Ashes 2015: England lose fifth Test by innings but win series 3-2
| Fifth Ashes Test, Kia Oval, day four: |
| Australia 481: Smith 143 |
| England 149 & 286 (following on): Cook 85, Siddle 4-35 |
| Australia won by an innings and 46 runs |
Australia completed a comprehensive victory in the fifth Test to dampen England's Ashes-winning celebrations at The Oval.
Peter Siddle made the breakthrough when he trapped Mark Wood lbw for six before Jos Buttler chipped Mitchell Marsh to mid-off for 42.
When play resumed in mid-afternoon sunshine Siddle bowled Stuart Broad for 11 and had Moeen Ali caught behind for 35 to finish with 4-35 as England were bowled out for 286.
The defeat will have no bearing on the destination of the Ashes, with England captain Alastair Cook lifting the iconic urn after his team won the series 3-2.
The hosts, underdogs coming into the series, avenged the 5-0 whitewash down under in 2010-11 and have now won all four home Ashes series since 2001.
Australia will take solace from the emphatic manner in which they finished the series, ensuring they sent captain Michael Clarke into retirement on a winning note.
England have won four of the past five Ashes series
Clarke's farewell
Clarke was given a standing ovation by The Oval crowd as he led out his team-mates on the fourth day, with England resuming on 203-6.He announced his retirement after the Ashes were surrendered in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge and will hand over the captaincy to batsman Steve Smith.
When Siddle took the final wicket, Clarke, who captained Australia in 47 of his 115 Tests, was engulfed by his team-mates before he and fellow retiring team-mate Chris Rogers held souvenir stumps aloft and soaked up the crowd's applause.
Clarke then darted across the outfield to acknowledge the travelling Australia fans, signing autographs and posing for pictures.
Story of the series
Australia's resounding win was reflective of a series low on tension but high on drama.England belied their status as pre-series underdogs to win the first Test in Cardiff, before falling to a 405-run thrashing at Lord's.
Then came two extraordinary England victories as Australia handed over the Ashes in a succession of spectacular batting collapses on the seaming wickets of Edgbaston and Trent Bridge.
England will travel to Australia to defend the Ashes in 2017-18.
The Ashes rollercoaster |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venue | Winner | Margin | Duration | |
| 1st Test | Cardiff | England | 169 runs | 4 days |
| 2nd Test | Lord's | Australia | 405 runs | 4 days |
| 3rd Test | Edgbaston | England | 8 wickets | 3 days |
| 4th Test | Trent Bridge | England | Inns & 78 runs | 3 days |
| 5th Test | The Oval | Australia | Inns & 46 runs | 4 days |
Captain's view
England captain Alastair Cook: "It's been an interesting Test match. Credit to Australia for their character to bounce back. You've seen how strong Australia are in this game so to beat them three times is an amazing achievement. The support in the grounds and out of them has been amazing. Thank you!"
Australia captain Michael Clarke, speaking on TMS: "This game sums up the series, both teams have had a rollercoaster ride. The boys did as I asked, it was a test of our character and we came through it. I would have bowled on the first day too, and we showed that if you bowled well on that wicket you can bowl out a team cheaply."
On the relationship between the two sides: "Both teams have played the game with the utmost respect. Once we've finished the presentation, we'll go in and have a drink with the England team. We play hard on the field but afterwards it's just a game of cricket."
Player reaction
Retiring Australia opener Chris Rogers on TMS: "I think we showed that when we play well, we're easily good enough, but we didn't put in enough good performances. We'll look back at this and think 'What if?'
I have massive respect for him and I wish him well.
It was fiercely contested but there wasn't any of the niggle that we've had in previous series. These are the series that you get up for and it's been great to be a part of.
"It's been a weird series and maybe the wickets were influential. For the sake of Test cricket it might have been nice to play on slightly better wickets.
Peter Siddle has been exceptional over the past season and I don't think he's done and dusted - I hope he stays in this side for a while.
It's a time for me to step away and let things move on without me."
England all-rounder Moeen Ali on Sky Sports: "Ashes cricket
is very tough. Australia are one of the best sides in the world, and to
win 3-2 is fantastic. You're absolutely drained at the end but it's well
worth it. We've bowled fantastically throughout and I feel like we've
won it with the ball, but there have been some key partnerships at
crucial moments."
England bowler Stuart Broad: "It's been a funny series. As soon as a team has taken the initiative in a series, the other team hasn't been able to grab it back, and I think that's probably because the teams are quite similar. Trevor Bayliss has been very good - he's been very calm and only speaks when something needs to be said."
Man of The Series England bowler Stuart Broad: "It's been a funny series. As soon as a team has taken the initiative in a series, the other team hasn't been able to grab it back, and I think that's probably because the teams are quite similar. Trevor Bayliss has been very good - he's been very calm and only speaks when something needs to be said."
Man of the series and Compton-Miller Medal winner Joe Root: "Credit has to go to Australia - they've outplayed us in this game in all departments. The guys prepared very well for this Test match we just had a poor couple of hours which really hurt us.
We've got to make sure we learn from that.
"It's been such a team performance in this series - everyone has contributed and it's been great to be a part of such a fantastic team. I love spending time with that group of guys.
You always have a responsibility to score runs, and I'm just going to keep trying to contribute for the team."
Australia's man of the series Chris Rogers: "It's a bit bittersweet that we didn't win the series but it was nice to win this match and to play in Michael's last Test.
I think I've played most in England and Australia so I probably had an advantage. It's been tough, England have bowled exceptionally well , but to stand up a little bit has been something to be proud of.
"I'm a proud Australian but England's been particularly good to me and I owe England a great deal, so it's a fitting end for me to finish here. Playing cricket for a living isn't the toughest life in the world, but to get this late opportunity and to get this experience with the Aussie guys, I'll never forget it."
Coach's view
Australia coach Darren Lehmann on Sky Sports: "Full credit to England - they won the key moments in this series, they outplayed us. We had four of the five top wicket-takers and three of the four top run-scorers, but we didn't win the key moments. It was an unbelievable series.
"I don't think we got the selection too bad - probably the one mistake was at Trent Bridge, picking Shaun Marsh over Mitchell Marsh. We lose one of our greats today, and Chris Rogers, who has been a fantastic player for us.
"Behind the scenes we're all working really hard, but now it's all about picking the right guys for the next couple of years. The one-day side is in transition a bit too, and we'll have to play well - England have rediscovered their confidence in the one-day format."
England coach Trevor Bayliss on TMS: "These guys have got a lot of ability and they played some fantastic cricket. They've got some things to work on, there are some negatives there. It was only two months ago I was at home wishing Australia the best, but I'm very happy to be involved with this group of guys.
"We've got some very good players, there will be some tough timers, but I think there will be more good times than bad. The majority of this team are very young and inexperienced, but if they keep heading in the right direction there are some good time ahead. We seem to have gelled pretty well, they've made me feel extremely welcome and it's a great feeling to get off the mark with a win."
Where next?
The teams will play a one-off Twenty20 international in Cardiff on 31 August and five one-day internationals from 3 September.Both teams are back in action in October, with England heading to the United Arab Emirates to play Pakistan, while Australia travel to Bangladesh.
No comments:
Post a Comment