🔗 Share this article Australia v The Three Lions – The Final Ashes Test, The Fourth Day: Action Unfolds It’s another early start today, as a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour morning stint to make up some of the overs lost on the first day. The players are getting ready to step onto the ground. Pink Tributes and Batting Might Australia knows how to host an event. On the first day of this fifth Test came a fitting tribute to the victims and first responders of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was became a ocean of pink to once again generate donations for the McGrath Foundation. Out in the middle, however, Australian benevolence was in far shorter supply. Across three sessions their batters ground England’s bowlers into the dust, answering any questions about their incentive since securing the Ashes and raising a few more about their defeated rivals. Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team trudged off at stumps battle-weary. Steve Smith’s 37th hundred in Tests, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the concluding stages of Travis Head’s sizzling 163 from 166, and with it Australia had achieved 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an ominous one. Legendary Critique The renowned Neil Harvey, 97, shared his thoughts in a delightful interview. I've been unimpressed with England. I think the way they tackle the batting side of things, they get too reckless, nobody seems to want to construct a knock, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott. It might work against average opponents but when you get a class side like Australia it's a different ballgame. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of enjoyment out of it, but when you try to play this aggressive approach it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in. A Baptism of Fire Forty-five minutes into a quietly overcast morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began running through his change-ups. His first ball was wide and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both short outside off stump and cut over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and smashed past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was blocked with a show of studious defense, to loud, mocking cheers from a crowd that had begun to tuck into the day. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here. A Historic Achievement There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the height of his batting mastery, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that line is that even when the recipient has excelled for years, it gets applied too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has maintained that level. The amalgamation of those phases, though, propelled him into a exceptional position on the third day. In the statistics of the game there are landmarks, then there are peaks. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-heavy career there have been two peaks looming ever nearer in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never conquer. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday. Preamble: A One-Sided Conclusion The current Ashes battle, possibly the most underwhelming series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is staggering to a suitable finale. Australia are poised to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a scoreline not even the most biased Pom could argue with. It's been a triumph of maturity, maturity, application, ability and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth exposed English frailties that have yet to mend; four Tests later he is cheerily grinding salt into them. Head's deceptively pitiless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will start again on 129 after making a century that looked inevitable even before he faced his first ball. Australia, despite a number of flaws in their team, have won the series with an comfort that is hard to understand. Maybe that's an Anglocentric view. It's not Australia's fault that England did not show up – even if, on some level, they probably wanted a greater challenge. The concluding chapter will be conducted either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are weary, their confidence broken, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
It’s another early start today, as a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour morning stint to make up some of the overs lost on the first day. The players are getting ready to step onto the ground.
Pink Tributes and Batting Might Australia knows how to host an event. On the first day of this fifth Test came a fitting tribute to the victims and first responders of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was became a ocean of pink to once again generate donations for the McGrath Foundation. Out in the middle, however, Australian benevolence was in far shorter supply. Across three sessions their batters ground England’s bowlers into the dust, answering any questions about their incentive since securing the Ashes and raising a few more about their defeated rivals. Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team trudged off at stumps battle-weary. Steve Smith’s 37th hundred in Tests, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the concluding stages of Travis Head’s sizzling 163 from 166, and with it Australia had achieved 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an ominous one.
Legendary Critique The renowned Neil Harvey, 97, shared his thoughts in a delightful interview. I've been unimpressed with England. I think the way they tackle the batting side of things, they get too reckless, nobody seems to want to construct a knock, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott. It might work against average opponents but when you get a class side like Australia it's a different ballgame. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of enjoyment out of it, but when you try to play this aggressive approach it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.
A Baptism of Fire Forty-five minutes into a quietly overcast morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began running through his change-ups. His first ball was wide and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both short outside off stump and cut over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and smashed past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was blocked with a show of studious defense, to loud, mocking cheers from a crowd that had begun to tuck into the day. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
A Historic Achievement There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the height of his batting mastery, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that line is that even when the recipient has excelled for years, it gets applied too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has maintained that level. The amalgamation of those phases, though, propelled him into a exceptional position on the third day. In the statistics of the game there are landmarks, then there are peaks. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-heavy career there have been two peaks looming ever nearer in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never conquer. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday.
Preamble: A One-Sided Conclusion The current Ashes battle, possibly the most underwhelming series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is staggering to a suitable finale. Australia are poised to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a scoreline not even the most biased Pom could argue with. It's been a triumph of maturity, maturity, application, ability and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth exposed English frailties that have yet to mend; four Tests later he is cheerily grinding salt into them. Head's deceptively pitiless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will start again on 129 after making a century that looked inevitable even before he faced his first ball. Australia, despite a number of flaws in their team, have won the series with an comfort that is hard to understand. Maybe that's an Anglocentric view. It's not Australia's fault that England did not show up – even if, on some level, they probably wanted a greater challenge. The concluding chapter will be conducted either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are weary, their confidence broken, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.