The action begins ahead of schedule again, as a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour morning stint to compensate for some of the overs lost on the first day. The players are getting ready to take the field.
Charity and Command on Display
They do things well in Australia. On the first day of this fifth Test came a fitting tribute to the those affected and the emergency services of the Bondi incident, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was turned into a ocean of pink to once again collect money for the McGrath Foundation.
Out in the middle, however, Australian charity was in far more limited availability. Across three sessions their batmen wore down the English attack, addressing any queries about their drive since securing the Ashes and throwing up a few more concerning their beaten opponents.
Faces flush from the ordeal, Ben Stokes and his team trudged off at stumps exhausted and overwhelmed. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the second half of Travis Head’s explosive 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 ominous 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 reckless, nobody seems to want to build an innings, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.
It might work against average opponents but when you get a top-tier team like Australia it's a completely different proposition. I used to score runs at a fair pace, and everyone gets a lot of enjoyment out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball thing it takes the odds away from winning an important Test. I'd like to see them show more restraint.
A Baptism of Fire
Forty-five minutes into a somewhat cloudy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts came into the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began trying out his different deliveries.
His first ball was full and wide and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both back of a length and outside off and slashed over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was short and straight and smashed past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was defended with a show of studious defense, to raucous, sarcastic applause from a crowd that had begun to get involved. Welcome to the treadmill, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
Joining the Pantheon
There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the pinnacle of his batting mastery, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that line is that even when the recipient has reigned supreme for years, it gets bestowed too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players reach the top for a time, no other has stayed as long.
The amalgamation of those phases, though, took 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-heavy career there have been two peaks slowly approaching 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 surpassed on Tuesday.
Preamble: A One-Sided Conclusion
The latest Ashes series, perhaps the most disappointing series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth made history at The Oval, is heading for a suitable finale. Australia are on course to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most one-eyed Pom could argue with.
It's been a victory of maturity, maturity, discipline, talent and Travis Head. His audacious 123 at Perth opened English wounds 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 continue on 129 after making a century that looked certain 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 comprehend. Maybe that's an Anglocentric view. It's not Australia's fault that England failed to turn up – even if, on some level, they probably wanted a greater challenge.
The last rites 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 final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are tired, their confidence broken, their spirit crushed. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
