The Test was a dead rubber but it was cricket at its most compelling and signified England’s greatness to come
The dead-rubber
England victory was something of a ritual during Australia’s long Ashes supremacy from 1989-2005, a feelgood finale signifying little. Think Phil Tufnell at the Oval in 1997, or Dean Headley at the MCG 16 months later – jaunty cameos with no wider meaning.
Sydney 2003 was different. Not just because it was Test cricket at its most compelling - close, fluctuating, full of subplots - but also because it signified a stirring in England’s cricketing mood, among us travelling thousands and in a team performance portending greater things to come. The road to 2005 began here.