Australia seal Ashes victory in 11 days, eye whitewash

Australia sealed the Ashes with an 82-run victory in Adelaide on the fifth day, completing the joint-swiftest triumph in the series since 1921 after just 11 days of play. Pat Cummins's side moved 3-0 up and now have their sights set on a 5-0 whitewash that would further redefine the trajectory of the Bazball era in English cricket.

England resumed on 207 for six, still needing 228 to extend their hopes to Melbourne and Boxing Day. The morning brought a brief lull from rain, but the narrative remained the resilient but ultimately futile pursuit by England’s lower order. Jamie Smith and Will Jacks provided the only real spark, peppering Nathan Lyon and the seamers with calculated aggression. Smith swung Lyon over midwicket for six, then pulled Cameron Green for another six, showing intent rather than mere defiance. Lyon saved two runs with a diving stop on the fine-leg boundary before hobbling off the field in later moments, casting doubt over his participation for the fourth Test at the MCG as Matt Kuhnemann and the uncapped Corey Rocchiccioli were named potential replacements.

Grace under pressure began to tilt in Australia’s favour as Smith carved out a measured innings, bringing up his first Ashes fifty of the tour. He and a reined-in lower order steadied the ship long enough to keep England within sight of a miracle. At 60, Smith attempted to pull Mitchell Starc over midwicket for what would have been his fifth boundary in a row; instead, he found the edge, and Pat Cummins held a sharp catch at first slip for his captain’s 11th boundary-saving moment in the field. A seventh-wicket stand of 91 had kept England alive, but it all unraveled soon after. England were 337 for eight when Smith’s dismissal had the crowd buzzing again, and the reintroduced Starc found a third layer of control for Australia.

Jofra Archer then flayed Starc to the wide third man boundary to move the score to 349 for nine, but the brief late-innings flurry could not reverse the outcome. Moments later, Josh Tongue fell to Scott Boland to seal the 82-run victory and Australia’s series win at Adelaide Oval. The moment was met with wild celebrations as the Australians applauded the resolve and execution that defined a swift, clinical win.

The result left England to ponder several what-ifs from the game’s four-and-a-half days. What if Harry Brook had taken a crucial early slip to dismiss Usman Khawaja five runs into his first-innings 82? What if Alex Carey hadn’t been reprieved by the technology? What if England had batted with more urgency on a second day of extreme heat? And what if they hadn’t lost three quick wickets to Lyon on the fourth evening? None of those questions could disguise Australia’s superiority in the moments that mattered most.

Worth noting for England is not just the defeat but the context in which it arrived. Australia’s performance in the 11 days has revived memories of their strongest Ashes campaigns, and with a 3-0 lead they appear poised to press for a 5-0 whitewash that would deepen the sting for England and its new-era plans around Bazball. Australia’s run here has been underpinned by a blend of aggressive yet controlled batting, sharp catching, and the bowling discipline that has become the hallmark of Cummins’s leadership. The series has grown a narrative around whether England can recalibrate quickly enough for the Boxing Day Test, or whether the shadow of the Adelaide result will linger as they reassess strategy and selection ahead of Melbourne.

Earlier in the summer, Australia weathered the early scare of Smith’s forced omission before play began and the hamstring trouble that later unsettled Lyon; the resilience shown in the closing sessions illustrated a team that can adapt under pressure and convert moments into decisive outcomes. The celebrations in Adelaide reflected a unit that has found its balance at the highest level, and their task now is simple in theory—complete the whitewash and write a new chapter in Ashes history.