Play gets underway early once more, with a two-and-a-half-hour morning session to make up some of the time lost on the first day. The players are getting ready to step onto the ground.
A Sea of Pink and a Display of Dominance
Events are handled superbly in Australia. The opening day of this final Test featured a appropriate remembrance to the victims and first responders of the Bondi incident, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was transformed into a ocean of pink to once again collect money for the McGrath Foundation.
On the field of play, though, Australian benevolence was in far shorter supply. Across three sessions their batmen ground England’s bowlers into the dust, answering any questions about their motivation since securing the Ashes and posing a few more regarding their vanquished foes.
Faces flush from the ordeal, Ben Stokes and his team walked off at stumps battle-weary. Steve Smith’s 37th hundred in Tests, 129 not out from 205 balls, had come after the second half of Travis Head’s blistering 163 from 166, and with it Australia had reached 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an ominous one.
Veteran's Viewpoint
The famed Neil Harvey, 97, gave his views in a engaging interview.
I've been let down by England. I think the way they approach the batting side of things, they get too impetuous, 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 class side like Australia it's a different ballgame. I used to score runs at a fair pace, and everyone gets a lot of satisfaction out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball style it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.
A Tough Introduction
Shortly after the start of a somewhat cloudy morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts entered the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his variations.
His first ball was wide and hammered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both back of a length and outside off and slashed over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and driven past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was blocked with a show of studious defense, to raucous, sarcastic applause from a crowd that had begun to tuck into the day. A grueling introduction, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
A Historic Achievement
There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the pinnacle of his batting mastery, when “best since Bradman” was used with confidence. The thing about that description is that even when the recipient has dominated for years, it gets bestowed too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career enduring for 20 years. Lots of players hit their peak for a time, no other has maintained that level.
The blend of those phases, though, propelled him into a exceptional position on the third day. In the statistics of the game there are milestones, then there are peaks. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-centric 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 climb. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday.
Preamble: An Anticlimactic Finale
The 2025-26 Ashes, possibly the most anticlimactic series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth raised hell at The Oval, is limping towards a suitable finale. Australia are set to overwhelm England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a margin not even the most partisan Pom could argue with.
It's been a triumph of know-how, composure, skill, skill and Travis Head. His daring 123 at Perth hurt England 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 simplicity that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an Pommy outlook. It's not Australia's fault that England failed to turn up – even if, on some level, they probably desired a greater challenge.
The concluding chapter will be delivered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a total collapse when England bat, just as there was in the last knock of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are tired, their confidence shattered, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
