Australia v England - Series Summary

AUSTRALIA WON THE SERIES 2-1
England started and finished the tour in spirited fashion, but a disastrous slump in form in the middle part ultimately cost them the Ashes, and in four ATG series against Australia England are still to get their hands on the urn. Injuries took a tough toll on Hutton's squad, with Fred Trueman's ankle problems severely compromising the attack after he had bowled so well in the first Test, and Hutton himself missed the final game amid mounting speculation that he will step down from the captaincy some time before England's next series.

Ted Dexter - who captained the side in Hutton's absence - batted well in his first series, and both Cowdrey and Botham were in the best form of their ATG careers, their partnerships in Melbourne and Sydney likely to live long in the memory. There was little other support with the bat though, and with Trueman injured there was simply not enough penetration with the ball; Underwood was consistent but rarely threatening, and the fact that England's bowlers could take only nine wickets between them in Perth and Adelaide went a long way to consigning the tourists to defeat in both those matches and the series as a whole.

For Australia, everything revolved around Bill Woodfull, who occupied the crease for more than thirty five hours during the course of series, blunting England's pace attack and setting the stage for Bradman who, like Woodfull, averaged in the nineties and batted for over twenty four hours himself. Steve Waugh also scored heavily in what was a breakthrough series for him, and Ian Healy's batting down the order was a persistent thorn in England's side. The hosts' bowling attack lost its potency as the series progressed, but the decisive damage had been done in the early stages, and Richie Benaud's team did enough over the course of the five Tests to reclaim second spot in the rankings, whilst England plummeted to fifth, their lowest ever position.

Test averages
(click to enlarge)

Full tour averages
(click to enlarge)

Players of the Series: WM Woodfull & IT Botham

Australia v England - Fifth Test

Sydney Cricket Ground

Australia: WM Woodfull, WM Lawry, DG Bradman, AR Border, SR Waugh, KR Miller, +IA Healy, *R Benaud, AK Davidson, RR Lindwall, DK Lillee.
England: JB Hobbs, AJ Stewart, *ER Dexter, DI Gower, MC Cowdrey, IT Botham, +LEG Ames, JC Laker, JA Snow, DL Underwood, AV Bedser.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: DM Archer (WI) & BL Aldridge (NZL)
Toss: Australia

Amid all the speculation that this could well be Len Hutton's final Test as England captain, there was a great sense of anti-climax when it was announced shortly before the game that he would be absent due to a bad back. Ted Dexter took over the reins in what many saw as a possible trial run for the permanent role, and although his incorrect call allowed returning home skipper Richie Benaud to win Australia's first toss of the series, from that point on things went very well for England's new leader.

England's new captain...at least for now

Australia batted very poorly on the first day, perhaps suffering from a post Ashes victory hangover, and by the midway point of a wet second morning they had been bowled out for 230, their lowest total of the series. All England's bowlers took wickets, and it took a relatively enterprising stand of 83 for the sixth wicket between Border (49) and Healy (40) to drag Australia's score to something approaching respectability.

Hobbs and Stewart were both dismissed before the fifty was up in England's reply, but Dexter and Gower then put on 121 for the third wicket in very good time. Dexter was eventually went for 69 then, after a rain break had disrupted play on the second evening, Gower was brilliantly caught by Healy off the bowling of Lindwall for 78, the Australian keeper reacting very smartly to grab the ball on the rebound from Benaud at first slip. Bad light ended day two with England's total on 215-4, but on day three we were treated to an incredible repetition of Cowdrey and Botham's Melbourne heroics.

Ian Botham has been in top
form with the bat on this tour

Both partners hit their stride from the off, and after adding 104 in the morning session the runs continued to flow in the afternoon as Botham launched a furious assault on the second new ball. Lillee and Lindwall were bludgeoned for sixes in consecutive overs as Botham brought up his second consecutive hundred, and Cowdrey joined him in three figures as the pair exactly matched their partnership of 210 in Melbourne before Botham finally played on against Davidson for 112. Cowdrey slowed down somewhat after Botham's dismissal, but with the tail all chipping in he managed to extend his innings to an undefeated 181, comfortably his highest ever score, and England's lead was up to 317 when they were eventually bowled out for 547 on the fourth morning.

Australia have let leads slip in the final Test of the last two Ashes series and they were now in danger of doing so again, but Lawry contributed 43 to an opening stand of 67 with Woodfull, and then Bradman took over as the hosts cruised to an untroubled 198-1 at the end of day four. A determined Bradman completed his century on the final morning, and although Underwood trapped him lbw soon after, Australia were now on 238-2 and seemed relatively safe. Woodfull fell to Laker for 68 in the very next over though, and England sensed that they were back in with a chance as wickets continued to fall in the afternoon session.

Bradman's second century of the series
held England up in their quest for victory

With the pitch now offering some turn, Australia stuttered to 364-7 by tea, but aided by a rain delay of 36 minutes and some very stubborn batting from Benaud, they had extended their total to 380 by the time Underwood claimed the final wicket, his sixth of the innings. England now had six overs to score 64 for a series-levelling victory and Botham opened with Stewart in a show of attacking intent, but precise bowling from Lillee and Lindwall, backed by a very defensive field set by Benaud, stifled England's hopes. They managed just 27 for the loss of two wickets, and the draw meant that Australia took the series along with the Ashes. England can have cause to be pleased with the spirit they showed in the last two Tests, but in reality it was a case of too little, too late, and they had paid the price for a pair of shocking performances in Perth and Adelaide that effectively surrendered the series to Australia.

Score Summary
AUS 1st Inns 230 (Border 49, Healy 40)
ENG 1st Inns 547 (Cowdrey 181*, Botham 112, Gower 78, Dexter 69)
AUS 2nd Inns 380 (Bradman 120, Woodfull 68, Border 53, Lawry 43; Underwood 6-85)
ENG 2nd Inns 27-2

MATCH DRAWN

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of play
Day 1 - Australia 1st innings 228-9 (Lindwall 18*, Lillee 10*; 90 ov)
Day 2 - England 1st innings 215-4 (Cowdrey 23*, Botham 2*; 59.2 ov)
Day 3 - England 1st innings 481-7 (Cowdrey 148*, Snow 2*; 139 ov)
Day 4 - Australia 2nd innings 198-1 (Woodfull 61*, Bradman 86*; 63 ov)
Day 5 - England 2nd innings 27-2 (6 ov) - end of match

Notes
▪ Cowdrey and Lawry passed 2000 career runs
▪ Gower passed 1000 career runs
▪ Cowdrey and Botham equalled their Ashes record partnership of 210 for the fifth wicket, set in the previous Test
▪ England's total of 547 is their highest in Ashes Tests
▪ Bedser made his 50th appearance for England
▪ England's series loss is their first ever overseas

Man of the Match: MC Cowdrey

Australia v England - Tour Match

New South Wales XI v England XI
Sydney Cricket Ground
4 Day Game
Umpires: LP Rowan & TF Brooks
Toss: New South Wales XI

NSW XI: SG Barnes, MJ Slater, CG Macartney, ME Waugh, NC O'Neill, KD Walters, +WAS Oldfield, *GF Lawson, CTB Turner, FR Spofforth, GD McGrath.
ENG XI: JB Hobbs, *L Hutton, ER Dexter, DI Gower, MC Cowdrey, TE Bailey, +LEG Ames, JC Laker, DL Underwood, AV Bedser, RGD Willis.

With rumours circulating that Len Hutton would stand down as captain at the end of the tour, England put in a very good all-round display to defeat a strong New South Wales XI in their last state match of the trip. The home team got off to an excellent start on the first day after Geoff Lawson chose to bat upon winning the toss, but after 91 from Barnes had led them to a promising 179-2 shortly before tea, Bedser and Laker then sparked a collapse that put the innings into terminal decline. Lawson and Turner dug their heels in, but New South Wales were all out for a disappointing 254 on the second morning as England reaped the rewards of bowling full and straight; indeed, they procured more lbw decisions in this one innings (four) than they have in the entire Test series up to this point (three).

Sid Barnes' 91 on the first day would turn
out to be the highest score of the match

A solid performance from England's middle order saw the tourists coast into the lead, a suitably lordly 85 from Dexter being the standout performance. With Botham rested, Bailey then worked the ball around well with the tail, and an eventual total of 343 gave England a handy advantage of 89 runs when the innings ended shortly before tea on day three. The New South Welshmen had not bowled well, with Glenn McGrath's introduction to the ATG world a particular disappointment, and in the second innings their batsmen fared little better as England closed in on the win.

The hosts stumbled to a precarious 81-4 overnight, and some excellent bowling from Bailey on a hot and humid fourth morning hurried them out for 141, setting England a target of just 53 runs for the win. Hobbs and Hutton took their time getting the runs, but they saw England across the line before tea, and all thoughts can now turn to the final Test. The Ashes may be gone but the series can still be saved, and if the Sydney Test is indeed going to be Hutton's final game in charge, then both he and the team will be fighting hard to ensure that a troubled tour at least ends on a winning note.

Is time about to be called on
Len Hutton's captaincy career?

Score Summary
NSW XI 1st Inns 254 (Barnes 91, Waugh 53)
ENG XI 1st Inns 343 (Dexter 85, Bailey 68*, Gower 54, Cowdrey 41)
NSW XI 2nd Inns 141 (O'Neill 43; Bailey 4-19)
ENG XI 2nd Inns 53-0

ENGLAND XI WON BY 10 WICKETS


1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of Play

Day 1 - New South Wales XI 1st innings 226-7 (Lawson 5*, Turner 9*; 90 ov)
Day 2 - England XI 1st innings 216-4 (Cowdrey 34*, Bailey 5*; 66 ov)
Day 3 - New South Wales XI 2nd innings 81-4 (O'Neill 18*, Walters 3*; 32 ov)
Day 4 - England XI 2nd innings 53-0 (25.4 ov) - end of match

Australia v England - Fourth Test

Melbourne Cricket Ground

Australia: WM Woodfull, WM Lawry, DG Bradman, *AR Border, SR Waugh, KR Miller, +IA Healy, AK Davidson, RR Lindwall, DK Lillee, WJ O'Reilly.
England: JB Hobbs, *L Hutton, ER Dexter, DI Gower, MC Cowdrey, IT Botham, +LEG Ames, FS Trueman, JA Snow, DL Underwood, AV Bedser.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: Khizer Hayat (PAK) & CJ Mitchley (SAF)
Toss: England

England made four changes following the third Test debacle, whilst Australia were forced into their first change of the series, skipper Richie Benaud having to sit out after severely bruising his right thumb in the nets. Border took over as skipper but couldn't halt Hutton's run of success at the toss, and Hutton took the gamble of inserting the Australians on a mottled patchwork of a strip at the MCG.

However, it soon became evident that there were actually very few demons in the pitch, and Woodfull and Lawry posted their second consecutive century opening stand, extending it to 173 as Woodfull notched a wonderfully fluent 137. Bradman perished two short of his century after he inexplicably shouldered arms to ball from Snow which cut back, and Australia's total went past the 400 mark during a soporific second afternoon that brought just 39 runs for the loss of three wickets. Underwood and Bedser both bowled tightly, but Australia's approach, and Waugh's in particular, curried little favour with the crowd. Whether Waugh was batting under orders was unclear, but he opened up after tea, adding 74 for the ninth wicket with Lillee before Australia's innings ended on 480, with Waugh left undefeated on 91.

Waugh's go-slow frustrated England on the second afternoon

England now needed to force the pace, and the first half of day three saw a steady flow of both runs and wickets. Gower batted beautifully to post his first fifty of the series, but after Miller ran him out for 62 following a dreadful mix-up with Cowdrey, the scoreboard read 173-4 and the innings could very easily have slipped into free fall. Cometh the hour cometh the man though, and following his 92 against Victoria here, Ian Botham took the game by the scruff of its neck in an incredible evening session. Botham threw the bat with abandon, and he and Cowdrey - who had been dropped by Lindwall off O'Reilly before he had scored - piled on 210 runs, an Ashes record for the fifth wicket, before Cowdrey played on to Davidson for exactly 100 in the day's last over. Botham remained undefeated on 117 out of England's 383-5, just his second ATG century in 46 Tests, and there was more to follow on a weather shortened fourth day as England managed to secure a vital first innings lead.

Of the lower order only Trueman, with 27, made any significant contribution, but there was time enough for Botham to turn his innings into one that will be remembered for many a year, and he eventually finished undefeated just two runs short of what would have been a most deserved double century as England's total of 517 gave them a 37 run advantage on the fourth evening. Snow then managed to prise both Lawry and, crucially, Bradman from the crease in a superb opening burst, and at 2-2 Australia were in distinct trouble. Bad light brought the fourth day to a premature close, and a nail biting last day saw England strive to beat both Australia and the weather in their quest to stay in the Ashes hunt.

Botham's innings was truly one for the ages

Rain frustrated England in the morning, but an inspired spell from Bedser in the afternoon reduced Australia to 126-7 at tea, and it was now down to the tail to defy the English attack. Botham had Healy caught at slip to make the score 140-8, and with a possible 27 overs remaining Australia's lead was a fragile 103 as Dennis Lillee joined Lindwall at the crease. England needed to take the last two wickets quickly, but in the same Fred Trueman over Ames and Hutton failed to hold on to difficult chances offered by Lillee and Lindwall respectively, and the Ashes had slipped through English fingers along with the ball. Australia's ninth wicket pair held on for almost two hours, and Hutton's first Test wicket, gained when he bowled Lindwall for a match-saving 40, was scant consolation for England's despondent skipper. One over later time was called, and the draw secured Australia's Ashes defence with one Test still to play. It had been a valiant effort by England, but time was against them in the end, and the final Test of an Ashes series will once again serve as a victory party for the Australians.

Score Summary
AUS 1st Inns 480 (Woodfull 137, Bradman 98, Waugh 91*, Lawry 62)
ENG 1st Inns 517 (Botham 198*, Cowdrey 100, Gower 62, Dexter 44)
AUS 2nd Inns 203-9 (Lindwall 40; Bedser 4-37)

MATCH DRAWN

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of play

Day 1 - Australia 1st innings 278-2 (Bradman 66*, Border 8*; 90 ov)
Day 2 - England 1st innings 33-0 (Hobbs 8*, Hutton 23*; 11 ov)
Day 3 - England 1st innings 383-5 (Botham 117*, Underwood 0*; 101 ov)
Day 4 - Australia 2nd innings 25-2 (Woodfull 7*, Border 15*; 11.4 ov)
Day 5 - Australia 2nd innings 203-9 (91 ov) - end of match

Notes
▪ Botham's 198* is the highest innings made by a number six batsman
▪ Cowdrey and Botham's partnership of 210 is the highest fifth wicket stand in Ashes history and the second highest ever stand for England's fifth wicket
▪ Australia retain the Ashes for the third consecutive time

Man of the Match: IT Botham

Australia v England - Tour Match

Victoria XI v England XI
Melbourne Cricket Ground
4 Day Game
Umpires: RM Crockett & DA Elder
Toss: Victoria XI

VIC XI: KR Stackpole, IR Redpath, GN Yallop, AL Hassett, DM Jones, *WW Armstrong, +JM Blackham, PR Reiffel, MHN Walker, MG Hughes, H Ironmonger.
ENG XI: JB Hobbs, *L Hutton, KF Barrington, DI Gower, MC Cowdrey, IT Botham, +LEG Ames, FS Trueman, JA Snow, DL Underwood, AV Bedser.

England's tour management was highly critical of the frankly substandard surface prepared for this game, and Victoria did very well to amass a total of 252 on the first day after skipper Warwick Armstrong had won the toss and elected to bat. Snow dismissed both Redpath and Yallop for ducks in his first over, but an attacking stand of 101 for the third wicket between Stackpole (65) and Hassett (43) put Victoria on top before Derek Underwood got to work on the middle order. From a healthy looking 106-2, the score slumped to 144-7 as Underwood put a brake on the scoring, but some healthy use of the long handle by the tail revived Victoria's innings.

Walker and Hughes put on 53 for the ninth wicket, Hughes clubbing Underwood for two huge sixes on his way to 36, then the unlikely figure of Bert Ironmonger managed to hang around for the best part of an hour, allowing Max Walker to complete a fifty that brought him a standing ovation. England had allowed the game to get away from them on the first evening, and things only went from bad to worse on day two. A relatively strong foundation seemed to have been established at 71-2, but Bert Ironmonger ripped through the middle order with devastating effect and was twice on a hat-trick as the innings crumbled in embarrassing fashion.

Bert Ironmonger's 5-26 destroyed
England on the second day

It was only thanks to a ninth wicket stand of 26 between Trueman and Underwood that the score managed to crawl into three figures, and a total of just 112 gave Victoria a lead of 140, a massive advantage on this wicket. The ball remained on top throughout the home side's reply, but whilst wickets fell at regular intervals there was to be no devastating collapse in the manner of England's abject display, and Blackham's excellent marshaling of the tail saw him reach a deserved fifty as the total finally reached 194 on the third evening. Trueman snared four wickets but looked far from fully fit on his return to the team, and a muscle injury to Snow limited him to just eight overs and must make him a doubt for the fourth Test, as if England didn't already have enough problems to deal with.

The immediate problem at hand now though was how to score 335 on a poor wicket to win this game, and to their credit England set about their task in a most positive fashion. From a platform of 85-2 at the end of the third day the tourists lost both Gower and Cowdrey early on the final morning, but Botham attacked the bowling from the word go and England suddenly had new hope. Barrington, looking in good touch in his first match since his emergency call-up to the squad, made 46 and helped add 74 for the fifth wicket with Botham, and the runs continued to flow as Ames and Botham then put on 68 in even time, taking England to 253-5 midway through the afternoon session, less than a hundred runs away from an unlikely victory.

Botham batted superbly in England's second innings

It was stirring stuff from Botham, who really was batting beautifully given the conditions, but Ames' dismissal for 32, brilliantly caught in the gully by Redpath off Ironmonger, sparked yet another English collapse. England's tail had no answer to the spin of Ironmonger and Armstrong, and the last five wickets disappeared for just twelve runs as England stumbled to defeat shortly before tea. Botham was last man out, caught on the square leg boundary for a valiant 92, but his innings was a rare highlight for the tourists ahead of the crucial fourth Test here. England need to win both the remaining Tests if they are to claim back the Ashes, and on the evidence shown here, winning just one of those games is going to be an extremely tall order.

Score Summary
VIC XI 1st Inns 252 (Stackpole 65, Walker 56*, Hassett 43; Underwood 5-46, Snow 4-54)
ENG XI 1st Inns 112 (Ironmonger 5-26)
VIC XI 2nd Inns 194 (Blackham 51; Trueman 4-70)
ENG XI 2nd Inns 265 (Botham 92, Barrington 46; Armstrong 5-55)

VICTORIA XI WON BY 69 RUNS

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of Play

Day 1 - Victoria XI 1st innings 252 (82 ov)
Day 2 - Victoria XI 2nd innings 74-4 (Jones 11*, Armstrong 10*; 23 ov)
Day 3 - England XI 2nd innings 85-2 (Barrington 15*, Gower 0*; 21 ov)
Day 4 - England XI 2nd innings 265 (77.5 ov) - end of match

Australia v England - Third Test

The Adelaide Oval

Australia: WM Woodfull, WM Lawry, DG Bradman, AR Border, SR Waugh, KR Miller, +IA Healy, *R Benaud, AK Davidson, RR Lindwall, DK Lillee.
England: JB Hobbs, *L Hutton, MC Cowdrey, DI Gower, +AJ Stewart, IT Botham, TE Bailey, JC Laker, JA Snow, DL Underwood, JB Statham.

Debuts: TE Bailey (ENG)
Umpires: Khizer Hayat (PAK) & CJ Mitchley (SAF)
Toss: England

Whilst Australia fielded the same XI for the third match in succession, England's win in the tour match here had been a Pyrrhic victory; Dexter, Ames and Bedser all now joined Trueman on the sidelines with injury, and with only twelve fit players from which to choose England's selectors sent SOS calls to Ken Barrington and Harold Larwood, both of whom will link up with the squad in Melbourne. Hutton managed to win his third toss out of three to allow the tourists some momentary respite, but after electing to have first use of a dry and slightly dusty surface, similar to the one used against South Australia, his patched-up side once again batted very poorly and were bowled out for 232 on the first day.

Benaud had England in a spin on the first day

Hutton himself went for a duck, but the rest of the top six all made starts only to get themselves out, Hobbs alone able to claim that he had been dismissed by a good ball after having registered his first fifty of the series. Benaud did most of the damage, tossing the ball up and claiming figures of 5-84 as England's batsmen gave the Australians catching practice, and Australia's response was to open up with a 144 run opening stand from Woodfull and Lawry, their third partnership of 100 or more in ATG Tests, the other two also having come against England.

Both were eventually dismissed in the seventies before tea on day two, but Bradman played himself in after the interval, and in partnership with Border he took Australia into the lead before Snow claimed Border's wicket with the new ball shortly before stumps. Bradman's average at the Adelaide Oval, where Australia have never lost, stood at a staggering 160.67 coming into this game, and on the third morning he looked nailed on for what would have been his sixth hundred on the ground. However, Botham stunned the crowd by ending the Don's innings on 88, and before the applause had died down Miller was also making his way back to the pavilion, bowled by Underwood for 0.

Steve Waugh ground England down in the Adelaide heat

Australia were still in a very strong position at 305-5 though, and Steve Waugh now set about taking the game away from England completely. First he put on 136 for the sixth wicket with Healy, who batted very well for his 69, and having reached his first ever hundred he and a free-swinging Lindwall then piled on an undefeated 98 for the ninth wicket before Benaud finally declared on the fourth morning. Australia had racked up an Ashes record total of 601-8, with Waugh's share amounting to 161* after seven and a half hours at the crease, and England's tired attack were all but waving the white flag in surrender.

England thus began their second innings with a deficit of 369 runs (it had only been 360 in Perth), and following more than two days in the field it would have been understandable, though not excusable, if the tourists had subsided against a fresh Australian attack. However, England began their reply brightly, and by tea the scoreboard read 144-2, Hutton having made an attacking 56 and with Cowdrey and Gower seemingly set for a substantial partnership in the evening session. England's third wicket pair added eleven more runs after the break, but with the score on 155-2 Cowdrey, on 41, clipped Lindwall straight to Benaud at short midwicket, and a catastrophic collapse had begun.

Keith Miller claimed five wickets as
England imploded on the fourth evening

Gower was bowled by Lillee in the next over, then Lindwall did for both Stewart and Botham before Miller ran through the tail as a litany of injudicious strokes flashed a succession of catches into gleefully waiting Australian hands. The last eight wickets fell for just 47 runs as the innings crumbled to a sorry 202 all out, and England had lost by an innings and 167 runs inside four days, their heaviest ever defeat in 64 ATG Tests. More changes to what is already an unstable team are now inevitable after such an inept performance, and after having lost the first Test Australia now lead the series 2-1, and they only need to avoid defeat in the fourth Test in Melbourne to retain the Ashes.

Score Summary
ENG 1st Inns 232 (Hobbs 64, Botham 44; Benaud 5-84)
AUS 1st Inns 601-8 dec. (Waugh 161*, Bradman 88, Lawry 73, Woodfull 72, Healy 69, Lindwall 60*, Border 43; Snow 4-128)
ENG 2nd Inns 202 (Hutton 56, Cowdrey 41; Miller 5-54)

AUSTRALIA WON BY AN INNINGS & 167 RUNS

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of play

Day 1 - Australia 1st innings 8-0 (Woodfull 2*, Lawry 6*; 4 ov)
Day 2 - Australia 1st innings 260-3 (Bradman 60*, Waugh 7*; 94 ov)
Day 3 - Australia 1st innings 565-8 (Waugh 147*, Lindwall 40*; 184 ov)
Day 4 - England 2nd innings 202 (59.2 ov) - end of match

Notes
▪ This was England's heaviest ever defeat
▪ Australia's 601-8 dec. is the highest total by either side in Ashes Tests
▪ Bradman became the first player to reach 7000 career runs
▪ Lindwall passed 1000 career runs

▪ Lindwall's 60* is the highest innings made by a number ten batsman
▪ Waugh scored his first hundred in his 17th Test

Man of the Match: SR Waugh