England lost 2-0 to equalize the series, but lost their victory at Old Trafford due to rain. Photo: Getty Images/Alex Davidson.
Moral victory has never been so exquisite. The sight of Stuart Broad flying away like a dervish, leaving as a Test bowler with a series-leveling wicket, just like he signed as a Test batsman with a six, really felt like a moment of national catharsis. Nearly an hour after Cinder's lead choreographer wrote the script for the perfect theatrical coup, there's hardly a soul left in the Oval. It wasn't until the Australian team gathered for a group photo with the urn in hand, which they kept despite not winning a match for almost a month, that the crowd reluctantly took the signal to leave.
Making memories: Under this slogan, Ben Stokes laid out his Ashes manifesto. The goal, according to the England captain, was to stir up passions in the country, to create a moment that would justify parallels with Ian Botham's heroic feat at Headingley in 1981 or Freddie Flintoff's blissful gaze as he staggered out of Downing street in 2005. in this he succeeded: Broad's insane final act ensured that the Bazballers would not be recorded as almost male, but as players who enriched sports folklore.
Stokes' colleague Pat Cummins' stated goal was equally tough. «Job still not done,» he said after a disappointing but Ashes-sustaining disappointment at Old Trafford, stating that his Australian side wanted nothing less at the Oval than to be the first since Steve Waugh's 2001 class to win series to England straight. And in this he ultimately failed. One side fulfilled its mission, the other failed. So who are the real moral winners here?
Harry Brook drew a chorus of derision when he introduced the concept of Moral Ashes. He ended up teasing the nation, whose prime minister reacted to the cricket furor at The Lord with the exclamation: «Same old Australians, always winning.» But he touched on a persuasive point: although England did not win full ownership of Trafalgar Square, they still won the argument by cementing their place in the public mind with a game of cricket as invigorating as it was effective. /p>
Many Australian commentators scoff at this suggestion, pointing out that it is their players who come home with the urn. Technically, they are wrong, given that the original is firmly preserved in the Lord's Museum. But they also neglect the emotional perspective here, the fact that England have established themselves as arguably the most interesting Test team in history, proving that eccentric pitches and amazing scoring records are not frivolous, but a legitimate tactic to get results in the longest and most pure form. games.
England equalized with a spectacular bowling spell at the end of day five at the Oval. Credit: PA/Mike Egerton
Broad said in euphoria after this 2-2 score that his lasting memories will be of joy and happiness. It's a feeling that millions of people across the country can relate to. For even if the 2023 series didn't produce a perfect result, it generated a level of energy and enthusiasm that is every bit as valuable. Manchester lobbies were off limits during rainstorm delays for young fans to put on impromptu matches using rolled-up programs as bats. It's hard to imagine the same kind of scene unfolding outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground. First, it is against health and safety regulations.
Australia brought many commendable qualities to this Ash summer, hardiness and stubbornness in abundance. But it's England that can claim a monopoly on indelible moments, from Stokes' 155 against Lord to Zach Crowley's magnificent match-turning 189 before the Mancunian monsoon hit. On the contrary, the most memorable event in Australia was Alex Carey's confounding of Johnny Bairstow, an act of such vile opportunism that the protocols in the Long Room may never be the same again.
'It was just unforgettable for everyone who was here'
🎥 @NHoultCricket and @willis_macp sum up the simply sensational conclusion of the #Ashes.#TelegraphCricket series | #ENGvAUS pic.twitter.com/zP1xgnsjbM
— Telegraph Cricket (@telecricket) July 31, 2023
It's undeniable that there was a certain delightful poetry to the way Broad fired Carey to draw the curtain on the show and his career. «That's all you'll ever be remembered for,» he taunted Australia's gatekeeper when the Lord's feuds began. Except that, as it turns out, he was referring to Carey for another claim to fame: a supporting role in his own farewell blockbuster.
Naturally, the two captains were scrupulously diplomatic at the end, each deferential to the other and each declaring 2-2 a fair result. This certainly understates Bazball's bombardment. While Australia's most recent Test victory came on 2 July, England showed aggressive intent to achieve a month-long dominance but only abandoned a historic 3-2 comeback triumph due to the dubious wisdom of planners trusting the midsummer weather in the northwest. west.
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Stokes was not exaggerating when, in a 2-0 loss, he expressed full confidence in England's ability to win the remaining three Tests. They came so close, even though they were guilty of being held hostage to fate after the first two. But they have created an army of converts thanks to their commitment to what Jurgen Klopp would call heavy metal cricket.
It might be tempting to caricature England, with their panama hats and their party habit as vehemently as like them. play like the type of team that is destined to become famous in all five minutes. Yet what they have achieved in the last 45 days is anything but ephemeral. They showed that with Crowley hitting a four from the first ball of the series, with Joe Root trailing Cummins in reverse by six, with Mark Wood bowling at 95 mph, and with six close catchers causing the rarest of mistakes of Usman Khawaja. they can put on a spectacle that will delight the entire audience. If that's what moral victory is like, then maybe there will be many more.
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