Wicketkeeper Alex Carey's Brilliant Ton Aids Australia Bounce Back After An Early English Test Series Onslaught.

In the wake of that chaos of Perth and Brisbane's pink-ball palooza, an outbreak of familiar style of the longest format was witnessed at the Adelaide ground. For the locals, the day proved one to savour, as their boy the wicketkeeper-batsman produced an outstanding century at his home venue to help Australia edge the opening day.

Not that The touring English side, trailing 2-0 and clinging on in this contest, could be too disappointed. Ben Stokes lost out on what seemed like an ominous toss and, despite being not perfect, his bowlers continued persevering in sweltering heat. By the close of play, the Australians were 326 for eight off 83 overs – a total on the board but surely short of their ambitions when captain Pat Cummins won the choice in the morning.

The Pace of Archer Stands Out For England's Fightback.

The standout for England proved to be Jofra Archer. Figures of three for 29 off his 16 overs were a powerful response against some of criticism that came his way. Here he clearly led the attack, averaging 88mph (142kmh) with the speed gun while providing Stokes both accuracy together with clear menace. Only at the very end of the day – during a single over using the fresh cherry – that he appeared a bit jaded.

Having dismissed opener Jake Weatherald early on, the fast bowler's first over after lunch wiped out Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green in the space of three balls. Green's golden duck was a stark reminder that cricket can bring a player back to reality, coming from weak chip to mid-wicket arriving barely a day after securing a massive £1.5m deal in the Indian Premier League.

Carey's Priceless Contribution Steadies The Ship.

Carey's day, however, was nothing short of priceless, culminating around 4.48pm as he elegantly drove Ben Stokes through cover for three runs and the crowd rose in a huge roar. Fresh from that virtuoso outing behind the stumps at the Gabba, the left-hander's counterattacking 106 runs from 143 balls made sure that a mid-innings stumble of 94/4 did not become a complete collapse. At 34, Carey is a serious cricketer these days.

Australia undoubtedly left a few runs on the field, however. Absent was that excessive bounce from the first two Tests replaced by just a hint of nibble if a good length was hit.

The pitch also offered some grip to off-spinner Will Jacks, even if his consistency was typical of a part-timer – resulting in expensive figures of 2/105 from his 20 overs – and the balls that did to turn sharply will encourage Nathan Lyon.

Emotional Backdrop and Late Team Change.

The day's play was inevitably an emotional occasion for Australia, coming so soon in the wake of a devastating tragic incident at Bondi. The minute’s silence before the first ball was perfectly held, broken only by folk singer John Williams performing a stirring version of True Blue.

By this stage, Australia had also been forced into a change to their stated XI. Steve Smith pulled out due to feeling dizzy along with sickness first thing – an apparent recurrence of the vertigo which has periodically troubled the star batter ever since being felled by Archer at Lord's six years ago.

In came Usman Khawaja, just 24 hours after it was speculated his Test career could be over. Before the wicketkeeper's arrival, the left-hander had held the innings together, walking out at 33 for two before finessing a fine 82 from 126 balls just a day before his 39th birthday. Stands worth 61 runs with Labuschagne and 91 runs with Carey proved crucial.

England's Mixed Bag Continues.

Aside from Archer's efforts, and despite the sapping conditions, it remained still another disappointing day for England’s attack. Brydon Carse rather rolled over his inconsistent form from the first two Tests, picking up figures of 2/70 off 13 overs, and the recalled Josh Tongue picked up one for 63 from 15 overs.

Carse looked erratic when tasked with sharing the duty of the new ball first thing, no-balling five times but still removing Travis Head for 10 thanks to a spectacular catch from Zak Crawley at cover. It rather summed up the day for both teams: moments of brilliance mixed with some error-prone play.