With continuous precipitation at Old Trafford, Manchester Pat Cummins-led side retained the Ashes 2023 with one test match to go, as the scoreline of the 5 test matches stands at 2-1. No overs were bowled on Day 5 as rain has the final say on doomsday. Zak Crawley was given the Man of the Match trophy for his impressive innings of 189 runs in the 4th test match of The Ashes 2023.
England would feel dejected as they were the clear favorites to win this test, but in the end, bazball can’t do much against the maddened rain. Australia would be striving for the Oval win, which is scheduled to be played on 27th of July.
Top Performers of the Match
To start with, Zak Crawley tops the list of the most important players in this match. He gave England almost every chance to win this test with his distinguished knock of 189 runs with a magnificent strike rate of 103.8.
Jonny Bairstow, who drove the final nail in the coffin, mentally exhausted the Australians with his valuable innings of 99 not out. Joe Root, Harry Brook, and Ben Stokes also made noticeable contributions with scores of 84, 61, and 51, respectively.
Australia would go into the next match with the positive innings of Marnus Labuschagne. He notched his 2nd Test century away from home and 11th overall. His big score was overdue, and it came at a desperate time for the visitors. Additionally, he had scored a half-century in the first innings.
From a bowling perspective, England’s pacer Chris Woakes grabbed his first-ever fifer in the Ashes during the first innings. Mark Wood also took 3 wickets in the second innings, which was affected due to rain. Australia’s Josh Hazlewood was the one who took a fifer for the visitors in the first innings.
Australia Targets Series Win
Australia has a golden opportunity to end the drought of not winning the Ashes away from home since 2001. It has been 22 years since Australia last managed to win the Ashes in England, however, they have never lost an Ashes series since the 2017-18 Ashes. Australia did manage to draw the series in the 2019 Ashes in England. If they win the last match, Pat Cummins will become the first captain after Steve Waugh to win the Ashes series in England.
England will play the last match for their pride as the doors are closed for Ben Stokes to win this Ashes series. But, observing the character of Ben Stokes, he’ll go all guns blazing in the last test to ruin the dreams of Pat Cummins and the Aussies. The big thing that England carries with them is the momentum they achieved in the 4th test, despite having a drawn match, as England is clearly ahead in the game.
What to Expect In Next Ashes Test
The last Test is to be played on the 27th of July at the south London’s cricket stadium, The Kia Oval, near the River Thames, where Australia recently won the final of the World Test Championship. The series stands at 2-1, and the pressure will be in the Visitors dressing room as they have a crystal clear, lucky chance to win the prestigious Ashes trophy.
For that to happen, Steven Smith has to score runs for his team, and the chances are high for him to score big as he recently made a ton in the WTC Final. With Marnus Labuschagne joining the party of making big runs, it will be interesting to see what the approach of the visitors would be to win the Urn.
England will certainly play with a bazball approach as they will have to restrict the Aussies to take the Ashes series home. Australia retained the Ashes, but England would be highly looking forward to drawing the series.
The interesting thing to watch is, will Ben Stokes go with the services of James Anderson, or whether he’ll go with Josh Tongue. A very exciting match is just 2 days away, and teams would be traveling from north to south with two different motives in their minds.
Also Read: Ashes 2023: Jonny Bairstow Makes Life Miserable For Aussies On Day 3