Australia won the fifth Ashes Test by 146 runs to seal a 4-0 series victory against England, who endured a woeful batting collapse in Hobart.
England dismissed Australia for just 155 in their second innings at Bellerive Oval and took control when Rory Burns and Zak Crawley combined to reach 68-0 in reply.
But the tourists fell apart from that point and finished 124 all out, meaning it will be 14 years since their last away win in an Ashes Test by the time they return in 2025.
The tourists trailed by 152 runs at the start of play on Sunday, but Mark Wood got his side off to a strong start by taking a career-best 6-37 to skittle Australia.
The hosts dug in from 63-6 to reach 155 all out and England gave themselves hope of chasing down an improbable 271 through Burns and Crawley.
The pair mounted the highest opening partnership of any side in the series, reaching 36 and 26 respectively but, not for the first time this series, a batting collapse followed.
Cameron Green picked up 3-21, with Dawid Malan (10) his other victim, and England added just 36 more runs from their final eight wickets.
Ben Stokes, who averaged 23.60 with the bat this series, went for five runs, as did Ollie Pope, with Joe Root (11) and Sam Billings (1) doing little to hold off Australia either side.
Chris Woakes (5) fell for single figures the first time this series as he edged Scott Boland behind on the drive, before Mark Wood (11) dragged Pat Cummins onto his stumps.
Australia did not have to wait long to take England's final wicket, with Ollie Robinson bowled for a duck by a Cummins full toss to end the tourists' misery.
England undone by Green
Burns and Crawley tried their best to turn the fifth Test into a contest that could potentially go to the wire, but then up stepped Green to completely kill England's momentum.
England were 60-0 when Green, who is the youngest player to score a half-century for Australia at Bellerive Oval, took over and they were 88-3 when he bowled his final ball.
Incredibly, the tourists were all out for 124 just 22.4 overs later.
Tourists' woes epitomised by Woakes
England have now won only one of their 14 Tests in the past 11 months, but Root must surely be left to wonder what might have been in Hobart.
A turning point arrived when Woakes appeared to have dismissed Alex Carey for 19 earlier in the day, which would have left Australia 91-7, but he was judged to have overstepped.
Carey went on to make a crucial 49 as Australia comfortably claimed another win and matched the margin of their victory from four years ago.
Archer brings 'fear factor' to England's T20 World Cup squad, says Curran
Jofra Archer's return will bring a "fear factor" to England's bowling attack at the T20 World Cup, believes team-mate Sam Curran.
Paceman Archer has endured an injury-hit few years, with elbow and back problems preventing him from representing England since March 2023.
However, he has been included in England's provisional squad for next month's World Cup in the United States and West Indies and could make his international return on Wednesday.
England face Pakistan in the first of four T20Is at Headingley, and Archer is expected to feature after taking part in team training on Monday.
It is hoped he might play in three of the four matches against Pakistan in order to build up fitness ahead of the World Cup, and Curran says opposition teams will be nervous about his return.
"It's incredibly exciting," Curran said on Monday. "I'm sure England fans and players are extremely buzzed to have him back. He's an addition no side can turn down.
"He's obviously got that extra pace and fear factor we can bring to the opposition as well. Hopefully his injuries are behind him now."
Kane injury doubt for England Euro 2024 squad
Harry Kane may be a doubt for England’s Euro 2024 squad as he continues to struggle with a back problem.
Gareth Southgate is due to name his preliminary squad for Euro 2024 on Tuesday, ahead of upcoming friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland.
The England captain missed the final two Bundesliga games of the season after going off towards the end of Bayern Munich’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid.
Thomas Tuchel confirmed prior to their final match against Hoffenheim that Kane was back in England to undergo treatment.
When later asked again about the nature of the striker’s injury, Tuchel admitted that Kane had been struggling for a couple of weeks.
"In Madrid, it was borderline. We tried injections and treatments. The back has completely closed.
"It has gotten worse and kept breaking out in small, everyday movements. There's no chance he's even training."
Kane scored 36 league goals in his debut campaign for Bayern, though due to the injury, he finished five adrift of Robert Lewandowski’s single-season goal record of 41, set in 2019-20.
The final announcement of Southgate's 26-man squad will be revealed on June 7, ahead of the tournament opener against Serbia on June 16.
Brandon King named captain as West Indies squad named for three-match T20I series against South Africa
Brandon King has been appointed captain of the West Indies squad named to face South Africa in the upcoming three T20 International series at Sabina Park in Kingston starting Thursday, May 23. The squad has been gearing up for this exciting and highly anticipated series with a training camp held at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua. The selection panel has confirmed that Brandon King will have Roston Chase as his vice captain. Both appointments are on an interim basis.
King was set to lead the West Indies A-Team on the recently concluded T20 tour to Nepal before he was withdrawn due to injury. Chase, appointed instead, went on to lead the A-Team to a series win against Nepal.
The West Indies Men’s squad for the series is as follows: Brandon King (Captain), Roston Chase (Vice-Captain), Fabian Allen, Alick Athanaze, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Matthew Forde, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Shamar Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Obed McCoy, Gudakesh Motie, Romario Shepherd and Hayden Walsh Jr.
Alzarri Joseph and Sherfane Rutherford will be added to the squad if their respective franchises do not reach the Indian Premier League (IPL) Final. Shai Hope and Nicholas Pooran are both rested for the series and will join the squad in Trinidad on Monday, 27 May.
“These are among the last competitive T20 International matches before the start of the World Cup,” said lead selector Desmond Haynes. “Players have the opportunity to fine-tune their skills and ensure they are as prepared as they can be for the World Cup, whether they are in the final squad or reserve pool.”
White Ball Head Coach Daren Sammy also commented on his objectives for this series stating, “We have not played together as a team since the Australia series, but we just completed a very high-intensity training camp in Antigua. Now we have the chance to integrate some of our players returning from the IPL and build some momentum as a group going into the World Cup.”
Tickets for the T20I Series against South Africa at Sabina Park, Jamaica are available now to buy online from the Windies Tickets service, at WINDIES TICKET PORTAL. Fans who purchase online will benefit from a 20 per cent discount compared to the box office prices, with tickets ranging from the most premium seats with the best-shaded views in the stadium through to affordable standard seats or mounds/grounds entry.
Match schedule:
- 23 May 1st T20I West Indies v South Africa at Sabina Park, Jamaica 2:00 pm JT/3:00 pm ECT
- 25 May 2nd T20I West Indies v South Africa at Sabina Park, Jamaica 2:00 pm JT/3:00 pm ECT
- 26 May 3rd T20I West Indies v South Africa at Sabina Park, Jamaica 2:00 pm JT/3:00 pm ECT
West Indies won the last T20 International played at Sabina Park against New Zealand in August 2022, which was the last time international cricket was played at this historic venue.
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