Harry Brook has just confirmed the death of Bazball
The vice-captain's unedifying dismissal was the beginning of the end for England's unlikely Ashes comeback
Day 4: England 286 & 207-6 (Crawley 85; Cummins 3-24, Lyon 3-64) require 228 more runs to beat Australia 371 & 349 (Head 170, Carey 72; Tongue 4-70)
ADELAIDE OVAL — England have at least avoided the ignominy of being branded the worst Ashes team in history after fighting hard to take this third Test into a final day in Adelaide.
Yet it will do little to take the sting out of what inevitably will be a crushing defeat on the fifth day.
Bazball’s last stand fittingly saw England challenged to chase down a world-record target of 435 after pegging Australia back with the ball on the fourth morning.
When Zak Crawley and Harry Brook were putting on a 68-run partnership that brought the required runs down to 258 with seven wickets remaining, there was hope that another famous win might be added to the list of miracles pulled off under the tenure of coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes.
Yet Brook’s ugly dismissal to spinner Nathan Lyon, the Yorkshireman bowled attempting a reverse sweep, sparked not only a collapse of three for 17 in the final hour but the mother of all comedowns for the true believers of Bazball.
Harry Brook misses the reverse sweep and is clean bowled 😬
— Cricket on TNT Sports (@cricketontnt) December 20, 2025
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There was at least fight, something sadly lacking over much of this series, with Crawley digging in to score 85 from 151 balls to keep the flame alive. This included scoring just one off the first 28 balls he faced. Bazball really is dead.
The brutal reality is that this much-hyped England team will equal a historic low by surrendering this series in just 10 days of cricket.
Way back in 1921, an England side led by Lord Tennyson lost the Ashes inside eight days, with the disclaimer they were playing three-day Tests. Another is that 12 English Test cricketers were killed during the First World War that had ended just three years previously.
This current crop will equal the worst sides to have surrendered the Ashes in double-quick time in series where there were at least five Tests played over five days. Those were the teams led by Nasser Hussain in 2001 and 2002-03, when on both occasions the series were over as live contests within 11 days.
This will still be historically bad for the Bazballers but not the worst ever. It’s worth remembering, though, that the teams led by Hussain did at least manage one consolation win in each of those series. The chances of this team doing the same over the final two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney seem slim.
Ollie Pope edges behind and is OUT for 17 ❌
That is a sensational catch from Marnus Labuschagne 👏
📺 Watch #TheAshes LIVE on TNT Sports and discovery+ pic.twitter.com/Ep966fx6Ne— Cricket on TNT Sports (@cricketontnt) December 20, 2025
A lot has been written about the style of cricket this team have employed on this tour – from teeing off recklessly during the two-day defeat that kicked off the series in Perth to now trying to flat-bat the Australians into submission – evidenced by Crawley’s innings and that of Jamie Smith, who ended the day on two from 30 balls.
They at least showed some resistance, just as England’s bowlers did in the morning to precipitate an Aussie collapse of six for 38 on the fourth morning.
The bottom line, though, is that none of this is good enough.
Given the level of expectation before the Bazballers landed in Australia, to go 3-0 down and render the rest of the series effectively meaningless is shambolic.
Perhaps the biggest reason for such an inept series so far is the fact England had close to zero preparation compared to their hosts.
One three-day warm-up match at Lilac Hill in Perth on a pitch nothing like that prepared for the opening Test was never going to cut it.
By contrast the Australian XI that started the series had played 29 first-class matches between them in the Sheffield Shield before Perth, with their four frontline bowlers playing 10 of those.
England’s XI in Perth had played just five first-class matches between them since the end of the Test series against India in early August. Of those, only one bowler – Gus Atkinson – had played any first-class cricket since then.
No wonder they were as undercooked as a steak tartare. Now they’re being barbecued in the Adelaide heat by a relentless, highly-skilled and ruthless Australian team.