🔗 Share this article Australia v England – Fifth Ashes Test, Day Four: Live Updates Play gets underway early once more, featuring an extended morning session of two and a half hours to recover some of the overs lost on the first day. The cricketers are preparing to step onto the ground. Charity and Command on Display Australia knows how to host an event. This fifth Test commenced with a moving homage to the victims and first responders of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was became a wave of pink to once again generate donations for the McGrath Foundation. On the field of play, though, Australian generosity was in far scarcer quantity. Across three sessions their batters ground England’s bowlers into the dust, answering any questions about their motivation since securing the Ashes and raising a few more concerning their vanquished foes. Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team departed at stumps exhausted and overwhelmed. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had succeeded the concluding stages of Travis Head’s blistering 163 from 166, and with it Australia had attained 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an daunting one. Veteran's Viewpoint The famed Neil Harvey, 97, shared his thoughts in a delightful interview. I've been let down by England. I think the way they approach the batting side of things, they get too careless, nobody seems to want to play a long innings, 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 at a fair pace, and everyone gets a lot of pleasure out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball style it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them pull their hooves in. A Tough Introduction Shortly after the start of a somewhat cloudy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his different deliveries. His first ball was sprayed down the leg side 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 raucous, sarcastic applause from a crowd that had begun to get involved. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here. Joining the Pantheon There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the height of his batting prowess, 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 bestowed too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has remained there. The blend of those phases, though, elevated him to a exceptional position on the third day. In the annals of the game there are achievements, then there are peaks. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-centric 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 climb. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he ascended on Tuesday. Preamble: A Forgone Conclusion The current Ashes battle, arguably the most disappointing series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is heading for a suitable finale. Australia are poised to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most biased Pom could dispute. It's been a triumph of maturity, discipline, skill, ability and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth hurt England that have yet to recover; four Tests later he is merrily adding to their woes. Head's deceptively pitiless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will resume 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 ease that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an English perspective. 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 total collapse when England bat, just as there was in the concluding effort of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence shot, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
Play gets underway early once more, featuring an extended morning session of two and a half hours to recover some of the overs lost on the first day. The cricketers are preparing to step onto the ground.
Charity and Command on Display Australia knows how to host an event. This fifth Test commenced with a moving homage to the victims and first responders of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was became a wave of pink to once again generate donations for the McGrath Foundation. On the field of play, though, Australian generosity was in far scarcer quantity. Across three sessions their batters ground England’s bowlers into the dust, answering any questions about their motivation since securing the Ashes and raising a few more concerning their vanquished foes. Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team departed at stumps exhausted and overwhelmed. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had succeeded the concluding stages of Travis Head’s blistering 163 from 166, and with it Australia had attained 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an daunting one.
Veteran's Viewpoint The famed Neil Harvey, 97, shared his thoughts in a delightful interview. I've been let down by England. I think the way they approach the batting side of things, they get too careless, nobody seems to want to play a long innings, 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 at a fair pace, and everyone gets a lot of pleasure out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball style it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them pull their hooves in.
A Tough Introduction Shortly after the start of a somewhat cloudy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his different deliveries. His first ball was sprayed down the leg side 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 raucous, sarcastic applause from a crowd that had begun to get involved. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
Joining the Pantheon There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the height of his batting prowess, 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 bestowed too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has remained there. The blend of those phases, though, elevated him to a exceptional position on the third day. In the annals of the game there are achievements, then there are peaks. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-centric 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 climb. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he ascended on Tuesday.
Preamble: A Forgone Conclusion The current Ashes battle, arguably the most disappointing series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is heading for a suitable finale. Australia are poised to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most biased Pom could dispute. It's been a triumph of maturity, discipline, skill, ability and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth hurt England that have yet to recover; four Tests later he is merrily adding to their woes. Head's deceptively pitiless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will resume 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 ease that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an English perspective. 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 total collapse when England bat, just as there was in the concluding effort of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence shot, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.