Ben Stokes' stunning innings revived memories of his heroic match-winning knock at Headingley four years ago, but on a sunny afternoon at Lord's on Sunday, he was unable to finish the job.

The left-hander bludgeoned nine fours and nine sixes in his 155, dragging England from 45/4 to 301/6 in their pursuit of 371 for a victory. Trying to hit Josh Hazlewood for another maximum, however, he skied a catch to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.

Australia's Steve Smith admitted his team's thoughts had turned to Leeds in 2019 when Stokes conjured up an astonishing victory with an innings of 135 not out and a last-wicket partnership of 76 with Jack Leach.

"It was a bit of deja vu for sure," Smith said. "He's an unbelievable player, some of the things he can pull off. The way he went about it, he was pretty much just trying to hit one way. He's a freak."

Smith was more relieved as he was guilty of dropping a chance when Stokes was on 114. "I dropped him so I was glad we got him in the end," Smith said.

"The way he plays, chasing totals, he gets it done. It was just an incredible knock."

Reuters