England chip away at Australia in crucial Test

England chipped away at Australia's batting on a tense and fluctuating first day of the crucial fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford.

Stuart Broad took two, with the second - Travis Head hooking to long leg - making him only the fifth bowler in Test history to reach 600 wickets.

Chris Woakes was the most consistently dangerous - his 4-52 included a magnificent catch from under-fire wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow to remove Mitchell Marsh.

Though England won the toss, Australia, who only need to draw one of the final two Tests to retain the urn, were presented with ideal batting conditions.

But scores of 51 each from Marsh and Marnus Labuschagne, 48 to Head and 41 by Steve Smith tell a tale of batters doing the hard work but failing to make telling contributions.

Indeed, at 255-7 Australia were in danger of being bowled out inside a day, only for Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc to resist.

As the close drew near, Woakes removed Carey with the second new ball, leaving England with the opportunity to mop up the tail on Thursday morning.

All this against the backdrop of bad weather that is forecast to disrupt the final two days, possibly adding another variable in a series that has already produced three tight finishes.

• Reaction to day one at Old Trafford

Even day at tense Old Trafford

Perhaps because the stakes are so high, this was a nervy occasion, not helped by the tight nature of the cricket. Only after Bairstow's stunning grab in the evening session did the Old Trafford Party Stand find its voice.

England's decision to field first was as much based on necessity as the conditions. With the bad weather due at the weekend, the home side needed to give themselves as much time as possible to take 20 Australian wickets.

When the coin landed in Ben Stokes' favour for the fourth consecutive time, the overheads suggested a favourable time to bowl, but by the time play began the sun was shining and did so for the remainder of the day.

Therefore, on a flat pitch, it could be that Australia did not make the most of the best batting day of the match - certainly the amount of batters who got out after making starts points to a collective lack of ruthlessness.

By the end, little had been determined, neither side able to say with certainty they had grabbed the upper hand.

More to follow.