Index 2018

INDEX

FOOTBALL
Season 2017/18
30.04 Slick Man City net century of goals
28.05 For the record
World Cup 2018
13.06 Preview: Putin's showpiece
30.06 Kane sets up Colombia clash
08.07 Southgate returns England to top table
12.07 England come home
16.07 Après le deluge, the victory
Season 2018/19
14.08 Preview: Man City seek rare retention
04.12 Something for (almost) everyone

OTHER SPORT
Winter Olympics
08.02 Korea opportunities
25.02 Yarnold shines brightest in record British haul
Snooker World Championships
10.05 Family man Williams turns back the clock
England cricket team
10.01 England suffer another stomach-turning defeat Down Under
11.09 Fairytale at the Oval for retiring Cook
Ryder Cup
27.09 Wildcard Tiger leads Americans on Ryder Cup prowl
30.09 Vincerò! Vincerò! Europe easily win the Ryder Cup
F1 2018 season
29.10 Fiesta time for five-star Hamilton
Rugby Union
25.11 Home Nations exhibit their World Cup credentials

HISTORY & POLITICS
History
27.01 One day in Auschwitz-Birkenau
Home affairs
04.05 Labour left limited as Tories hold ground
14.12 Merry Christmas, Mrs May
Foreign affairs
07.11 US Midterms produce a mixed picture

MISCELLANEOUS
12.05 Clucking-mad Israel win marred by SuRie stage invader
31.12 Index 2018

Fairytale at the Oval for retiring Cook

CRICKET legend Alastair Cook signed off his illustrious international career in style as he helped England seal a 4-1 series win over world number one team India.

Former captain Cook scored 147 at the Oval in his last ever Test knock to become only the fifth man ever to make a century in both his first and his last matches.

Cook thus finished his career in fifth place on the all-time run-scoring list with 12,472 Test runs, by far the most by an England player and also the most ever by a left-hander.

In all, the Essex man hit 33 Test centuries - another national record - and his eventual batting average stands at a still healthy 45.35.

Finally, the 33-year-old claimed 175 Test catches - as well as the solitary wicket of Ishant Sharma in 2014 - during his 161 matches.

Indeed, his retirement brings to an end a remarkable all-time record run of 159 consecutive Tests.

Yes, come rain or shine, triumph or disaster, Cook has been a reassuring constant in England's shaky batting line-up over the past 12 years.

Undoubtedly, though, Cook's zenith came Down Under back in 2010-11 when he scored an aggregate of 766 runs at a Bradman-esque average of 127.66 as England won an away Ashes series for the first time since 1987.

Cook won further Ashes series as captain in 2013 and 2015 - and, in his first campaign following his appointment as permanent skipper in 2012, he guided England to a rare away win in India.

Of course, there were also tougher times. The disastrous Ashes whitewash in 2013-14 obviously stands out - but it was another heavy away defeat, 4-0 against India in 2016, which truly spelt the beginning of the end.

Cook resigned the captaincy in the wake of that series but confirmed he was happy to drop back into the ranks as an opener under new skipper Joe Root.

Thereafter, there were occasional glimpses of classic Cook, and he scored two double centuries in the space of just over four months in 2017 against the West Indies at Edgbaston and Australia at the MCG.

Both of those scores came on fairly placid surfaces, however - and, tellingly, his average in 2018 before the fifth Test was just 18.62 from nine innings.

Admittedly, it has been a difficult summer against the new ball in England - but, when a press conference was hastily convened at Lord's last Monday, it did not take a genius to work out what Cook was about to announce.

From that moment, it was perhaps inevitable England's greatest run scorer would find a way to conclude his Test career with a final flourish.

After all, his even temperament has always been one of his greatest assets. It has helped him remain a threat and a prized scalp even when horribly out of form, and surely also helped him cope with any extra nerves on this marquee occasion.

Rather wonderfully, the Oval saw the very best of Cook on the fourth day of the fifth Test - the late cut and the pull were played with aplomb as he shared a third-wicket stand with Root (125) of 259.

Bizarrely, Cook brought up his century with a five as a result of overthrows from Jasprit Bumrah.

But the slightly odd circumstances took nothing away from a magnificent sporting moment which was greeted all around the Oval with a rapturous standing ovation.

England eventually piled up a second innings total of 423-8 declared, setting a target of 464 for India to gain an unlikely consolation victory.

Almost immediately, though, the tourists were in trouble as new ball pair James Anderson and Stuart Broad reduced them to 2-3.

KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane guided their side to stumps without any further loss - but Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali struck before lunch on the fifth day.

Deeper and deeper into day five, India resisted - and things looked good for them when Rahul (149) and Rishabh Pant (114) put on 204 for the sixth wicket.

However, once they both fell in consecutive Adil Rashid overs, England made light work of the tail and the Indians fell 118 runs short.

To his great relief, the final wicket fell to Anderson who had been forced to wait patiently during the innings for his own moment in the sun.

Anderson had taken the first two wickets to fall at the end of day four but had gone wicketless during day five until he breached Mohammed Shami's defence and splattered his middle stump with what was the last ball of the series.

And so the Burnley Express surpassed Glenn McGrath as the most successful fast bowler in Test history with his 564th scalp.

Of course, England had already wrapped up the series ahead of Cook's farewell with earlier victories at Edgbaston, Lord's, and Southampton.

The first Test in Birmingham was a cracker as England squeezed home by 31 runs after bowling India out in the fourth innings for 162.

By contrast, the second Test was a cakewalk with overhead conditions favouring the hosts throughout.

The result - victory by an innings after bowling India out for 107 and 130 - was never in doubt but what was not clear then was if the Indians would subsequently continue to collapse in a heap for the rest of the campaign.

Creditably, Virat Kohli's men stood up to the challenge - and their 203-run win in the third Test will surely rank among the best ever performances by India on these shores.

All of a sudden, heading into the fourth match, all of the big questions were instead being asked about England - despite their 2-1 advantage.

The questions were valid, of course. Even in the first Test, the hosts were rocking on 87-7 in the second innings, leading by just 100, before the raw all-rounder Sam Curran struck 63 alongside the the tail.

Ultimately, it proved to be just enough - but, in an incredible selection own goal for the third Test, it was not enough to keep Curran in the team.

The 20-year-old was restored for the fourth game - but there was a certain familiarity about proceedings when England found themselves on 86-6 on the first day.

Again, Curran intervened with a 78 and got England to a somewhat competitive total of 246 - and, again, it was ultimately enough when the result was decided on day four.

For India then, this was a series of missed opportunities - and the 4-1 final score is more reflective of England's ability to wriggle out of tough situations through individual efforts than anything else.

After all, as good as it has been to beat the world number one side in exciting fashion at home, the England Test side under Joe Root remain a work in progress.

Undoubtedly, the two biggest holes are the openers' slots, and they have only just got bigger following Cook's decision.

The refusal to go into the next series away in Sri Lanka with two new openers may be the main thing to save the woeful Keaton Jennings.

And, while the Lancashire batsman can also point to his century on debut in a spin-dominated match against India in Mumbai, even on that occasion he was dropped while he was on 0.

More pertinently, Jennings's average and high score in this series were 18.11 and 42 respectively - and, if anything, his dismissals have been getting worse.

In particular, the lbw to Bumrah in the fourth Test and his leave to be clean bowled by Shami in the fifth Test were comically bad misjudgements not befitting of an international-class player.

And, certainly, any decision to retain Jennings for this winter feels overly generous - and misguided in the extreme.

For Cook, the selectors are now the least of his concerns - and he will no doubt look forward to tending his farm while winding down his cricket career at Essex.

Meanwhile, the fact that his wife Alice is imminently expecting their third child further reinforces Cook has made the right call to curtail his involvement in international cricket.

Undoubtedly, though, he will be an immediate miss to England - and the struggle to produce another player like him will go on for a long time.
 
Indeed, such was Cook's precocious talent, fitness, and determination, it may in fact prove to be an impossible task. 

ENGLAND v INDIA 2018

ALASTAIR COOK In numbers
Test debut v India at Nagpur, Mar 1-5, 2006

12,472 Test runs
294 Test high score
175 Test catches
161 Tests
159 consecutive Tests
59 Tests as captain
45.35 Test average 

33 Test centuries (including five double centuries)
24 Test wins as captain
4 Ashes series wins (two as captain)
1 Test wicket

 

TEST MATCHES

01-04 Aug	FIRST Edgbaston	England 287 & 180 beat India 274 & 162 by 31 runs
09-11 Aug	SECOND Lord's	England 396-7dec beat India 107 &130 by an innings and 159 runs
18-22 Aug	THIRD Trent Bridge	India 329 & 352-7dec beat England 161 & 317 by 203 runs
30 Aug-03 Sep	FOURTH Southampton	England 246 & 271 beat India 273 & 184 by 60 runs
07-11 Sep	FIFTH The Oval	England 332 & 423-8dec beat India 292 & 345 by 118 runs

Series result ENGLAND won 4-1
Players of the series: Sam Curran (England), Virat Kohli (India)

ODI & T20I SERIES

03-July	T20I 1	India 163-2 (18.2) beat England 159-8 by eight wickets	Old Trafford
06-July	T20I 2	England 149-5 (19.4) beat India 148-5 by five wickets	Cardiff
08-July	T20I 3	India 201-3 (18.4) beat England 198-9 by seven wickets	Bristol
12-July	ODI 1	India 269-2 (40.1) beat England 268 (49.5) by eight wickets	Trent Bridge
14-July	ODI 2	England 322-7 beat India 236 by 86 runs	Lord's
17-July	ODI 3	England 260-2 (44.3) beat India 256-8 by eight wickets	Headingley

T20I series INDIA won 2-1
ODI series ENGLAND won 2-1

England suffer another stomach-turning defeat Down Under

		THE ASHES SERIES 2017-18
23-27 Nov 17		FIRST Australia beat England by 10 wickets	Brisbane
02-06 Dec 17		SECOND Australia beat England by 120 runs	Adelaide (D/N)
14-18 Dec 17		THIRD Australia beat England by an innings and 41 runs	Perth
25-29 Dec 17		FOURTH Match drawn	Melbourne
03-07 Jan 18		FIFTH Australia beat England by an innings and 123 runs	Sydney

Australia won the series 4-0
Player of the series: Steve Smith (687 runs at 137.40)

AUSTRALIA confirmed their superiority in this Ashes series, winning the fifth and final Test in Sydney by the crushing margin of an innings and 123 runs.

The Aussie victory at the SCG made it 4-0 overall with England only having avoided another whitewash by securing a draw in the fourth Test on a lifeless pitch in Melbourne.

Nevertheless, England have now failed to win any of their last 10 Tests Down Under.

Indeed, it seemed inevitable that the tourists were heading for their third whitewash in 11 years when the urn was lost in Perth before Christmas.

Senior players - namely Stuart Broad and former captain Alastair Cook - had been rightly criticised for their lack of contribution.

But, in fairness, both bit back in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. Broad took 4-51, his best figures all year, to help reduce the Aussies from 260-3 to 327 all out.

Cook then carried his bat to score an unbeaten 244, the highest of any opener remaining unbeaten in Test history. It was his best performances for years.

Notably, he also became the first England opener to carry his bat since Michael Atherton in Christchurch against New Zealand in 1997, and the first English opener to achieve the feat against Australia since Geoffrey Boycott in Perth in 1979.

Sadly, England - despite posting a competitive 491 - came no closer to a consolation victory, as a third Steve Smith century guided Australia to the safety of 263-4.

England actually also started the fifth Test pretty well and were at one stage 228-3 - but the late wickets of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow took the shine off their opening day.

From that point onwards, though, it was all depressingly one-way traffic. First, England were bundled out for 346 despite some rare resistance from the tail.

Then, the Aussies truly put their visitors under the pump, declaring on 649-7 following centuries from Usman Khawaja (171), and both of the Marsh brothers Shaun (156) and Mitch (101).

Inevitably, England failed to make Australia bat again, not helped by Root being unable to continue his second innings beyond lunch on the final day.

Skipper Root was suffering from severe dehydration caused by gastroenteritis - and surely the extreme Sydney heat could only have made his condition worse.

It has indeed been stomach-turning stuff from England over much of the past two months - and, while this was not another whitewash, it was still a complete hammering.

Indeed, the cumulative aggregates for the batting and bowling of both sides neatly demonstrate the gulf between them.

Australia scored 2,982 runs in total and took 89 wickets. England, by contrast, scored 2,595 runs and took only 58 wickets, their lowest amount in an Ashes series since 1958-59.

Undoubtedly, the English bowlers have struggled, especially in comparison to their Aussie counterparts.

All of the top four wicket takers in the series were Australian - and they did not need anyone other than their main quartet of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon.

Of the England bowlers, only James Anderson - with 17 wickets at 27.82 apiece - could be said to have justified his place.

Overall, England were regularly too short and lacking in the requisite pace. Lyon, meanwhile, totally outclassed Moeen Ali in the spin department.

For sure, it came as no surprise that a player in the class of Aussie skipper Smith therefore flourished.

But it was pretty galling to see the mediocre Marsh brothers were swatting away the England attack just as easily by the end.

Of course, from an England perspective, this series will be just as well remembered for events off the field.

The tourists were without the services of their best all-round player, Ben Stokes, following his arrest on suspicion of assault after an incident near a night club in Bristol in the early hours of 25 September.

Bizarrely, more than three months later, Stokes has still not yet been charged with any offence, a somewhat damning indictment of the efficiency of the British justice system.

However, there were also other incidents once England had reached Australia. Bairstow was said to have headbutted new Aussie opener Cameron Bancroft in a Perth bar before the first Test.

Then, following the second Test, Ben Duckett was ejected from a tour match and left facing disciplinary action for pouring a drink over team-mate Anderson in the same bar.

Undoubtedly, the perception painted by large parts of the English media was that of a squad totally out of control. With a reactionary curfew imposed on the players, the Aussie press gleefully lapped it up.

The reality, however, was more prosaic. It quickly became evident that the Bairstow-Bancroft incident could be described, to the obvious amusement of the latter, as playful - or, at very worst, an odd example of social awkwardness.

And so, Duckett's behaviour was therefore pretty much an isolated act - and, in itself, hardly a hanging offence.

Certainly, Anderson has no problem with alcohol being poured over him when England actually manage to win a Test.

But, if it feels a long time since that was happening consistently, that's because it is. In 38 Tests since Trevor Bayliss took charge of the team in 2015, England have won 15 and lost 18.

Progress made in limited overs cricket appears to have come at the expense of performances with the red ball, and England are now correctly perceived as home-track bullies.

That should be no surprise, really. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has clearly marginalised development of the Test team in favour of their new money-spinning city-based T20 competition.

And that is a position with which the board appears pretty comfortable.

Speaking in the wake of the third Test defeat which lost the Ashes, ECB chief executive James Harrison said: "The health of the game is more than just Ashes series overseas.

"We've had record-breaking attendances in domestic and international cricket, changed our governance structure, hosted two global events, won the women's World Cup, and launched a participation initiative for kids.

"We've had a successful entry into the broadcast rights market out of which we have secured the financial future of the game until 2024."

All of which will surely come to the great comfort of the Barmy Army fans and their own individual bank balances after this winter.

Incredibly, the stench of denial became greater again at the conclusion of the campaign when Anderson - in a post-series interview - claimed England had "not been blown away".

But Anderson himself cannot be blamed for this debacle.

The biggest culprits occupy far more senior positions - they are the decision-makers who put money over all other considerations and who have turned England's senior four-day competition into a non-event.

Without games scheduled at the height of the summer, the English system will never produce a conveyor belt of top-class, genuinely quick bowlers - or, for that matter, a world-class spinner.

Where exactly is the motivation for the counties to field these players when they can get on by just fine with a trundling medium-pacer on an April green-top?

Thankfully, though, there appears to be a realisation that some fundamental change will be required in order to improve the fortunes of the England Test team on overseas tours.

Bayliss himself has stated that England may have to risk losing at home in order to improve away.

Meanwhile, former captain Michael Vaughan has made the eminently sensible suggestion of staging a selection of County Championship matches abroad.

The ECB, no doubt, will act far more slowly in addressing any issues. After all, under its watch, the game in England already has excellent corporate governance.

Of course, Australia - with the still significant advantage of being at home - may well have been triumphant regardless.

Frankly, though, this Ashes series was again far, far too easy for the Aussies. Far too easy.

ASHES SERIES 2017-18 STATISTICS

CENTURIES
Australia 9-3 England 
244* Alastair Cook (England), fourth Test
239 Steve Smith (Australia), third Test
181 Mitchell Marsh (Australia), third Test
171 Usman Khawaja (Australia), fifth Test
156 Shaun Marsh (Australia), fifth Test
141* Steve Smith (Australia), first Test
140 Dawid Malan (England), third Test
126* Shaun Marsh (Australia), second Test
119 Jonny Bairstow (England), third Test
103 David Warner (Australia), fourth Test
102* Steve Smith (Australia), fourth Test
101 Mitchell Marsh (Australia), fifth Test

LEADING RUN SCORERS - TOP TEN
687 Steve Smith (Australia)
445 Shaun Marsh (Australia)
441 David Warner (Australia)
383 Dawid Malan (England)
378 Joe Root (England)
376 Alastair Cook (England)
333 Usman Khawaja (Australia)
320 Mitchell Marsh (Australia)
306 Jonny Bairstow (England)
242 James Vince (England)

BATTING AVERAGES - TOP TEN
137.40 Steve Smith (Australia)
106.66 Mitchell Marsh (Australia)
74.16 Shaun Marsh (Australia)
63.00 David Warner (Australia)
48.00 Tim Paine (Australia)
47.57 Usman Khawaja (Australia)
47.25 Joe Root (England)
47.00 Alastair Cook (England)
42.55 Dawid Malan (England)
41.50 Pat Cummins (Australia)

FIVE-FORS
Australia 2-1 England
5-43 James Anderson (England), second Test
5-48 Josh Hazlewood (Australia), third Test 
5-88 Mitchell Starc (Australia), second Test

LEADING WICKET TAKERS - min 10 wickets
23 Pat Cummins (Australia)
22 Mitchell Starc (Australia)
21 Josh Hazlewood (Australia)
21 Nathan Lyon (Australia)
17 James Anderson (England)
11 Stuart Broad (England)
10 Chris Woakes (England)

BOWLING AVERAGES - min five wickets
23.54 Mitchell Starc (Australia)
24.65 Pat Cummins (Australia)
25.90 Josh Hazlewood (Australia)
27.82 James Anderson (England)
29.23 Nathan Lyon (Australia)
37.66 Craig Overton (England)
47.72 Stuart Broad (England)
49.50 Chris Woakes (England)
115.00 Moeen Ali (England)

TEAM SCORES
662-9d Australia in the third Test, Perth
649-7d Australia in the fifth Test, Sydney
491 England in the fourth Test, Melbourne
442-8d Australia in the second Test, Adelaide (D/N)
403 England in the third Test, Perth
346 England in the fifth Test, Sydney
328 Australia in the first Test, Brisbane
327 Australia in the fourth Test, Melbourne
302 England in the first Test, Brisbane
263-4d Australia in the fourth Test, Melbourne
233 England in the second Test, Adelaide (D/N)
227 England in the second Test, Adelaide (D/N)
218 England in the third Test, Perth
195 England in the first Test, Brisbane
180 England in the fifth Test, Sydney
173-0 Australia in the first Test, Brisbane
138 Australia in the second Test, Adelaide (D/N)

Dust to dust

		THE ASHES SERIES 2017-18
23-27 Nov 2017		FIRST Australia beat England by 10 wickets	Brisbane
02-06 Dec 2017		SECOND Australia beat England by 120 runs	Adelaide (D/N)
14-18 Dec 2017		THIRD Australia beat England by an innings and 41 runs	Perth
25-29 Dec 2017		FOURTH TEST	Melbourne
03-07 Jan 2018		FIFTH TEST	Sydney

ENGLAND surrendered the Ashes urn this morning as Australia took an unassailable lead with a crushing innings victory in the third Test in Perth.

The tourists lost their last four wickets for 22 runs to go 3-0 down in the series - and they now face the devastating prospect of a third whitewash Down Under in just 11 years.

As it stands, a whitewash result is now the odds-on favourite with most bookmakers. Yes, that is how little regard there now remains for this England side.

That should come as no surprise really. After all, the tourists have been outplayed in every facet of the game, and Australia have had almost a monopoly on the truly magic moments in the series.

From Nathan Lyon's superman dive, with which he executed his caught-and-bowled dismissal of Moeen Ali, to Mitchell Starc's incredible jaffa that splattered James Vince's stumps.

And then, of course, there has been the not-so-insignificant matter of Steve Smith's imperious form with the bat.

In four innings so far, the Aussie skipper has scored a ton and a double ton in an aggregate of 426 runs at an average of 142. His figures, quite frankly, are Bradman-esque.

By contrast, Alastair Cook and Joe Root have scored a combined total of 259 runs at a hideous average of 21.59. Cook's top score is just 37.

Yet, despite all this, England have had fleeting moments of hope.

In the first Test in Brisbane, the tourists appeared to be heading for a first innings lead having reduced the Aussies to 209-7 in reply to their own 302.

But it was in fact Australia who took a 26-run lead into the second innings before openers David Warner and Cameron Bancroft then easily knocked off the required runs following an England collapse.

In the second Test in Adelaide, England blew another opportunity having taken the second new ball with Australia on 209-5.

Of course, the day-night match in Adelaide was always meant to represent the best chance of England securing a victory in the series with the conditions under lights bringing swing and seam into the equation.

Joe Root inserted the Aussies at the toss hoping to dismiss them cheaply but he then watched on forlornly as his attack bowled too short and the hosts declared on 442-8.

Belatedly, two of the English bowlers - James Anderson and Chris Woakes - adjusted their lengths and duly tore through the Australians in the second innings.

By then, though, England - who had been bowled out for 227 - needed to complete a record run-chase of 353 to avoid going 2-0 down.

At the end of the penultimate day, England had reached 176-4 and were talking up their hopes of completing an incredible comeback victory.

It was a record chase for a reason, however - and, once Root departed without having added to his overnight score, England proceeded to lose their remaining wickets before lunch.

And so to Perth - and what is expected to be the last ever Ashes Test at the WACA.

The WACA is a venue at which England have historically struggled. They have won just once there ever - back in 1978 - against an Australian side severely weakened by defections to Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket.

In fact, the last seven Ashes Tests in Perth had all gone the way of Australia with even the gloriously victorious 2010-11 tour party going down to a heavy defeat there.

Back to this series - and England, having won the toss for a third successive time, decided to bat - but, to the great surprise of nobody, found themselves in some trouble on 131-4.

Nevertheless, another of those fleeting moments of hope then happened to come along. Ashes rookie Dawid Malan completed a maiden international ton as part of a 237-run stand for the fifth wicket alongside fellow centurion Jonny Bairstow.

Typically, though, the tourists then lost 6-35 for a final first innings total of 403. It was never going to be enough on a true WACA deck.

This was especially the case considering the obvious weaknesses of the England bowling attack with their lack of pace and variation exacerbated by the lack of a top-quality spinner.

No fewer than five bowlers - Anderson, Woakes, Craig Overton, Ali, and Stuart Broad - conceded a century of runs in the Australian innings of 662-9 declared. Broad, indeed, recorded his worst ever Test figures of 0-142. 

England ultimately failed to make Australia bat again making it the third time in just over 12 months that they have lost by innings despite scoring 400 runs first up.

Remarkably, that was something which had only previously happened on three occasions in the entirety of Test history prior to December 2016.

With statistics like that, it is difficult to see any way forward for England in terms of avoiding the whitewash - something that could not be said even amid the struggles of the 1990s.

For, while England failed to hold the Ashes for a single day in the whole of that decade, and nearly half of the next, they were also never whitewashed during that period. 

Even Down Under, on tours in 1990-91, 1994-95, and 1998-99, the tourists managed to avoid defeat in one of the first three Tests of the series.

But, already, that has proven to be beyond this England side - just as it was in 2002-03, 2006-07 and 2013-14. 

Indeed, England have now lost their last eight Test matches in a row in Australia, their worst run since the 1920s.

The stats are damning while the performance level of some of the senior players in particular has been pathetic.

England have once again lost the Ashes before Christmas. Now, we simply wait to find out if they can salvage anything at all from the ruins of this tour.

CENTURIES
239 Steve Smith (Australia), third Test
181 Mitchell Marsh (Australia), third Test
141* Steve Smith (Australia), first Test
140 Dawid Malan (England), third Test
126* Shaun Marsh (Australia), second Test
119 Jonny Bairstow (England), third Test

MOST RUNS - TOP FIVE
426 Steve Smith (Australia)
302 Dawid Malan (England)
241 Jonny Bairstow (England)
224 Shaun Marsh (Australia)
196 David Warner (Australia)
 
FIVE-WICKET HAULS
5-43 James Anderson (England), second Test
5-48 Josh Hazlewood (Australia), third Test
5-88 Mitchell Starc (Australia), second Test

MOST WICKETS - TOP FIVE
19 Mitchell Starc (Australia)
15 Josh Hazlewood (Australia) 
14 Nathan Lyon (Australia)
12 James Anderson (England)
11 Pat Cummins (Australia)

Adversity test for England in Ashes defence

		THE ASHES SERIES 2017-18
23-27 November 2017	00:00	FIRST TEST	Brisbane
02-06 December 2017	04:00	SECOND TEST	Adelaide (D/N)
14-18 December 2017	02:30	THIRD TEST	Perth
25-29 December 2017	23:30	FOURTH TEST	Melbourne
03-07 January 2018	23:30	FIFTH TEST	Sydney

Dates and times are GMT. (D/N) Day/night Test.

ENGLAND begin their bid to keep hold of the Ashes overnight as the oldest cricket rivalry in the world resumes with the first Test at the Gabba in Brisbane.

Joe Root's men enter the latest edition of this perpetual contest confident in the knowledge that they have won four of their last five series against Australia.

However, three of those wins came at home - and the team's most recent visit Down Under, the so-called Pomnishambles tour - ended in a humiliating 5-0 whitewash to the Aussies.

Already this time, without a single ball having even been bowled, England have faced a few notable setbacks.

Most prominently, they are without the services of their best all-round player, Ben Stokes, following his arrest on suspicion of assault after an incident near a night club in Bristol in the early hours of 25 September.

Stokes had been named in the original squad in an announcement on 27 September which actually raised a few eyebrows on several counts.

But, following a review of video footage published in The Sun, the 26-year-old Durham all-rounder was withdrawn from the touring party "until further notice", pending an investigation.

Of course, there is still a chance at this stage that Stokes may yet play a part later in the tour if the charges against him are dropped.

The case against him is not clear-cut, with the Sun newspaper also publishing a later story in which two men hailed Stokes as a hero for protecting them from homophobic abuse on the night of the alleged assault.

For now, though, England must make do without him - or indeed his named replacement, Steven Finn, who was forced to pull out of the series on 7 November with a serious knee injury.

At least Root's men head into the winter having won the first two series under him at home this summer.

But, despite those victories over South Africa and West Indies, the same old batting problems persisted at slots two, three and five.

Dawid Malan, Gary Ballance and James Vince were all therefore rather unconvincing selections, particularly in the cases of Ballance and Vince.

Meanwhile, Mark Stoneman will be playing just his fourth Test when he takes to the crease to open the batting with Alastair Cook.

Stoneman has at least played himself into a bit of form already with a century and three half-centuries in the warm-up matches - and he certainly looks a far better bet than the painfully statuesque Keaton Jennings.

More worryingly, though, England have continued to struggle in adverse situations as a collective.

Indeed, it is something which has affected the consistency of their performances for several years now.

They usually either win handsomely or lose horribly with no middle ground, and often no sign of steel or fight in the players if they fall behind in a game.

Such weakness is exactly what the Australian pace bowlers love to prey upon. No one will ever forget the way Mitchell Johnson terrorised the English batsmen in the 2013-14 whitewash.

And, while Johnson has now retired, his natural successor - Mitchell Starc - warmed up for the series by becoming the first bowler in Sheffield Shield history to take a hat-trick in both innings of a match.

England simply cannot allow Starc - or Josh Hazlewood - to bully them in the way that Johnson did. They must stand up to the challenge that awaits, and perhaps they might just surprise themselves a little.

After all, it is not all doom and gloom heading into the Gabba.

There are, in fact, some genuine grounds for optimism on the basis that the Australian batting is not in particularly good shape either.

Just as England have Cook and captain Root as mainstays in the top six but offer little else, the Aussies appear to have an over-reliance on David Warner and skipper Steve Smith.
 
It would be fair to say then that there has been just as much head-scratching from the Australian selectors ahead of the first Test.

Unfortunately for them, though, their eventual decisions have gone down like a lead balloon among the press and public Down Under.

Chief among the grievances is the shock recall of 32-year-old Tim Paine, a wicketkeeper who played his most recent Test seven years ago.

Bizarrely, Paine has not even been taking the gloves for his state side, Tasmania, and his most recent first-class ton came back in 2006.

The umpteenth return of Shaun Marsh is not exactly the most inspiring news, either. Meanwhile, young Middlesbrough-born opener Matt Renshaw is one of six players dropped from their most recent Test, despite that being a hard-fought win in Bangladesh.

Former Aussie leg-spinner Stuart MacGill took to Twitter to refer to the selectors as "morons masquerading as mentors" while Australian Test Match Special commentator Jim Maxwell described them as "unhinged".

And so, there are already signs that, if Australia struggle in Brisbane, their fickle supporters could turn against them.

It is not just England who will be feeling the pressure. As such, it is essential that the tourists get a good start at the Gabba - though history shows that is far easier said than done.

The Aussies have not lost a Test match to any opponent on the Brisbane ground since 1988 - and England last won there on their successful 1986-87 tour, although they did secure a draw in 2010.

A strong start is vital then, especially in this particular series - as opportunity knocks in the second Test in Adelaide.

That match - regardless of what actually happens on the pitch - will go down in history as the first ever day-night Ashes Test.

And, of course, England hope that the evening sessions - with the pink ball under lights - will give their main man James Anderson the chance to swing the ball as prodigiously as we all know he can.

This time then, the Ashes could still be alive at Christmas following the third Test at the WACA in Perth.

Thereafter, the tour moves onto Melbourne for the traditional Boxing Day Test before the Sydney Cricket Ground hosts the fifth and final Test in the first week of 2018. 

In summary, this Ashes series appears to be a relatively evenly-matched contest between two sides which are still developing under the guidance of their respective young captains.

Unfortunately, that means home advantage feels as if it is going to be decisive with the hard, bouncy pitches surely favouring the Australian bowlers.

Indeed, if frontline pace pair Starc and Hazlewood remain untroubled by injury throughout the series, the Aussies could easily get on a roll against an England team still so fragile in adversity.

Certainly, this should not turn into another Pomnishambles tour - as, even without Stokes, England have the talent to play plenty of good cricket.

Nevertheless, it is impossible to escape the conclusion that Australia are rightly favourites to regain the Ashes urn.  

Prediction: 4-1 to Australia

ENGLAND SQUAD

	Age		Tests	100	50	HS
Joe Root (c)	26	Yorkshire	60	13	32	254
Moeen Ali	30	Worcestershire	44	5	12	155*
James Anderson	35	Lancashire	129	0	1	81
Jonny Bairstow (wk)	28	Yorkshire	45	3	17	167*
Jake Ball	26	Nottinghamshire	3	0	0	31
Gary Ballance	27	Yorkshire	23	4	7	156
Stuart Broad	31	Nottinghamshire	109	1	11	169
Alastair Cook	32	Essex	147	31	55	294
Mason Crane	20	Hampshire	0	0	0	-
Tom Curran	22	Surrey	0	0	0	-
Ben Foakes (wk)	24	Surrey	0	0	0	-
Dawid Malan	30	Middlesex	5	0	2	65
Craig Overton	23	Somerset	0	0	0	-
Mark Stoneman	30	Surrey	3	0	1	52
James Vince	26	Hampshire	7	0	0	42
Chris Woakes	28	Warwickshire	18	0	3	66
Ben Stokes	26	Durham	39	6	12	258

HS high score   *not out

ASHES HISTORY
⚱️Overall series 69
Australia 32 England 32 Drawn 5
⚱️In Australia only 34
Australia 18 England 14 Drawn 2

⚱️Overall Tests 325
Australia 130 England 106 Drawn 89
⚱️In Australia only 162
Australia 82 England 56 Drawn 24

RECENT SERIES since 2000

	Hosts		Holder
2001	ENG	Australia won 4-1	Australia
2002-03	AUS	Australia won 4-1	Australia
2005	ENG	England won 2-1	England
2006-07	AUS	Australia won 5-0	Australia
2009	ENG	England won 2-1	England
2010-11	AUS	England won 3-1	England
2013	ENG	England won 3-0	England
2013-14	AUS	Australia won 5-0	Australia
2015	ENG	England won 3-2	England currently hold the Ashes

Improving England left with lessons still to learn

ENGLAND IN SOUTH AFRICA 2015-16 England won the series 2-1
Man of the series: Ben Stokes (England)

26-30 Dec	1ST England 303 & 326 beat South Africa 214 & 174 by 241 runs	Durban
2-6 Jan	2ND England 629-6d & 159-6 drew with South Africa 627-7d	Cape Town
14-16 Jan	3RD England 323 & 74-3 beat South Africa 313 & 83 by seven wickets	Johannesburg
22-26 Jan	4TH South Africa 475 & 248-5d beat England 342 & 101 by 280 runs	Centurion

ENGLAND provided a highly disappointing denouement to an otherwise successful series in South Africa after being bowled out for 101 to lose the fourth Test by 280 runs.

Already 2-0 up heading into the final match, Alastair Cook's men showed a distinct lack of ruthlessness or character in going down to such a heavy defeat, the manner of which recalled their awful innings loss at the Oval in August against Australia.

Back then, the Ashes had likewise been won with a game to spare - although, in fairness to this touring squad, there were other more pleasant similarities to the summer success.

For instance, man of the series this time - Ben Stokes - carried on his general good form with bat and ball, and improved his Test average in both disciplines. Meanwhile, Stuart Broad produced another simply magical spell.

The highlight for Stokes, of course, was his 258 in the second Test in Cape Town, in which he hit 11 sixes and 30 fours, and for which he faced just 198 balls.

Statistically, it was the second-fastest double-hundred in Tests, beaten only by New Zealander Nathan Astle (153 balls) against England in Christchurch in 2002.

It was therefore the quickest double century by an England player and the highest score by an England batsman at number six or lower in the order.

Stokes' partnership of 399 with Jonny Bairstow was the second highest for England in all Tests, the highest ever in South Africa, and the highest sixth-wicket stand in Test history.

But, ultimately, the pair's efforts actually counted for little as a high-scoring draw ensued.

South Africa also performed well with the bat on a flat surface as Hashim Amla joined Stokes in reaching a double century and Temba Bavuma became the first black Proteas player to score a Test ton.

Subsequently, England briefly threatened to become the first ever team to score more than 600 runs in a first innings and contrive to lose as they wobbled on 116-6 on the final day. 

Thankfully, though, Bairstow and Moeen Ali steadied the ship before the two skippers - Cook and Amla - shook hands, the latter for the final time as Test captain following his shock mid-series resignation. 

So, while the second Test will simply go down in the record books as an inevitable draw, Amla's decision and the notable - and, in some cases, historic - achievements of players from both sides means this was no dull affair. 

Still, enough about the stalemate - and now more about how the tourists claimed a first away Test series win anywhere since victory in India in 2012.

Well, the first Test in Durban - where England are unbeaten since 1928 - is not such an easy success to explain. There was no England centurion with the bat in either innings and none of the bowlers produced a fabled five-fer. 

Nevertheless, Stuart Broad took 4-25 in the South African first innings and Steven Finn took 4-42 in the second as Cook's team claimed a comfortable 241-run win on the final day.

Remarkably, it was the first time England had won the opening Test of an away series since their victory over Bangladesh in Chittagong in March 2010. 

And, truly, such occurrences are rare beasts as the time before that was in December 2004 against South Africa in Port Elizabeth.

The key to the other Test win, in the third match in Johannesburg, is rather easier to pinpoint as Broad produced another simply wonderful spell to add to his legendary 8-15 in the Ashes last summer. 

This time, an even game with only 10 runs between the sides after the first innings, was turned on its head in a few balls by the Notts paceman. 

In fact, Broad took 5-1 in just 31 balls on his way to overall figures of 6-17 as the Proteas were bundled out for a shell-shocked 83. 

England knocked off the runs before the third day was over - and, with the series won, Broad could also celebrate being statistically recognised as the number one bowler in the world. 

What has happened over the last five days in Centurion does not neatly follow the narrative - and this morning's loss of 7-43 was frankly pathetic, even if 20-year-old Kagiso Rabada was superb in taking match figures of 13-144. 

Then again, the momentum in the Ashes summer similarly swung wildly between the teams - and so England, despite a fine series win, will remain dogged by the tag of inconsistency.

Nowhere perhaps is this clearer than in their catching. Sometimes excellent - particularly the efforts of James Taylor at short-leg - it is still all-too-often the first sign that England do not feel as if it is going to be their day. 

The other major problem remains at the top of the order where Alex Hales has struggled. This was despite him becoming the eighth opening partner to Alastair Cook since he lost his predecessor as captain, Andrew Strauss in 2012.

For the record, the previous seven men were Ali, Adam Lyth, Jonathan Trott, Sam Robson, Michael Carberry, Joe Root and Nick Compton - with the latter two batting at three and four in this series.

Simply put - until England can consistently see off the new ball, then they will remain susceptible to collapse and shoddy, inconsistent results.

And, while that may sound too simplistic, there are clearly no easy solutions. 

Stick with Hales? Promote Compton back up the order? Bring in yet another new man like James Vince? None of these options looks overly appealing. 

At least the two home series against Sri Lanka and India - both notoriously poor travellers - offer a chance to make progress on this issue.

In the meantime, England face the Proteas in five One-Day Internationals and two Twenty20 matches ahead of the Twenty20 World Cup in India in March.

CENTURIES
258 Ben Stokes (England) in the second Test, Cape Town 
201 Hashim Amla (South Africa) in the second Test, Cape Town
150 Jonny Bairstow (England) in the second Test, Cape Town
129* Quinton de Kock (South Africa) in the fourth Test, Centurion
118* Dean Elgar (South Africa) in the first Test, Durban
115 Stephen Cook (South Africa) in the fourth Test, Centurion
110 Joe Root (England) in the third Test, Johannesburg
109 Hashim Amla (South Africa) in the fourth Test, Centurion
102* Temba Bavuma (South Africa) in the second Test, Cape Town

TOP RUN SCORERS
470 Hashim Amla (South Africa)
411 Ben Stokes (England)
386 Joe Root (England)
359 Jonny Bairstow (England)
284 Dean Elgar (South Africa)
248 Temba Bavuma (South Africa)
245 Nick Compton (England)
210 AB de Villiers (South Africa)

BEST BATTING AVERAGES
143.00 Quinton de Kock (South Africa)
71.80 Jonny Bairstow (England)
70.00 Stephen Cook (South Africa)*
67.14 Hashim Amla (South Africa)
58.71 Ben Stokes (England)
55.14 Joe Root (England)
49.60 Temba Bavuma (South Africa)
47.33 Dean Elgar (South Africa)
32.66 Chris Morris (South Africa)
30.62 Nick Compton (England)
30.00 AB de Villiers (South Africa)
29.00 Moeen Ali (England)

FIVE-WICKET HAULS
7-112 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa) in the fourth Test, Centurion 
6-17 Stuart Broad (England) in the third Test, Johannesburg
6-32 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa) in the fourth Test, Centurion 
5-78 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa) in the third Test, Johannesburg
5-153 Dane Piedt (South Africa) in the first Test, Durban

TOP WICKET TAKERS
22 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa)
18 Stuart Broad (England)
15 Morne Morkel (South Africa)
12 Ben Stokes (England)
11 Steven Finn (England)
10 Dane Piedt (South Africa), Moeen Ali (England)

BEST BOWLING AVERAGES
20.00 Dale Steyn (South Africa)*
20.61 Stuart Broad (England)
21.90 Kagiso Rabada (South Africa)
23.00 Stiaan van Zyl (South Africa)
26.09 Steven Finn (England)
28.00 JP Duminy (South Africa)
29.16 Ben Stokes (England)
29.73 Morne Morkel (South Africa)

*played one match only

The Ashes 2015: Consolation for Australia, celebrations for England

FIFTH TEST: Australia 481 beat England 149 & 286 (f/o) by an innings and 46 runs Scorecard
Man of the match: Steve Smith

AUSTRALIA restored some pride with a dominant innings win in the fifth Test at the Oval - but England, of course, could already celebrate a fourth successive home Ashes triumph.

Steve Smith (143) scored his second big ton of the summer as the Aussies set up a platform on days one and two to control the final chapter of this bewildering campaign.

For this Ashes series can only accurately be described as having been bewildering. From the start, it has constantly confounded expectations.

It seems a long time ago now but Australia went into the series as favourites having completed a whitewash over England only 18 months previously.

England, though, won the first Test by the not insignificant margin of 169 runs before Australia dwarfed that with a massive 405-run victory at Lord's.

Perhaps, it was thought, it had just taken the Aussies a little time to wake up. Perhaps now they would pulverise England the rest of the series.

But no - it was the English bowlers who dominated at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge with Steven Finn and James Anderson spearheading the first of those efforts before Stuart Broad produced, in the absence of Anderson, his now legendary spell of 8-15.

Australia were blown away for 60 in their first innings in Nottingham, the shortest first innings in Test history - and, having only done slightly better second time around, had lost the Ashes and looked a shambles of a team.

Surely then England would cap a glorious summer at the Oval by grinding the Aussies' noses in the dust to emerge as 4-1 winners.

Alas, sadly not. Despite England winning the toss, any early Aussie vulnerability was steadied at the top of the order by Chris Rogers (43) and David Warner (85).

The openers guided the tourists to 82-0 at lunch on the first day - and their position at the end of day one, 287-3, was no less dominant with Smith at the crease alongside Adam Voges.

Voges had played himself into a bit of form at the back end of the fourth Test with an unbeaten half century there - but he will have enjoyed his 76 at the Oval far more.

There was, however, no last big satisfying score for outgoing skipper Michael Clarke. He made just 15 before being caught behind off Ben Stokes - and, by later enforcing the follow-on for the first time ever, did not get a second chance.

Australia eventually made 481 as Smith found another useful ally lower down the order in Mitchell Starc (58).

The big question at that point was whether England, facing similar first innings scoreboard pressure to that which affected them at Lord's, could do any better this time.

In short, they could not. On the stroke of tea on day two, the hosts lost skipper Alastair Cook (22) - castled by Nathan Lyon - and, after the interval, the rest of the team collapsed in a heap to 92-8.

Only a bit of counter-punching from Moeen Ali (30) and Mark Wood (24) pushed England onto three-figures. However, both were dismissed by Mitchell Johnson early on the third day.

Clarke then made his momentous decision to enforce the follow-on for the first time ever in his final Test match.

With one eye on the inclement British weather, and England trailing by a massive 332 runs, it was really the only sensible choice.

But, by denying himself the chance to improve on his own first innings score, Clarke admirably favoured the value of a crushing win over any valedictory vainglory.

Australia delivered for him. Peter Siddle may have been terribly under-employed on this tour but he was belatedly able to show his quality by taking 4-35 in the second innings for match figures of 6-67.

Notably, Siddle twice dismissed Adam Lyth cheaply - and, with the Yorkshireman having failed to make any sort of truly significant contribution in this series, it now seems certain he will be dropped for the winter tours.

Ian Bell, meanwhile, is rumoured to be on the verge of international retirement, satisfied with a career which has made him a five-times Ashes winner.

Bell, of course, will always have the 2013 series to cherish, his three centuries being the foundation stone to that England victory.

But it would not be unfair to suggest that this series has rather passed him by. He has averaged 26.87, and even that mark is boosted by a strong performance on his home ground which was not repeated elsewhere.

So, the wheel turns for England again - ahead of a completely different sort of challenge against Pakistan on the dry pitches of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah in October.

Captain Cook, however, remains steadfastly at the head of the ship - and deservedly so after such an unexpected series victory.

Of course, there has still been some horror shows with the bat from England but a lot of the bowling has been genuinely thrilling.

Remember, it was this England attack which was the first Test side in history to have four different players take at least six wickets in four consecutive innings at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge.

And while Clarke and Australia can continue to moan all they like about the pitches favouring the hosts, they have no real argument unless they transform the Gabba in Brisbane or the Waca in Perth into a dry-turner for a visit of Pakistan or India.

English pitches in England should not really come as a surprise to Australia - there were, after all, few complaints from them about the surfaces in 1989 or 1993 or 1997. Or 2001 for that matter.

Yes, it is now 14 years since Australia last won a series in England - and it will be 18 years by the time they are scheduled to arrive on these shores for Tests again.

England, in the meantime, can bask in the glory of holding the urn for the next two-and-a-half years before the next contest Down Under in the winter of 2017-18.

For, although the series ended on the damp squib of a defeat at the Oval, the performance level overall from a developing side has restored some faith in the team around the country.

My preview suggested most supporters would be satisfied with a 2-2 draw and some entertaining cricket, even if that meant the Aussies retaining the urn.

In that case, a 3-2 victory - even when finishing on an innings defeat - is more than satisfactory. Now, if only the infuriating inconsistency could be sorted out.

THE ASHES 2015: ENGLAND WON 3-2

8-11 July	1ST England 430 & 289 beat Australia 308 & 242 by 169 runs	Cardiff
16-19 July	2ND Australia 566-8d & 254-2d beat England 312 & 103 by 405 runs	Lord's
29-31 July	3RD England 281 & 124-2 beat Australia 136 & 265 by eight wickets	Edgbaston
6-8 August	4TH England 391-9d beat Australia 60 & 253 by an innings and 78 runs	Trent Bridge
20-23 August	5TH Australia 481 beat England 149 & 286 by an innings and 46 runs	The Oval

Man of the series: Joe Root (England)

TEAM AGGREGATES
Runs scored England 2365, Australia 2565
Wickets taken England 80, Australia 81 

CENTURIES
Australia 3-2 England
215 Steve Smith (Australia) in the second Test, Lord's
173 Chris Rogers (Australia) in the second Test, Lord's
143 Steve Smith (Australia) in the fifth Test, The Oval
134 Joe Root (England) in the first Test, Cardiff
130 Joe Root (England) in the fourth Test, Trent Bridge

TOP RUN SCORERS
508 Steve Smith (Australia)
480 Chris Rogers (Australia)
460 Joe Root (England)
418 David Warner (Australia)
330 Alastair Cook (England)
293 Moeen Ali (England)
215 Ian Bell (England)
201 Ben Stokes (England), Adam Voges (Australia) 

BEST BATTING AVERAGES
60.00 Chris Rogers (Australia)
57.50 Joe Root (England)
56.44 Steve Smith (Australia)
46.44 David Warner (Australia)
36.66 Alastair Cook (England)
36.62 Moeen Ali (England)
29.50 Jonny Bairstow (England)
28.71 Adam Voges (Australia)
26.87 Ian Bell (England)
25.75 Mark Wood (England)

FIVE-WICKET HAULS
England 4-2 Australia
8-15 Stuart Broad (England) in the fourth Test, Trent Bridge
6-36 Ben Stokes (England) in the fourth Test, Trent Bridge 
6-47 James Anderson (England) in the third Test, Edgbaston
6-79 Steven Finn (England) in the third Test, Edgbaston 
6-111 Mitchell Starc (Australia) in the fourth Test, Trent Bridge 
5-114 Mitchell Starc (Australia) in the first Test, Cardiff

TOP WICKET TAKERS 
21 Stuart Broad (England)
18 Mitchell Starc (Australia)
16 Josh Hazlewood (Australia), Nathan Lyon (Australia)
15 Mitchell Johnson (Australia)
12 Steven Finn (England), Moeen Ali (England)
11 Ben Stokes (England)
10 James Anderson (England), Mark Wood (England) 

BOWLING AVERAGES minimum 10 wickets
20.90 Stuart Broad (England)
22.50 Steven Finn (England)
25.75 Josh Hazlewood (Australia)
27.50 James Anderson (England)
28.25 Nathan Lyon (Australia)
30.50 Mitchell Starc (Australia)
33.45 Ben Stokes (England)
34.93 Mitchell Johnson (Australia)
39.10 Mark Wood (England)
45.50 Moeen Ali (England)