Join the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletter and get behind-the-scenes access and unrivalled insightJoin the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletterJoin the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletterEngland’s long wait for an Ashes win on Australian soil is finally over as they came out on top after two days of mayhem in Melbourne.Ben Stokes’ dreams of bringing the urn back home may already be over after three straight losses, but the grim prospect of a 5-0 whitewash is off the table after his side emerged from a batting graveyard at the MCG with a dramatic four-wicket win in the fourth Test.England last won Down Under in January 2011, losing 16 times and drawing twice across four tours before finally ending the sequence here.Chasing 175 may have felt like a lottery on a minefield of a pitch, but for once England had the winning ticket as Jacob Bethell made a vital 40 on Ashes debut.For the second time in the space of 24 hours England’s bowlers held up their part of the bargain, rolling over Australia for 132 in less than 35 overs, despite Gus Atkinson’s withdrawal with a hamstring injury.In his stead Brydon Carse found some long-awaited rhythm as he claimed four for 34, with three scalps for Stokes and two for Josh Tongue.The target was a slender one compared to some of the huge numbers this side have hunted on their best days, but it was also the biggest score of a match that was hurtling towards an indecently fast finish.The jeopardy brought England back in touch with the wilder side of ‘Bazball’, having previously allowed their ultra-aggressive instincts to be curbed.Ben Duckett, out of form and in the headlines for the wrong reasons, set the tone with a chaotic 34 against the new ball, Carse leapt from number 10 to number three in a revival of the so-called ‘nighthawk’ role once embodied by Stuart Broad, while Bethell even attempted a scoop shot off the first ball of the decisive evening session.It was a bold, bewildering and oddly bewitching inversion of the hard-bitten Test cricket that is typically needed in this part of the world. But most importantly for an embattled team who have been run off the rails over the past seven weeks, and most of the past 15 years, it was successful.Having travelled at turbo speed towards its end game, the match looked every bit a 50:50 bet as a fragile England line-up began their chase on a seamer’s paradise.Duckett came out fizzing with intent, mixing four boundaries and a…
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2025-12-27 07:19:38
