England celebrate after beating Australia 3-2 to recapture the Ashes
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Australia gave captain Michael Clarke and opener Chris Rogers the perfect farewell as they thrashed England by an innings and 46 runs on the fourth day of the fifth Test at The Oval.
However, while retaining the Ashes would have made the occasion a lot more memorable for the Baggy Greens, it was just not to be as England had the last laugh since they regained the Ashes via a 3-2 series scoreline.
Starting out the day on 203/6, England wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler and all-rounder Moeen Ali kept Australia at bay for a while with knocks of 42 and 35 respectively.
Buttler ended up being dismissed by Mitchell Marsh, while Ali was the last man to fall as he was caught behind off the bowling of Peter Siddle.
Even though Australia were unable to complete their mission of taking the Ashes back home with them, they still managed to end the series on a high as they registered an emphatic win.
Siddle ended up being the most successful bowler as he took four wickets, while Marsh and Nathan Lyon snapped up two wickets apiece and Steven Smith and Mitchell Johnson claimed one wicket each.
England captain Alastair Cook was gutted to have ended the series on a low, and said: “It’s been an interesting Test match, probably both sides have been a little bit off in terms of intensity, credit to Australia and their character to bounce back. You see how strong Australia were here, so to have beaten them three times – we played some really good cricket at times, the crowds have been absolutely amazing, so thanks to everyone.
“I knew this was a talented group of players, I think being huge underdogs at the start helped us, it allowed us to go and play with freedom. It’s an amazing achievement to beat this Australia side, so it has to rank right up there. It’s been strange at times, two-day Test matches, but very pleasing. [Young team?] Learning the hard game of test cricket as young players, it’s good for the future. It’s exciting, there’ll be tough times but look forward to grabbing those moments in the future.”
Clarke was thrilled to have led Australia to victory in his final Test, and said: “After the last Test, this couldn’t have gone any better, the hard work the guys have put in. Credit to Alastair and his team, they’ve deserved the win but we’re glad to have come out in this match and put in a performance. We’re disappointed with how the series went but we came out and showed some of our best. [Crowd response] They used to boo me but I haven’t been scoring any runs…The fans are such a great part of playing this game. Probably my favourite tour was in 2005, it introduced me to how tough it is.
“I’ve had a wonderful time touring here, hopefully I can now come back and have a holiday. I came into a great Australian team, my first 20 or 30 Test match, those guys mentored me and hopefully I’ve managed to pass some of that on. Enjoy every single moment, I’m blessed to have played for Australia as much as I have, it’s an honour to captain your country. But this isn’t my stage, congratulations to Alastair and the England team.”
Smith was named Man of the Match, and said: “Yeah, it was [tough batting], coming into this game there was a lot to play for for us, Michael in his last Test. Great to get some runs and the bowlers backed it up as well. Always going to be tough, there were a couple of wickets that were a bit spicy and it was quite hard work. I like batting in London, it suits me good.
“It’s been disappointing but credit to England, they played some really good cricket throughout this series. Michael’s been a great captain to play under these last two years and I’ve certainly leaned a lot off him. As Test players we judge ourselves most on Ashes series, we’ve got a lot of cricket to play before then, a few new players to come in.”
Rogers was named Australia’s Man of the Series, and said: “Yeah, I’ve never been up here so it’s pretty special. It’s nice to win this last Test and be a part of Michael’s last Test as well. Well, I think I’ve played most in England and Australia so I probably had that advantage. My first series back in 2013 was tough, the wickets have been tricky at times, so it’s something to be proud of. I’m a proud Australian but it’s fitting I get to finish up over here, England’s been particularly good to me and I’ve had a lot of support, so thank you very much. Playing cricket for a living isn’t the toughest life, I’ve always enjoyed it and getting this late opportunity, I’ve just tried to make the most of it. Thanks to the Aussie guys for making me feel so welcome.”
Joe Root was named England’s Man of the Series, and said: “Yeah, credit to Australia, they outplayed us in this game, we’ve got to take that on the chin but we can celebrate now. I think the guys prepared well for this Test match, we had a poor couple of hours a couple of days ago. Australia being the good side they are didn’t let us back in the game. [Importance of hundreds] Credit to the whole squad, it’s been a team performance and it’s been great to be part of. Tonight will be hard to beat, all of it’s been great, I love spending time with the guys and hope for more good times going forward. [No1 batsman] I think I need to score more runs than I did in this match, that comes with playing for England and playing international cricket. I’ll just keep doing what I’ve done and try to improve.”