Stuart Broad’s fairytale finale gives Ashes era the ending it deserves

A thrilling Ashes series deserved a dramatic conclusion, and that’s exactly what happened as England cricket fought back to win by 49 runs and level the series at the Oval. Australia retain the urn, that was decided when the rain denied any possibility of a result at Old Trafford, but on a final day, with momentum shifting firmly in favour of Pat Cummins’ side, England again just showed their determination. Ultimately, it was going 2-0 behind in the first two Test matches that cost England their chance of winning back the Ashes. It was always likely there would be a game affected by rain, and the weather in Manchester has undoubtedly altered how the series would be remembered. In fact the pivotal moment in the series was Alex Carey’s stumping of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s that caused debates about the spirit of cricket from England to Australia, sparking Ben Stokes’ side into life. England were angry, and from a game where Harry Brook admitted he had been ‘too reckless’, the home side became match-winners, at Headingley and the Oval, to level the contest. It had been billed as the biggest Ashes since 2005, and while the cricket might have lived up to the expectation on the field, people will always be left wondering how much bigger it could have been, had it been poised at 2-2 ahead of the final Test. At the Oval however, there were talks of fairytales on the final day, especially after Stuart Broad announced on the evening of day three that he would retire after the end of the match. However, it was Chris Woakes who stole the headlines. He bowled beautifully, even on day four when Australia reached 135 without loss at the close, it was the recalled Warwickshire bowler who looked the most threatening. Even on the final day there were twists and turns to come. England struck early, with Woakes taking the wickets of Warner and Khawaja, and having been 135 without loss overnight, Australia had lost two wickets for just six runs. While some commentators were left discussing the impact of a ball change, Marnus Labuschagne was out for just 13 runs from 33, with Mark Wood taking his first wicket of the innings. But halfway through day five, despite the early wickets, there was a feeling it was all slipping away from England. Steve Smith and Travis Head were going comfortably in a 95-run partnership, lifting Australia from three early wickets into a dominant position, from 169 for three to almost within 100 runs of the required 384 total, and England – other than Woakes – looked tired. There was also an agonising moment for England on the stroke of lunch. Ben Stokes took a stunning one-handed catch off Smith, but dropped the ball in his celebration. England reviewed, the ball had definitely come off the glove, but the third umpire confirmed Stokes did not have proper control of the ball, and Smith was handed what could have been a costly lifeline on 45. But Moeen Ali, who sustained a groin injury in the first innings of the match and did not appear on the field until the fourth innings, produced the wicket to spark an Australia collapse and breathe new life into England’s chances. Head edged to slip for 43, and Smith did not last much longer, falling almost immediately after bringing up his half century, for 54, with Woakes striking again having been the pick of the England bowling attack all day. It was one of those match-changing periods of play, four wickets fell in 16 minutes with Ali taking the wickets of Mitchell Marsh, who was caught one-handed by a tumbling Jonny Bairstow, and then Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins. Having been 264-3, Australia were 294 for eight and for the first time in a day, it felt like England were firmly in control. There was another nervy period, when Australia had the total required down to just 55 with two wickets left, but then it was always going to be Broad’s moment. Todd Murphy edged behind into Bairstow’s gloves and wheeled away in celebration to a standing ovation from the Oval crowd. To add even more emphasis on the wicket, it happened the ball after he had switched the bails around at the non-strikers’ end, an unorthodox action but it proved to be a moment of magic again after it brought the wicket of Labuschagne in the first innings. In the perfect way to end the Test, the series, his career, Broad claimed the final wicket of the series, when Alex Carey – who has been villainised since his stumping of Bairstow at Lord’s – was caught behind. Marcus Trescothick said fairytales do not often happen in sport, and it looked unlikely, with Broad not having taken a wicket but there was more to his story, and he claimed the final two wickets to take his final Test tally to 604 wickets. England may bid farewell to an era, with the end of the Broad-James Anderson partnership that has spearheaded the attack for so long. But they have prevented an entire generation of Australian cricketers doing what they had set out to do, and their bid for a first Ashes win on English soil since 2001 will continue.