It’s another early start today, featuring an extended morning session of two and a half hours to compensate for some of the play washed out on the first day. The athletes are making final preparations to step onto the ground.
Pink Tributes and Batting Might
They do things well in Australia. This fifth Test commenced with a moving homage to the those affected and the emergency services of the Bondi tragedy, 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.
Between the wickets, 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 posing a few more regarding their defeated rivals.
Faces flush from the ordeal, Ben Stokes and his team departed at stumps battle-weary. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the latter part of Travis Head’s sizzling 163 from 166, and with it Australia had achieved 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead sat at 134 runs overnight and looked an ominous one.
A Cricketing Icon's Opinion
The famed Neil Harvey, 97, gave his views in a charming interview.
I've been let down by England. I think the way they tackle the batting side of things, they get too careless, nobody seems to want to build an innings, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.
It might work against lesser sides but when you get a quality outfit like Australia it's a whole new challenge. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of pleasure out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball thing it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.
A Baptism of Fire
Almost an hour into a somewhat cloudy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began trying out his variations.
His first ball was full and wide and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both short and wide and hacked over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and pulled past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was negotiated with a show of studious defense, to jeering shouts 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 height of his batting prowess, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that phrase is that even when the recipient has excelled for years, it gets applied too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career enduring for 20 years. Lots of players reach the top for a time, no other has stayed as long.
The combination of those phases, though, elevated him to a uncommon position on the third day. In the annals of the game there are landmarks, then there are mountaintops. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-focused 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 conquer. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook 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 limping towards a fitting conclusion. Australia are on course to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most partisan Pom could argue with.
It's been a victory of know-how, maturity, discipline, skill and Travis Head. His daring 123 at Perth opened English wounds that have yet to heal; four Tests later he is happily compounding their misery. Head's seemingly relentless 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 inevitable 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 Pommy outlook. It's not Australia's fault that England did not show up – even if, on some level, they probably craved a greater challenge.
The last rites will be conducted either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the concluding effort of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence shattered, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
