It’s another early start today, with a two-and-a-half-hour morning session to compensate for some of the overs lost on the first day. The cricketers are preparing to take the field.
A Sea of Pink and a Display of Dominance
They do things well in Australia. The opening day of this final Test featured a moving homage to the sufferers and heroes of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was transformed into a wave of pink to once again collect money for the McGrath Foundation.
On the field of play, though, Australian generosity was in far shorter supply. Across three sessions their batsmen wore down the English attack, dispelling any doubts about their incentive since securing the Ashes and raising a few more about their beaten opponents.
Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team walked off at stumps exhausted and overwhelmed. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had succeeded the second half of Travis Head’s sizzling 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 daunting one.
Veteran's Viewpoint
The famed Neil Harvey, 97, gave his views in a charming interview.
I've been let down by England. I think the way they handle 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 ordinary teams but when you get a quality outfit like Australia it's a different ballgame. I used to score runs relatively quickly, and everyone gets a lot of enjoyment out of it, but when you try to play this aggressive approach it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.
A Harsh Welcome
Almost an hour into a gloomy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his change-ups.
His first ball was 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 on a good length and driven past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was defended with a show of studious defense, to jeering shouts from a crowd that had begun to tuck into the day. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
Scaling the Ashes Mountain
There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the pinnacle of his batting prowess, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that phrase is that even when the recipient has reigned supreme for years, it gets granted too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career spanning twenty years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has remained there.
The amalgamation of those phases, though, elevated him to a rare 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-centric career there have been two peaks looming ever nearer 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, perhaps the most underwhelming series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is staggering to a suitable finale. Australia are poised to defeat comprehensively England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a scoreline not even the most one-eyed Pom could dispute.
It's been a success of know-how, maturity, application, ability and Travis Head. His daring 123 at Perth opened English wounds that have yet to recover; 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 resume on 129 after making a century that looked certain even before he faced his first ball.
Australia, despite a number of faultlines in their team, have won the series with an simplicity that is hard to comprehend. Maybe that's an English perspective. It's not Australia's fault that England failed to turn up – even if, on some level, they probably desired a greater challenge.
The final act will be administered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a complete blowout when England bat, just as there was in the final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are tired, their confidence shattered, their spirit crushed. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
