Australia romped to a 281-run victory over England on day three of the fifth Ashes Test at the SCG, wrapping up a comprehensive whitewash as the Three Lions were declawed and all out for 166 in the evening.
The Aussies were all out for 276 earlier in the day, after Chris Rogers scored a century and the tail collapsed. This left England needing to chase 448 to win or bat for half the Test, and they failed to bat for more than half the day.
Australia paceman Ryan Harris took five wickets as the hosts bagged a massive seven wickets after tea, with only Stuart Broad’s 43 and Michael Carberry’s 42 providing any kind of resistance.
Australia were batting at the start of the day, with Rogers and George Bailey in the middle. The opener was on 73 and on his way to his second ton of the series, while Bailey, looking to prove his worth after a tough start, was on 20.
The pair added 60 runs to the 140 they had overnight, before Bailey departed for 46. He was caught by Scott Borthwick off Stuart Broad, leaving Brad Haddin to join the centurion for the next few overs.
Once Haddin departed for 28, the rest of the wickets tumbled fairly quickly as the hosts looked to push the score and take on the bowlers. As such, Borthwick ended up taking three wickets, but more due to risky shots than his own spin.
Once Peter Siddle fell in the 62nd over, England then came out to face a fired-up pace attack in front of a pink-clad crowd on Jane McGrath Day. From the get-go it was curtains, as Alastair Cook departed for seven.
He was caught behind by Haddin off Man of the Series Mitchell Johnson, who took 37 wickets over the five games, and bagged three in this final innings. Carberry stuck around as Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen departed cheaply before tea.
The Hampshire batsman’s knock came to an end two balls into the evening session, for 42, as he edged Johnson behind. This was the first of seven wickets to fall in the next 10-odd overs, with Broad and Ben Stokes hitting a few shots.
Stokes, England’s only bright light of the tour, made a rapid 32 off 16 balls, while Broad’s 43 came off 36 deliveries. Broad and Boyd Rankin were the final wickets to fall, in one Harris over, to end the game and the series.