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England's captain Ben Stokes is said to be "worn out" but still "fit and ready" to bowl, per assistant coach Jeetan Patel, even though he abstained from bowling on the day three of a pivotal Ashes Test.

Stokes utilized five other bowlers as the Australian side progressed to 271-4 in their follow-on, establishing a substantial advantage of 356 runs at the venue.

The versatile all-rounder had previously spent over five hours at the crease over two days to compile 83 runs in England's first innings.

A Demanding Knock

During his extended 198-ball innings, the 34-year-old was struck on the head by Mitchell Starc and experienced muscle cramps. He also needed a period off the field on Friday after banging his head on the ground while trying to field the ball.

"He might be a bit tired and just require some time to himself right now," stated Patel.

"From what I understand, he's pretty fit to bowl. I think he's just really exhausted and he's expended a great deal out of himself to reach this point in the match."

Injury History Scrutiny

Given his complicated injury past – Stokes has not been fully available in any of England's previous four series – any suggestion the Durham man might be nursing an issue draws significant attention.

Always keen to be in the heat of battle, Stokes' absence from the attack on Friday was puzzling given it was England's final opportunity to remain alive in the Ashes series.

At 2-0 down and needing to win in Adelaide to keep their hopes of winning back the Ashes alive, England had given up a first-innings lead of 85 runs.

"All I know is he operates at 100%," remarked Patel. "If he thinks he can't do it at 100%, I don't think he's going to do it. That's probably where he's at."

The tourists could have stayed within the match by bowling out Australia for around 240 in their second innings and had slim hopes at certain scorelines, only for the hosts to accelerate away through Travis Head's unbeaten 142.

Even though England bowled 66 overs, Stokes chose not to bowl.

"He abstained from bowling but that's probably a different discussion with him," said ex-New Zealand player Patel.

"I don't actually know. We all know he never performs at 80%. Maybe he thought he was a risk, so he didn't bowl."

Precedent and Pressure

The last time Stokes curtailed his own bowling was on the final day of the drawn fourth Test against India at Old Trafford in July.

He subsequently missed the fifth Test at The Oval with a shoulder problem.

Stokes has a reputation of pushing his body past breaking point, and it was suggested to Patel that the captain felt he might have risked injury if he pushed himself any further in Adelaide.

Facing Imminent Loss

England are on the verge of another loss in Australia, once again probably facing defeat inside the first three Tests of the series.

If the visitors' defeat is sealed on day four, it would mean the destination of the Ashes has been determined in 10 days – the opening two matches were over in short periods respectively.

Not since 1921, when Australia needed only eight days of play to win in England, has the victor of an Ashes series been determined so swiftly.

A Daunting Task Ahead

If a first goal is to extend this match into a fifth day, England will also have to achieve the greatest run-chase at the Adelaide Oval to keep the series alive.

"I still believe there's an chance for us," stated Patel. "It will be difficult, we're going to need something extraordinary. I think it's high time we saw something special from us."

"After three matches, we've thrown some but absorbed many. It's time, now we're backed into a corner, to throw some haymakers."