Australia 1-2 to seal Ashes victory in Perth

Resumes 2.30am Sunday, BT Sport 1

The Waca is staging its final Ashes Test and Australia seem intent on signing off in traditional fashion - with a crushing victory over England.

The Aussies have won the last seven Ashes Tests in Perth and they are 1-2 to make it eight in a row after a relentless day of runscoring against a toothless England attack.

Having been as big as 9-1 in-play on day two, Australia batted England into submission on the third day with Steve Smith (229 not out) and Mitchell Marsh (181 not out) steering them to 549-4 - a 146-run lead.

England, who trail 2-0 in the five-match series, are out to 125-1 to win the Test and the draw is an 8-5 chance.

There will be huge scoreboard pressure on England's batsmen in the second innings - Sky Bet's Australia runs line is 659.5, which would give the hosts a lead in excess of 250.

The firm make Smith 9-4 to score 300 while it's 10-1 that Dawid Malan, who made 140 in the first innings, also reaches 100 the second time around.

England's bowlers look set for more toil on a Waca pitch offering little lateral movement but Australia's extra pace is likely to trouble the visiting batsmen again.

Mitchell Starc is 9-4 to be Australia's top second-innings wicket-taker and that looks worth a bet, especially as the spin of Nathan Lyon is unlikely to be a major factor on this pitch.

At the halfway point of the series, Starc is six clear at the top of the leading wicket-taker chart and his second-innings figures in the first two Tests were 3-51 and 5-88.

He also took a career-best 8-73 in the second innings for New South Wales against South Australia in this season's Sheffield Shield and he was top Aussie bowler in the first innings at the Waca, with Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman and Jonny Bairstow among his four victims.

Recommendation
M Starc top Australia wicket-taker in the second innings
1pt 9-4 Hills

Yesterday's advice to back Steve Smith to pass 145.5 runs was a 5-6 winner.