Play gets underway early once more, as a lengthy two-and-a-half-hour morning stint to recover some of the time lost on the first day. The players are getting ready to take the field.
A Sea of Pink and a Display of Dominance
Australia knows how to host an event. This fifth Test commenced with a appropriate remembrance to the sufferers and heroes of the Bondi tragedy, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was turned into a wave of pink to once again collect money for the McGrath Foundation.
On the field of play, though, Australian generosity was in far scarcer quantity. Across three sessions their batsmen dominated the English bowling, addressing any queries about their incentive since securing the Ashes and throwing up a few more regarding their vanquished foes.
Visibly weary from the effort, Ben Stokes and his team walked off at stumps seeing pink elephants. Steve Smith’s century number thirty-seven, 129 not out from 205 balls, had come after the concluding stages of Travis Head’s explosive 163 from 166, and with it Australia had attained 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an threatening one.
Veteran's Viewpoint
The renowned Neil Harvey, 97, gave his views in a delightful interview.
I've been disappointed in England. I think the way they tackle the batting side of things, they get too impetuous, nobody seems to want to play a long innings, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.
It might work against average opponents but when you get a quality outfit like Australia it's a different ballgame. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of satisfaction out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball style it takes the odds away from winning an important Test. I'd like to see them rein themselves in.
A Harsh Welcome
Forty-five minutes into a quietly overcast morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts was introduced into the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began utilizing his change-ups.
His first ball was sprayed down the leg side and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both short outside off stump and slashed over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was short and straight and driven past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was negotiated with a show of studious defense, to loud, mocking cheers from a crowd that had begun to settle in for the day's play. A grueling introduction, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.
Joining the Pantheon
There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the height of his batting skill, when “best since Bradman” was used with confidence. The thing about that line is that even when the recipient has excelled for years, it gets bestowed too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career enduring for 20 years. Lots of players attain greatness for a time, no other has stayed as long.
The combination of those phases, though, elevated him to a rare position on the third day. In the record books of the game there are milestones, then there are mountaintops. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-heavy career there have been two peaks slowly approaching in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never scale. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he surpassed on Tuesday.
Preamble: An Anticlimactic Finale
The current Ashes battle, arguably the most underwhelming series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth made history at The Oval, is heading for a fitting conclusion. Australia are set to crush England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a result not even the most partisan Pom could dispute.
It's been a triumph of maturity, composure, discipline, skill and Travis Head. His bold 123 at Perth exposed English frailties that have yet to recover; four Tests later he is cheerily grinding salt into them. Head's deceptively pitiless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will resume on 129 after making a century that looked inevitable even before he faced his first ball.
Australia, despite a number of weaknesses in their team, have won the series with an simplicity that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an English perspective. It's not Australia's fault that England were not competitive – even if, on some level, they probably wanted a greater challenge.
The last rites will be administered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the final innings of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are exhausted, their confidence broken, their spirit dented. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.
