Wicketless in the first dig, Josh Tongue has two in an over

England lost only the wicket of Ben Duckett in the afternoon session on Day 2 at Lord’s, adding 178 runs in the process. Ollie Pope, resuming his innings on 97, tonned up in the second over of the session with a gentle whip through mid on off Andy McBrine for a run. After an atypically cautious start to the session, England reverted to type with Duckett cutting loose against McBrine, carting the spinner for two fours and an almighty six in one over, which even included a well-executed reverse sweep.

He hit Mark Adair for a couple of boundaries just before raising the century stand of the alliance. Duckett brought up his ton with a flick to mid wicket, his passage to the milestone aided by a fumble. Three balls later, Pope was soaking in the applause having attained his 12th Test fifty. He went from strength to strength, submerging Ireland under a mountain of runs to give England potentially irrevocable control of the four-day game.

England’s declaration came on the heels of Pope’s dismissal, and Josh Tongue compounded Ireland’s worry lines by picking up two wickets in an over. The writing is on the wall for the visitors.