Overton: We are desperate to win at Oval

Craig Overton nearly became a tailend batting hero at Old Trafford and believes England showed enough fight to prove they can win the final Ashes Test this week.

Overton batted for three hours and 12 minutes and was the last man out with 14 overs remaining in the fourth Test as Australia were forced to wait far longer than expected to seal the victory that retained the Ashes on Sunday.

It was Overton’s first Test appearance since March 2018 and he did not let anyone down, taking two wickets in the first innings and batting with discipline and application. There was a drop in intensity when he came on to replace the new-ball bowlers and there is a good chance he will not play at the Oval this week, with Chris Woakes expected to return.

However, Overton will hope he has done enough to ensure a place on the winter tours to New Zealand or South Africa, where conditions will suit his bowling.

“We are still up for this Test. We want to stop them winning the series, that’s the main message going into the Oval,” he said. “We have to show the fight we had at Old Trafford. That support we had was loud, and got us further through than we should have. That was good and hopefully they come back on day one, and we will keep fighting to stop them winning the series.

“There are tours in the winter and people are going to want to be contributing at the Oval to get on them. It’s not doom and gloom, just fighting, like we were here.”

Overton looked like he was guiding England to safety but after the pair had batted for 15 overs, Jack Leach was dismissed by Marnus Labuschagne’s leg-spin.

Australia did not take long to finish off the innings, with Tim Paine bringing back his quick bowlers and Josh Hazlewood trapping Overton lbw.