopaara and Kevin Pietersen when England added just 73, Matt Prior (pictured) boosted England’s lead with an bruising innings of 61 from only 42 balls. A final Test innings from a sauntering Flintoff saw him add 51 off 48 balls until Siddle took Australia's sixth wicket, catching out Collingwood. Flintoff was left unbeaten on 30 as rain finished play for the day.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:Scyld Berry, the Sunday Telegraph: "Andrew Strauss’s decision not to enforce the follow-on was, on balance, the correct one. There was plenty to be said in favour of making Australia follow on, but the pitch was so docile by noon – and some of England’s bowlers were pretty flat too – that he took the best course of action for a five-match series, where the fire-power of fast bowlers has to be preserved. Only a few of those who thought that Strauss should have enforced the follow-on have played in back-to-back Tests, or Tests without a rest day."

Vic Marks, the Observer: "This was a curious day of Test cricket, in which England emphatically retained the initiative by smashing the ball around Lord's in the final session, when they pillaged 181 runs in 31.2 overs. But they are not yet jumping up and down on the throats of the Australian tourists." ·