Tinkoff’s Jay McCarthy has taken the overall lead at the Santos Tour Down Under after narrowly beating Lampre’s Diego Ulissi in a sprint to the line in Stirling.

Race favourite Simon Gerrans of Orica-GreenEdge and Sky’s Geraint Thomas were among riders who fell in a crash with around a kilometre remaining of the 132 kilometre stage from Unley.

All those involved remounted, and with the incident happening inside the closing three kilometres, none lost time in accordance with UCI rules.

Tomorrow’s Stage 3 from Glenelg to Campbelltown includes the ascent of Corkscrew Road.