Overview
- Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bat under morning sunshine, with storms forecast later in the day.
- England reached 114 for three at lunch, led by an unbeaten stand from Joe Root on 31 and Harry Brook on 23 after early losses for Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley and Jacob Bethell.
- Australia selected all-rounder Beau Webster for Jhye Richardson and named Todd Murphy 12th man, leaving the hosts without a frontline spinner at the SCG for the first time since 1887–88.
- England brought in seamer Matthew Potts for the injured Gus Atkinson and left out Shoaib Bashir, meaning neither side picked a specialist spinner.
- Heightened security and an on-field tribute honored victims and first responders from the Bondi Beach attack, as the match proceeds with World Test Championship points despite the Ashes already retained by Australia.