STONEMAN AND VINCE TAKE LESS THAN TWO SESSIONS TO BEAT 2013/14 RECORD

England's second-wicket partnership in Brisbane was better than any from four years ago

James Vince and Mark Stoneman took less than two sessions of the 2017/18 Ashes to do what no England pair managed whatsoever in the entire 2013/14 series.

The two batsmen came together very early on in Brisbane, following the dismissal of Alastair Cook for just two, but quickly steadied the ship at the Gabba.

Vince passed his previous Test best on the way to being 72 not out at tea, while Stoneman reached 53 before being bowled by a snorting, reverse-swinging delivery from Pat Cummins.

Between them, the pair put on 125 - and in doing so bettered any partnership any English duo managed across the entirety of England's last trip to Australia.

Four years ago, on the ill-fated trip Down Under which ended in a 5-0 whitewash, the best stand for the tourists was the 111 made by Joe Root and Kevin Pietersen for the third wicket in Adelaide.

In that series, Australia managed nine of the 10 100-plus-run partnerships, with the best being the 200 shared between Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin in Adelaide.

On three occasions, wicketkeeper Haddin shared in century stands for the sixth wicket - with Clarke once and twice with Steve Smith - while there were also three-figure stands for first, second, third, fifth and even seventh wicket for the Aussies over the course of that campaign.

No wonder, then, that the home side won so convincingly.

Thanks to Stoneman and Vince, England have the perfect platform to make sure their 2017/18 experience is much, much better than their last.

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