Joe Root’s team must win at Old Trafford to draw the series but tourists have the edge despite another Covid scare
Australia’s cricketers partied long into the night on the outfield here two years ago. They had taken a 2-1 lead over England, retained the Ashes and, to empty stands and with beers in hand, gave a drawling rendition of True Blue by the folk
Singer John Williamson.
Tim Paine, their captain, looked to gee up his players before the subsequent fifth Test at the Oval, dubbing it their “Grand Final” in a nod to the other major codes back home. But what followed was the performance of a team that had experienced its moment a week earlier.
England won, the series was drawn 2-2 and
Cricket Australia’s fly-on-the-wall documentary did not get the final flourish its editors had hoped for.