Ben Stokes-led England beat Australia by 49 runs to win the fifth and final Test of Ashes 2023 on Monday (July 31), at The Oval, London. With this, they managed to end the high-voltage series at a 2-2 stalemate. Pat Cummins & Co. had already gained an unassailable 2-1 lead but had a chance to achieve their first Ashes glory in England since 2001 before Chris Woakes (4 for 50) and Moeen Ali (3 for 76) starred for the home side on the final day.
The day started with Aussie openers David Warner and Usman Khawaja resuming at 135 for no loss, in pursuit of 384. Woakes removed Warner for 60, with a jaffa, before trapping Khawaja for 72. While Marnus Labuschagne started confidently, he went for 13 before Steve Smith (54) – Travis Head (43) combined and played their strokes to take them to lunch without any further damage.
Post the lunch break, rain made its presence felt as proceedings were halted for more than a few hours. Once play resumed, it was all about Moeen’s spin and Woakes’ accuracy. The duo combined to break Head-Smith’s 95-run fourth-wicket stand and Australia soon got reduced to 275 for 7 from 264 for 3. Alex Carey (28) had a lot on his plate to keep the Aussies’ hopes alive before the visitors bundled out for 334.
Rain comes to England’s rescue
The unpredictable English weather saved Australia from a possible hammering in the fourth and penultimate Test in Manchester. While it enabled them to take an unassailable 2-1 lead, this time the weather disrupted their flow twice during their 384-run chase at The Oval. First, it made its presence felt during the second half of Day Four and returned during the final day when Smith-Head had Australia ahead.
Talking about the fifth Test, England were asked to bat first as Australia dismissed them for 283. It could have been anything less than 200 but the visitors weren’t at their best in terms of fielding. Cummins & Co. managed to take a slender 12-run lead, courtesy of their lower-order resistance. England, however, rode on rapid fifties from Zak Crawley, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow to set up a challenging 384-run target.
The Three Lions were made to sweat hard before Woakes-Moeen and, later, Stuart Broad did the job in what became the latter’s final match. The pacer, who ended Ashes 2023 with 22 scalps (second-most), announced retirement after the end of Day Three (on Saturday) to end a remarkable career with 604 scalps (fifth overall).
ASHES CRICKET, YOU BEAUTY!
With a 2-2 scoreline, Ashes 2023 ended in a riveting fashion. Every match had its ups and downs, with four of them seeing a constant shift in momentum. Australia edged past England in the series opener in Edgbaston to win by two wickets and took a 2-0 lead with a 43-run win in the second Test at Lord’s. Ben Stokes’ 155 almost led to a repeat of Headingley 2019 heroics but the hosts fell short in pursuit of 371 at the Home of Cricket.
England rode on comeback duo Woakes and Mark Wood to win another tight contest in the following Test in Headingley, by three wickets, before rain helped Australia in the penultimate tie in Manchester. Stokes & Co. were made to work hard in the series finale before achieving an inspiring win.
The high-voltage series had plenty of moments. Moeen’s Test return, Broad’s dominance over Warner, his eventual retirement announcement (when many thought it would be James Anderson), the Jonny Bairstow dismissal, Mitchell Starc’s controversial catch, three Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) members’ suspension and many more added to the endless drama. For Broad, the cricketing gods were on his side as he smacked a huge six on his last ball and ended with the final two wickets to wrap up an epic series.
Stokes’ unorthodox captaincy was matched by Cummins’ go-slow approach. England entertained with their Bazball approach (starting the series with a first-ball four from Crawley’s willow) whereas Australia stuck to their traditional ways as nothing separated the two heavyweights after five Tests.
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