It’s another early start today, featuring an extended morning session of two and a half hours to compensate for some of the overs lost on the first day. The cricketers 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 those affected and the emergency services of the Bondi atrocity, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was became a sea of pink to once again raise funds for the McGrath Foundation.
Out in the middle, however, Australian charity was in far scarcer quantity. Across three sessions their batsmen ground England’s bowlers into the dust, dispelling any doubts about their incentive since securing the Ashes and throwing up a few more about their beaten opponents.
Faces flush from the ordeal, Ben Stokes and his team walked off at stumps seeing pink elephants. Steve Smith’s 37th hundred in Tests, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the latter part of Travis Head’s blistering 163 from 166, and with it Australia had reached 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an threatening one.
Veteran's Viewpoint
The renowned 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 construct a knock, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.
It might work against ordinary teams but when you get a quality outfit like Australia it's a whole new challenge. 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 style it lessens the probability of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them pull their hooves in.
A Baptism of Fire
Shortly after the start of a gloomy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts came into the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his variations.
His first ball was wide and hammered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both back of a length and outside off and cut over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was short and straight and smashed past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was negotiated with a show of furrowed caution, to loud, mocking cheers from a crowd that had begun to get involved. 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 pinnacle of his batting skill, when “best since Bradman” was used with confidence. The thing about that description 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 hit their peak for a time, no other has stayed as long.
The amalgamation of those phases, though, took him to a uncommon position on the third day. In the record books of the game there are milestones, then there are summits. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-heavy career there have been two peaks drawing gradually closer in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never scale. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday.
Preamble: A One-Sided Conclusion
The current Ashes battle, arguably the most disappointing series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth made history at The Oval, is heading for a appropriate end. Australia are on course to crush England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a scoreline not even the most one-eyed Pom could dispute.
It's been a victory of maturity, composure, skill, ability and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth opened English wounds that have yet to mend; four Tests later he is happily compounding their misery. Head's surprisingly ruthless 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 weaknesses in their team, have won the series with an ease that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an Pommy outlook. It's not Australia's fault that England were not competitive – even if, on some level, they probably desired a greater challenge.
The last rites will be administered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the last knock of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence shattered, their spirit crushed. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
