Australia told us they weren’t just here to keep the Ashes, they were here to be the first Australian side to win in England since 2001. And here was the proof.
Even at the end of a very long tour, they came here, fought hard and gave their all. But they would never just pop up and roll over. That’s not the Australian way.
Usman Khawaja and David Warner had the right pace. If you look back to Australia on day two, when Khawaja batted Marnus Labuschagne, they had the wrong pace. They weren’t going anywhere and England was on top of them.
But they’ve done well in their second innings so far – not just taking shots, but also running between the wickets.
They learned from the way England batted and from their mistakes in the first innings.
Australia reached 135-0 at the end of a rain-ravaged fourth day in the final Ashes Test at the Oval
David Warner left behind his recent struggles as he made a measured unbeaten 58
Usman Khawaja continued his fine form as he made 69*, giving Australia a chance to stage a famous chase on day five
On Friday, Khawaja got stuck on one side and Labuschagne on the other, resulting in wickets. Here they constantly turned the strike.
Because they’re two different styles of players – Khawaja hangs way back and Warner is in the front coming at you – this means bowlers are constantly having to adjust their lengths.
I was surprised that this is only their second hundred standing together as an opener because they complement each other well.
Warner, in particular, has had a lot of starts on this series, but has found ways to get out.
There have been some soft layoffs. Even his shot in the first innings here, it was just a little tap and you could see him walk off and say, ‘What did I do that for?’.
Sometimes he hesitated between playing or leaving, attacking or defending. But on Sunday he was much more definite in his decision making. He has kept that positive intention.
He’s generally a positive player and that’s what Australia missed sometimes because when it’s Khawaja and Labuschagne, as we saw in the first innings, they sometimes hit a wall.
The opening pair batted at the perfect pace, in sharp contrast to Marnus Labuschagne’s blocking in the first innings
Moeen Ali is struggling with a groin injury and has so far bowled just five overs in the second innings
Warner has set a goal of progressing to the Sydney Test and then retiring. If he gets a hundred here, that’s almost signed and sealed and he should get his wish.
The field is still pretty good for hitting. It has lost all its speed so it has completely changed the complexion of the type of cricket being played.
For England it meant no orthodox swing and seam, so they had to turn to reverse swing and spin.
I said on day one that Moeen Ali’s groin injury was important because of the nature of this surface. I don’t know if we made enough money on that last day in Edgbaston, when Moeen couldn’t bowl as often or as well as he wanted because of his finger. And England have the same problem here, even though Joe Root is a good off-spinner, as we saw at Old Trafford.
Mark Wood was held back until the 33rd on Sunday, which was perhaps a little too long as he would have got the crowd going. I’m not sure if Wood has a minus or not, or just being carefully managed by Ben Stokes as he’s played three games on the bounce.
But Stokes was clearly also waiting for it to backfire. He and his bowlers learned many new tricks over the past winter in Pakistan and he often delayed bowling Wood and himself.
I watched Stokes bowl on a Sunday morning and he’s such a valuable asset when he swings backwards, especially for right-handers, because he leans away and the ball seems to come in, and then he can float away. If it reverses on Monday, Stokes and Wood become threats.
Mark Wood was only introduced in the 33rd over of the innings, bowling just three overs a day
England captain Ben Stokes had a bowl in the nets and could be a valuable asset if the ball swings backwards on Monday
They just changed the ball, so it’s a bit harder, which will please the batters and bowlers alike. But England must hope that the weather is good, not only because of the playing time, but also because when the ball gets wet, it puffs up, becomes soft and does not turn around.
Australia has a long batting team and it will be hard work for England. But 249 runs is still a lot of runs to get on a fifth day Oval pitch spinning and I would have England as the minor favourites.
Overall, it sums up this incredible series that we’re getting into on the last day and we still don’t know which way to go. Even if it’s not 2-2, there’s still so much betting on it.
If the rain holds off, as we all hope, we will either get an incredible bye for Stuart Broad and 2-2 or it will be one of Australia’s most incredible chases of all time.