Bazball in tatters as England lose the Ashes in three Tests

England’s much-talked-about ‘Bazball’ project suffered yet another major setback on Australian soil. On the fifth day of the third Test in Adelaide, England went down by 82 runs, losing all three matches of the series to concede the Ashes 3–0. The defeat extended England’s winless run in Australia to 18 matches. They last won a Test here in 2011, meaning the drought has now stretched to 14 years.
Although rain delayed the start of play on the final day, Australia’s bowlers never loosened their grip on the match. Chasing victory, England found some resistance through Jamie Smith and Will Jacks. Smith emerged as a key hope but was dismissed for 60, while Jacks continued the fight after lunch before edging the same bowler for 47, with Marnus Labuschagne taking a brilliant catch at first slip. Towards the end, Josh Tongue edged Scott Boland to Labuschagne once again, as England were bowled out for 352.
With this defeat, England’s hopes of winning the Ashes were extinguished in just 11 days of cricket. They now must force a result in either Melbourne or Sydney to avoid the humiliation of a 5–0 whitewash. It also marked the fourth consecutive Ashes tour in which England have lost the first three Tests.
Meanwhile, Australia once again underlined their dominance at home. Despite questions over selection and the age of the squad before the series, and despite captain Pat Cummins missing the first two Tests, Josh Hazlewood being ruled out for the series, and Steve Smith absent in Adelaide, the hosts have been comfortably superior. Since 2011, Australia’s one-sided control over England on home soil has once more been emphatically confirmed.