The debate as to who will bat No.3 for England in the first Ashes Test has been all but been settled with Ollie Pope' s standout performance in the warm-up match against England Lions locking up his familiar spot for Friday's opener in Perth.

Scores of 100 and 90 saw Pope emerge from Lilac Hills in credit, hurdling the challenge put forward by Jacob Bethell , who scored 3 and 70. Named in the England side for the warm-up match while Bethell was carded three for the Lions, Pope was comfortably the best batter on show across both innings. He looked more composed, and authoritative, even if this match was a far cry from the intensity the tourists will experience at the Optus Stadium from November 21.

It effectively ended what has been months of speculation over Pope's place in the sid

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