The Press

Back to retain Ashes

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snatched away at Headingley, it would elude Australia’s desperate grasp here.

Paine did not merely rotate his bowlers now, he spun through them. Whatever happened, he was not going to die wondering this time. The Australian­s found their voices, and so did the crowd, and every ball became a milestone and was hailed like one. And then, suddenly, Labuschagn­e’s leg-break startled Leach into prodding a short-leg catch and Hazlewood burst through Overton’s defence and it was all over bar some shouting at The Oval later this week.

Stokes’ performanc­e at Headingley was an on-the-spot miracle, but Australia’s entire Ashes campaign and triumph is an even greater miracle. In anticipati­on, it was easy to see how two deeply flawed batting teams would be set against two excellent and sometimes indomitabl­e seam attacks. But England were at home and on a World Cup-winning high and cricket was cool again in the country. They lost and missed James Anderson, that is true, but if he had stayed intact, Jofra Archer might not have played so soon.

As it has transpired, the series has doubly matched expectatio­ns, for better and worse. Only two Australian batsmen are averaging more than 27 (and David Warner less than 10). One of them, Labuschagn­e, is playing not as per some vast eternal plan, but because of an emergency for the other. The other, of course, is Smith. He, despite missing 11⁄2 tests, has made enough runs for three batsmen and more than twice as many as any other on either side.

Reflecting afterwards, rueful England captain Joe Root could not escape the idea that one man was the difference. Nor could Paine. ‘‘He’s just a genius,’’ he said. ‘‘And the scary thing is that he’s getting better.’’ These will be forever Smith’s Ashes.

Australia’s secret is that it has been brilliantl­y managed as much as coached. Justin Langer and his off-siders had to stretch 11⁄2 batsmen to cover six, and squeeze six fit fast bowlers into three. It has meant shuffling and boosting the batsmen, and rotating and humouring the bowlers, on the way jollying their one slow bowler, whose morale might have been shattered postHeadin­gley.

It has meant keeping everyone happy enough to win enough matches, and the record book now shows that they have done it. Trite as it might sound, happiness has been key. This squad exudes togetherne­ss and authentic pleasure in one another’s achievemen­ts, which helped them to leave Headingley behind as soon as they left Leeds.

Even Warner, who has become a hapless figure at the crease, has remained a cheerful one everywhere else. When retention of the Ashes was consummate­d, the six reserves, all in whites, joined the XI in an on-field group hug, and that was only fitting.

Of course, it has helped that England have not been nearly so adroit at covering up their own inherent deficienci­es. Stuart Broad has been brilliant, Archer a nasty surprise and Stokes the archest of competitor­s, but Root looks to have been gradually crushed by the burdensome duty of his office and the premium on a home Ashes series. At Headingley, it turns out, England had bluffed themselves.

So it is that this unpretenti­ous Australian team – faulty, unsettled, gazumped at Headingley, yet somehow unwavering – has managed what the star-studded assembly of 2005 could not, nor the three touring teams since.

So it was that the frozen figures of that Headingley image sprung to life again, leapt into one another’s arms, whooping and hollering and completing the picture.

– The Age

 ?? GETTY IMAGES ?? The Australian dressing room was a joyous place after they won the fourth test against England to retain the Ashes.
GETTY IMAGES The Australian dressing room was a joyous place after they won the fourth test against England to retain the Ashes.

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