Nottingham: England skittled out a shell-shocked Australia for 60 and piled up 274 for four in reply to take control of the fourth Ashes Test on a dramatic first day at Trent Bridge on Thursday.

Australia's first innings was also the shortest in Test history, lasting just 18.3 overs.

A rampant Stuart Broad took eight wickets as the visitors were dismissed before lunch, while Joe Root (124 batting) and Jonny Bairstow (74) batted England into a commanding position at stumps.

The hosts, 2-1 up in the series and without their leading bowler James Anderson, needed only 18.3 overs to run through Australia who collapsed to their joint sixth-lowest Ashes total in just over 90 minutes. The highest runs in the Australian innings came through extras - 14 - while Mitchell Johnson was the second highest with 13. Precisely, extras top-scored for the very first time in an Ashes Test.

Broad struck five times in his first four overs, claiming his 300th Test victim with the third ball of the morning when he had opener Chris Rogers caught at first slip by Alastair Cook for nought. Steven Smith, on six, edged the last ball of the first over to Root in the slips and David Warner, also unable to open his account, nicked his second delivery from Mark Wood to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler, leaving the Australians at 10 for three.

Captain Michael Clarke, who dropped one place down the order to No.5, walked out to face only the ninth delivery of the match. Australia's first innings, on Thursday, saw the earliest fall of the fourth, fifth and sixth wicket in Test history.

Also, it was the first time since the 1999 Test in Kandy versus Sri Lanka that Australia lost both their openers for nought. England, opting to field, struck again when Shaun Marsh edged Broad to Ian Bell at second slip and Adam Voges was brilliantly caught by Ben Stokes at gully as Australia slumped to 21 for five.

Clarke survived 25 minutes for his 10 runs before he drove loosely at a wide ball from Broad and was well caught as Cook leapt high to give Broad his 14th five-wicket haul in Tests.

Steven Finn bowled Peter Nevill for two before the 29-year-old Broad struck again, producing another perfect delivery which Mitchell Starc diverted into the safe hands of Root for one and Mitchell Johnson fell in identical fashion for 13.

Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood added 13 runs for the last wicket before the former edged Broad to Stokes to give the fast bowler Test-best figures of eight for 15.

Heaping praise on Broad, Clarke admitted that Australia need something special over the coming days to keep their chances alive in this Test. "Certainly a tough day for us... Good toss to win, though, for England... Broad's execution was top class.

"I thought Joe Root also played really well. I am extremely disappointed with how the day turned out. We will have to find a way to front up tomorrow. We got out to good balls and poor shots. I don't want to take anything away from Broad. I don't necessarily think it was out aggression that cost out wickets, we good some good balls.

"England left the ball well, but we could have been better... That said, we do need something special over the next four days," Clarke said.