England captain Andrew Strauss watches Michael Clarke toss the coin at the start of the fifth Test in Sydney, safe in the knowledge that whatever the result, the Ashes are already secure
Australia have two new faces in their side as Michael Beer and Usman Khawaja are given their first chance, with Khawaja set to fill the vital number three role after Clarke wins the toss and chooses to bat
Australia opener Shane Watson takes hurried evasive action as England's Chris Tremlett produces a rapid lifter during an impressive new-ball spell on a pitch offering plenty of seam movement
Watson's partner, Phillip Hughes, is more watchful than in the previous two games but is fortunate when an airy waft at a rare wide delivery just misses the edge of his bat
Melbourne hero Tim Bresnan is again England's first-change option but his opening five overs cost 22 runs as the Aussie openers gradually come to terms with the conditions to post a half-century opening stand
With Australia poised to go through the session without losing a wicket, the impressive Tremlett returns and produces a beauty in the final over before the interval to have Hughes caught at third slip by Paul Collingwood
Newcomer Khawaja is on strike against Tremlett when play resumes and the left-hander announces his arrival in Test cricket by confidently despatching his second ball to the mid-wicket boundary
Umpires Billy Bowden and Aleem Dar take the players off because of bad light but the action resumes after 10 minutes and Australia push their total past 100 with Khawaja continuing to impress
Khawaja's parents look far more nervous than their 24-year-old son as they watch him play his first innings in Test cricket, having replaced injured Ricky Ponting in Australia's side at the SCG
Having left the ball in exemplary fashion for most of his innings, Watson pays the price for pushing at one wide of off stump as Bresnan picks up a second wicket for England
Australia skipper Clarke opens his account with a nervous-looking push for three through the covers before rain arrives to interrupt play, prompting the two teams to take tea early
The weather does not dampen the spirits of England fans, still eager to rub in to their Australian counterparts the fact that the Ashes will not be changing hands irrespective of the match result
Clarke's wretched run of form continues when, after a 90-minute weather hold-up, he flashes at a ball from Bresnan and gives Jimmy Anderson a straightforward catch at gully
England strike again when Khawaja, on 37, loses patience after a promising display and tries to attack Graeme Swann's off-spin at the start of a new spell
The debutant plays fractionally early and only succeeds in skying a catch to square leg where Jonathan Trott makes no mistake in what proves to be the final action of the day as persistent rain sets in
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