Australia, having retained the Ashes, is now eager to clinch a Test series win in England as they approach the series finale at The Oval. Despite getting away with a draw in Manchester due to rain, the Aussies are determined to secure a victory to end their 22-year wait for an Ashes series win in England.
Travis Head, the Australian batsman, emphasized their goal to win the Ashes outright and not just retain them, drawing parallels with the 2019 series, which ended in a 2-2 draw after Australia led 2-1. He explained, “The feeling around it was yes, we have got away with one, but ultimately we have come here to win the Ashes and we have gone a huge way to doing that.”
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He further added: “I think there are a lot of similarities with ’19…But I also think off the back of that, it probably showed us how much it meant and how much winning the Ashes would actually really mean instead of retaining them.”
For the final Test, Australia is considering recalling specialist spinner Todd Murphy to bolster their attack, which struggled in the previous game where England posted a massive 592 runs, including Zak Crawley’s splendid 189.
On the injury front, all-rounder Mitchell Marsh is struggling with soreness, and fast bowler Mitchell Starc has a shoulder problem, opening the door for Michael Neser’s potential debut in the series.
Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue are both waiting to join the England attack, but it is unclear if they will be selected ahead of Anderson. England batsman Harry Brook said that a win in the final Test would be a “moral victory”. England’s aggressive ‘Bazball’ style has yielded 12 wins from 17 Tests since Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum joined forces last year.
Stokes has been both too bold and not bold enough at times in this series. He declared on the opening day of the first Test at Edgbaston but then did not declare at Old Trafford when rain was forecast.
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Despite these mistakes, Stokes is confident that England will be a “legacy team”. He said that people will always talk about this team, regardless of how the series ends up. In conclusion, Australia is determined to win the series in England, while England is hoping to secure a moral victory. The final Test at The Oval will be a close contest.
