Australia v England – The Final Ashes Test, Day Four: Action Unfolds

Australia knows how to host an event. On the first day of this fifth Test came a appropriate remembrance to the victims and first responders of the Bondi incident, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was turned into a sea of pink to once again collect money for the McGrath Foundation.

On the field of play, though, Australian benevolence was in far more limited availability. Across three sessions their batsmen dominated the English bowling, addressing any queries about their incentive since securing the Ashes and raising a few more about their beaten opponents.

Looking drained after the toil, Ben Stokes and his team departed at stumps seeing pink elephants. Steve Smith’s 37th Test century, 129 not out from 205 balls, had followed the second half of Travis Head’s explosive 163 from 166, and with it Australia had reached 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead sat at 134 runs overnight and looked an threatening one.

The famed Neil Harvey, 97, shared his thoughts in a charming interview.

I've been disappointed in England. I think the way they approach the batting side of things, they get too careless, nobody seems to want to construct a knock, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.

It might work against average opponents but when you get a top-tier team like Australia it's a whole new challenge. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of satisfaction out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball thing it lessens the probability of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.

Shortly after the start of a quietly overcast morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began running through his variations.

His first ball was wide and hammered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both short and wide and cut over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and pulled past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was blocked with a show of furrowed caution, to jeering shouts from a crowd that had begun to tuck into the day. A tough initiation, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.

There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the peak of his batting prowess, when “best since Bradman” was used with certainty. The thing about that description is that even when the recipient has reigned supreme for years, it gets granted too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career enduring for 20 years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has remained there.

The amalgamation of those phases, though, took him to a uncommon position on the third day. In the record books of the game there are landmarks, then there are summits. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-heavy career there have been two peaks slowly approaching in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never conquer. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday.

The 2025-26 Ashes, possibly the most disappointing series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth raised hell at The Oval, is limping towards a suitable finale. Australia are poised to overwhelm England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most biased Pom could argue with.

It's been a triumph of know-how, discipline, discipline, talent and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth opened English wounds that have yet to recover; four Tests later he is cheerily grinding salt into them. Head's seemingly relentless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will start again on 129 after making a century that looked certain even before he faced his first ball.

Australia, despite a number of faultlines in their team, have won the series with an ease that is hard to comprehend. Maybe that's an Anglocentric view. It's not Australia's fault that England did not show up – even if, on some level, they probably wanted a greater challenge.

The final act will be administered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a complete blowout when England bat, just as there was in the final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence shot, their spirit crushed. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.