Ashes

Broad joined an exclusive club, with long-time opening bowling partner James Anderson the only other seamer to go past the landmark, alongside spinners Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble.

All eyes were on Broad after he snared Australia opener Usman Khawaja lbw for his 599th dismissal at Emirates Old Trafford on Wednesday morning, with long-term rival David Warner firmly in his sights.

Broad has dismissed Warner on 17 occasions – the joint third highest for a bowler against an individual batter, including twice last time out at Headingley – but the opener instead fell to Chris Woakes.

But Broad claimed a momentous wicket shortly after tea as England’s bumper plan to Head was rewarded, with the left-hander injudiciously hooking and Joe Root running in from long leg to take a low catch.

It might not have been the manner Broad would have expected to get to 600 but the wicket was also significant as it moved him on to 149 dismissals against Australia – a new England record as he eclipsed Sir Ian Botham’s haul of 148 versus the old enemy.

Substitute fielder George Ealham, the 21-year-old son of former England all-rounder Mark, came close to swinging things decisively in the home side’s favour when he produced a lightning fast gather and throw to leave Smith scrambling.

Memories of former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting having his stumps thrown down by Gary Pratt 18 years ago came flooding back, but Smith was spared that fate as replays cast doubt over the role of wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow.

He appeared to nudge a bail loose with his arm before gathering the ball and completing the run out, leading TV umpire Nitin Menon to spare Smith on 44. Australia added exactly 100 runs for three wickets after the incident, finishing 295 all out and 12 runs in front.

The decision did not go down well with the majority of the sold-out Kia Oval crowd, but Broad admitted his own grasp of the technicalities was imperfect and accepted the verdict.

“I don’t know the rules to be honest. I think there was enough grey area to give that not out,” he said.

“What are the rules? Was it the right decision? It looked like benefit of the doubt sort of stuff. The first angle I saw I thought ‘out’ and then with the side angle it looked like the bails probably dislodged.”

Broad’s bowling partner James Anderson also sought to take any heat out of the umpires’ call, telling BBC Sport: “It felt like one of those where Australia think it’s not out and we thought it was out.

“I’ve not had a proper look on the TV, but it felt like a very close decision. We have to trust that the third umpire knows what he’s doing and got the decision right.”

Smith, who top-scored with 71, accepted his near miss but doffed his cap in Ealham’s direction after admitting the Surrey second teamer had caught him unawares with his rapid response.

“It was pretty tight, but when I looked the second time it looked like Jonny might have knocked the bail before the ball came in,” he said.

“It looked a close one but it got given not out, didn’t it? He was quick! I know now he’s very quick.

“The next one we hit out there we kind of pushed and he was haring round the boundary, coming in at pace. Had I known that previously, I might have just stayed there for the single.”

England will begin their second innings on Saturday morning, with barely anything to separate the sides as an enthralling series enters its final chapter.

There have been two distinct styles on show, with England scoring at a rampant rate 5.17 across less than 55 overs and Australia taking almost twice as long to get their runs at 2.85.

The tourists have already retained the urn with a 2-1 lead, but both teams have a viable route to victory as they look to finish the series on a high.

“It’s going to be another cracker, I think. Both teams played pretty different on it but pretty successfully,” Broad said.

“At one stage when Smith was nearly run out we thought we could get a pretty decent lead, but the Aussies battled pretty hard there and I think it’s just set up to be a cracking game again. That is the way the Aussies play, they try to see off the new ball, grind you down, and see off a huge number of overs.”

Smith added: “It’s ebbed and flowed the whole way…a few of us got good starts but couldn’t go and get a big score.

“We’re 12 runs in front so it’s pretty much a one-innings game from here. One positive out of the game so far is we have put more overs into their bowlers than the 50-odd ours bowled.”

The tourists produced a thoroughly passive batting performance, attempting to grind their opponents down but coming unstuck as they coughed up five wickets in the afternoon session.

At tea they had lurched to 186 for seven, a colourless innings that gave England the upper hand and struck a stark contrast to the hosts’ thrill-a-minute 283 on the first day.

At the break, the Baggy Greens were 97 behind with Steve Smith unbeaten on 40 and carrying the bulk of his side’s hopes.

While England burned out in less than 55 overs and scored at a rampant rate of 5.17, Australia slammed the brakes on as they eked out their runs at 2.48.

With the scoreboard moving at glacial pace in the morning, Australia scoring 54 in two hours of stoic defence, Broad grabbed the initiative after lunch as he removed Usman Khawaja and Travis Head in successive overs.

England kept charging in and chipped away at a side who have retained the urn but lost their mojo. James Anderson claimed his first breakthrough of the match when Mitch Marsh dragged down his stumps, an out-of-sorts Alex Carey lobbed Joe Root to short cover and Mark Wood bounced out Mitchell Starc.

Root, who was only pressed into bowling action due to first-choice spinner Moeen Ali’s groin injury, had earlier got England on the board with a super reaction catch at first slip.

After almost 90 minutes of blocking in difficult batting conditions the ultra-defensive Marnus Labuschagne, who scraped together nine runs off 82 deliveries, eventually nicked Wood for what should have been a regulation caught behind.

But Jonny Bairstow failed to make a move a move and the ball would have raced away for four had Root not flung himself into action, diving to his left to pull off a remarkable one-handed grab.

Australia still appeared to be in control at the interval, going in at 115 for two as Khawaja produced a watchful opener’s knock, but the limited ambition came home to roost in the middle session.

They added just 71 between lunch and tea as they lost control of the narrative. Broad was the primary reason for the change in tone.

He found a way through Khawaja’s well-rehearsed defences after nearly five hours of occupation, angling in from round the wicket and hitting him in front of leg stump for 47.

He then followed by making short work of the dangerous Travis Head, the man most likely to energise a quiet day.

Head got off the mark with a boundary but that was the start and the end of his scoring, as he felt for contact in the channel and nicked through to Bairstow.

Broad had two in six balls, the crowd’s pulses had raised and Australia had seen their hard work come undone.

With James Anderson and Ollie Robinson fit to return to the XI after resting injury niggles against Ireland at Lord’s, there was just one spot left in the seam attack for Friday’s series opener.

Stokes has previously spoken of his desire to have a 90mph option at his disposal and, with Jofra Archer and Olly Stone on the sidelines, the temptation to unleash the quickest bowler in the country must have been considerable.

But Wood was edged out by Broad, who led the attack impressively against the Irish at the start of the month and whose record of 162 caps and 582 wickets is bettered only by Anderson.

His selection guarantees another chapter in the 36-year-old’s storied rivalry with Australia opener David Warner, who floundered badly against Broad in 2019, when the Englishman dismissed him seven times in 10 innings.

With Moeen Ali slotting straight in at number eight after agreeing to rescind his Test retirement, the only question that lingers over the England side concerns the fitness of captain Ben Stokes.

His longstanding left knee problems have been a source of constant speculation, but he has ramped up his participation in training over the past 48 hours. He bowled 12 deliveries in a gentle centre practice on Monday, getting through his action but never threatening full pace, and raised that to around 18 in the nets on Tuesday.

Despite wearing heavy strapping he was quickly up to near full speed in what was his most thorough workout in months and also appeared to bat pain-free. Just how much he is able to contribute with the ball is an open question but had he been fully fit to play an enforcer role it may well have helped Wood’s case.

He is best used over short, sharp spells of three to four overs and a fully active seam-bowling all-rounder can help pick up the slack.

Opener Ben Duckett and number five Harry Brook are the only players in the side to be making their Ashes debuts in Birmingham, while Broad and Anderson have both taken the field 35 times against the old enemy.

Three years after taking his 500th wicket at the same ground, Broad completed another century of scalps to join a hall of fame that includes only four other names: Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, team-mate James Anderson and Anil Kumble. Among fast bowlers, Anderson and Broad stand alone in the pantheon.

The 37-year-old dismissed the series’ top run-scorer Usman Khawaja early on and returned after tea to bounce out Travis Head as his landmark victim, overtaking Sir Ian Botham’s record of 148 wickets Australian wickets in the process.

But with England in do-or-die territory at 2-1 down heading into the fourth Test, the collective mission in Manchester was even more important than any personal achievements, guaranteeing Woakes a healthy share of the spotlight.

He bowled superbly all day to claim four for 52, with Australia finishing up on 299 for eight after being sent in by Ben Stokes.

Woakes picked up exactly where he left off in an excellent comeback performance at Headingley, picking off David Warner in the morning session before removing Australia’s dangerous duelling all-rounders Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green in one outstanding over in the evening.

The pair were initially thought to be fighting for one place in the side but Australia surprisingly ditched their spinner Todd Murphy to find room for both. That beefed up their middle order but Woakes swept them both aside at an important moment in the evening session, trapping Green lbw as he hunched forward in defence and then having Marsh brilliantly caught behind.

England kept faith with Bairstow behind the stumps despite a series of costly misses in the first three Tests and got a measure of payback as he held on to an ankle-high nick, sprawling almost horizontally as he scooped the chance in front of first slip.

And it was Woakes who provided a late sting in the tail, taking out Alex Carey with the new ball to squash a vexing stand with Mitchell Starc.

Australia will rue a slightly sloppy day, full of batters getting out just as they looked set. Four of their top six were out between 41 and 51, with Warner making 32, but their failure to kick on could also be read as a testament to England’s dogged determination.

Stokes showed no hesitation in sending the opposition in first, a decision that appeared to be based partially on overcast skies and partially due to the prospect of a weekend washout.

The first of those factors began to change almost as soon as he made the call, with the clouds disappearing and the sun coming out.

Broad ensured England got on the board early, missing out on his nemesis Warner but sending the in-form Khawaja back for three after nailing him on the front pad from round the wicket.

There was no flurry of chances to follow, though, with Australia getting the better of the morning’s play as they posted a lunch total of 107 for two.

Woakes was the pick of the bowlers and picked up Warner just as his confidence started to grow, caught behind as he drove with hard hands.

England might have considered themselves unlucky not to get Labuschagne or Steve Smith early, with both starting awkwardly. Smith uncharacteristically hooked his first ball from Woakes towards fine-leg, but Mark Wood was a few yards in from the rope and missed out on what would otherwise have been a banker of a catch.

Both batters began to look more comfortable but were unable to impose themselves fully.

Smith (41) was undone by Wood’s extra pace, just too late on a 92mph ball that struck him dead in front, while Labuschagne’s relief at making a first half-century of the series evaporated instantly. Nudging forward to a Moeen Ali teaser that gripped off the surface and snuck past the inside edge, he was on his way.

With a tangible hint of first day turn, Australia may well have been ruing their own decision to go with no specialist spinner for the first time in 120 Tests.

Broad’s magic moment came after tea when he followed the team plan to bowl short at Head, digging in a short ball that was flapped obligingly to Root in the deep. The cheers belonged to Broad, cementing his status as one of England’s most enduring Ashes combatants, but the hard work continued.

Marsh, fresh from a fluent century in the third Test, unloaded a 56-ball fifty before he became the second part of Woakes’ double in the 63rd over. Carey, welcomed by the now customary boos, guided Starc through a 39-run partnership in the closing stages before he perished to the fresh Dukes.

Attempting to offer no stroke, he grazed Woakes through to Bairstow as England moved within two wickets of completing the job.

Alex Carey’s opportunistic stumping of his fellow wicketkeeper during the dramatic conclusion to the second Ashes Test sparked fury from fans and members at the home of cricket and the row has shown no signs of abating.

Broad replaced Bairstow in the middle following the incident, before Australia went on to win and take a 2-0 lead.

Broad insists “zero advantage” came from Bairstow straying from his crease and, after making his point to the Australian players throughout the duration of his stay, the England seamer feels Cummins will eventually think upholding the appeal was the wrong play.

“What amazed me, and what I told the Australians I could not believe as we left the field at lunch, was that not one senior player among them — and I very much understand in the emotion of the game that the bowler and wicketkeeper would have thought ‘that’s out’ — questioned what they had done,” Broad wrote in the Daily Mail.

“Especially given what their team has been through over recent years, with all their cultural change. Not one of them said ‘Hang on, lads. I’m not really sure about this’. Not one of them thought ‘He’s gaining no advantage. He’s not trying to get a run. It’s the end of the over. It’s a bit of a random dismissal. We should cancel that appeal’.

“Ultimately, Pat Cummins is a really great guy and I would be amazed, once the emotion settles, if he does not sit back and think ‘I got that one wrong’, even though his bottom line at the time was winning a Test match.”

Ex-players, pundits and even Prime Minister Rishi Sunak weighed in on the debate, while anger in the crowd at the manner of Bairstow’s exit spilled over in the usually restrained Long Room at Lord’s, where Australian players Usman Khawaja and David Warner were involved in heated exchanges with jeering members – three of whom were later suspended by Marylebone Cricket Club.

Broad, too, admits the moment got the better of him as he joined captain Ben Stokes, watching from the other end as the skipper hit a remarkable 155 in a forlorn effort to level the series.

“The red mist came over me, too, when I arrived at the crease to replace Jonny, and some of what I said was picked up on the stump mics — which naively, given my experience, I didn’t really think about. I just said to Pat on repeat ‘All these boos are for you, for your decision’. And ‘What a great opportunity you had to think clearly’,” he added.

“Also, I needed to support Ben Stokes in any way, shape or form I could, and I am always better when I’m in a bit of a battle. I normally try and pick a fight with someone on the opposition but on this occasion I picked a fight with the whole team.

“To Alex Carey, I said ‘This is what you’ll be remembered for, and that’s such a shame’. It may have been a bit silly, but I also shouted ‘in’ every time I crossed the line. It annoyed the Australians for maybe half-an-hour, although after two-and-a-half hours, they were probably a bit bored of it.”

The 37-year-old announced his retirement at the end of day three of his 167th Test.

England needed two wickets to win in the closing stages at the Oval and ultimately draw the series as Australia continued to knock off the 383 runs needed in order to claim their first series victory on these shores since 2001.

Broad says he had been told by captain Ben Stokes that he would be replaced by Mark Wood before his delivery to Murphy, but got the fairytale ending to his professional career by having Murphy caught behind before claiming his final victim, Alex Carey, a couple of overs later.

He told Sky Sports: “Actually Stokesy said to me before the Todd Murphy wicket that this will be my last over because we need to get Woody on with the extra pace.

“That (wicket) was the last ball of the over and I was running in knowing that was my last ball of professional cricket and my legs went a bit jelly like as I was running in.

“I just said to myself ‘just hit the pitch as hard as you can’ and he nicked it and that’s why I was like ‘oh my god he’s nicked it’.

“I managed to get another over so it felt really special to finish on a win and be in the changing room with all the guys I’ve played so much cricket with.”

Broad, England’s second-highest Test wicket-taker of all time, did not tell his team-mates until the morning of the day he went public with the news, admitting he was still “emotionally tired” on the decision.

He continued: “I was so focused on the Ashes series and the games were coming so thick and fast, I didn’t really have time to think of anything else and had to be fully dedicated to the task at hand.

“Probably towards the end of Old Trafford I started to think, the start of the last Test is next week, I’m thinking where should I go and just could not think clearly enough.

“I was emotionally tired on what was already a busy summer so far but I facetimed Mollie (Broad’s fiancee) on the Friday night and she said ‘you’ve just got to follow your heart and say what you think and I’ll support you either way’.

“I put the Facetime down and went to Stokesy’s room, shook his hand and just told him straight away ‘that’s me. It’s been an absolute pleasure to play with you as a team-mate and a friend, and you’ve been a dream captain so thank you’ and once I made that decision, I felt at peace with it straight away.”

The seamer developed a new tactic to switch the bails on top of the stumps in an attempt to disrupt the batter.

On both occasions a wicket fell – Marnus Labuschagne nicked Mark Wood straight into the hands of Joe Root in the first innings before Murphy edged behind to set England on their way to victory.

He said: “It was really special and really loud on Monday, the atmosphere was awesome out there and the little bail flick and getting a couple of wickets.

“I just made it up and I wish I made it about 10 years ago as I might have found a few more wickets!”

Broad joined long-time new-ball partner James Anderson in the elite group and here, the PA news agency looks at how he measures up.

Game-wrecker

Broad’s wickets have come in 166 matches at an average of 27.57, with his Test debut coming back in 2007 against Sri Lanka.

Known for his game-wrecking bursts, Broad has 20 five-wicket hauls and three 10-wicket matches – a best of 11 for 121 against Australia at Chester-le-Street in 2013 and two against the West Indies, at Lord’s in 2012 and Old Trafford in 2020.

He produced a scintillating innings best of eight for 15 at Trent Bridge to help win the 2015 Ashes and has twice taken seven-wicket hauls at Lord’s, in the aforementioned West Indies clash and against New Zealand the following year.

Broad is also the only England bowler with two Test hat-tricks to his name. The first came against India in 2011 as part of figures of six for 46, with the second against Sri Lanka in 2014.

Australia opener David Warner is his favourite opponent with 17 dismissals across seven Ashes series dating back to 2013, including seven in 100 innings in 2019.

He has 11 dismissals each of Warner’s fellow Australians Steve Smith and Michael Clarke and has taken the wickets of New Zealand pair Ross Taylor and Tom Latham and South Africa’s AB de Villiers 10 times each.

Broad’s golden period between 2013 and 2016 also saw him take six for 25 against India at Old Trafford and six for 17 in Johannesburg to bowl South Africa out for 83. Those four years brought him 196 wickets at 25.56, including nine five-fors and four of his best five-innings figures.

He has shown little sign of slowing down with age, though, putting together a similarly impressive stretch dating back to 2019 – the year he turned 33. He has 165 wickets at 23.75 in that time and aside from a down year in 2021, with just 12 wickets in seven Tests, he has averaged 40 dismissals a year and is on course to maintain that with 34 this year.

Among the elite

Anderson and Broad sit third and fifth respectively on the list of all-time leading Test wicket-takers, which is headed by two of the world’s all-time great spin bowlers.

Muttiah Muralitharan’s 800 wickets – 795 for Sri Lanka and five for an ICC World XI – may never be matched, with the late Shane Warne currently the only man within 100 after taking 708 for Australia.

Anderson is closing on 700 with 688, while former India spinner Anil Kumble’s 619 wickets is the next mark in Broad’s sights.

Retired seamers Glenn McGrath and Courtney Walsh are the only other bowlers to take even 500 wickets – McGrath 563 for Australia and Walsh 519 for the West Indies.

Injury deprived Australia’s Nathan Lyon (496) of the chance to add his name to that list during the Ashes, while fellow spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (486) also has it in his sights.

Only Kumble of the current 500 club has a higher average than Broad, the Indian taking his wickets at 29.65. McGrath’s 21.64 edges out Muralitharan (22.72) for the best average.

Broad surprisingly has the fewest five-wicket innings among the septet, though on 12 of those 20 occasions he has gone on to take at least six – including two sevens and that eight-wicket blitz.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the statistical significance of both decisions.

“Bowling from the James Anderson End…”

Anderson took only three wickets in the first two Tests of this series before sitting out at Headingley but his return at his home for his 23-year county career, where he has even emulated fellow Lancashire and England seam bowling great Brian Statham by having an end named after him, was surely inevitable.

His Test record on the ground adds to his case, with 37 wickets at an average of 22.03 in his 10 previous appearances.

That does not include any five-wicket innings, though he took four for 38 – and seven for 54 in the match – against South Africa in 2017 and another four-wicket haul against New Zealand in 2008.

It will be only Anderson’s second Ashes Test at Old Trafford. The first, a decade ago, saw him toil at the hands of centurion Michael Clarke in the first innings before picking up two wickets in a frantic second innings of declaration batting as Australia tried in vain to beat the rain.

Ollie Robinson’s back spasms during the third Test made him the obvious fall guy, though he has a creditable 10 wickets at 28.40 in the current series and took four for 43 in last year’s Old Trafford win over South Africa.

Stuart Broad has an even better record than Anderson in Old Trafford Tests, with 44 wickets at 19.25 including two six-wicket hauls, and is the leading wicket-taker in this series with 16 at 24.93.

That is one wicket more than Australia captain Pat Cummins, while Mitchell Starc has 13. Nathan Lyon (nine) and Josh Hazlewood (eight) follow Robinson on that list, with the next places occupied by two England seamers who only came in at Headingley but quickly cemented their places.

Mark Wood produced astonishing pace to take five for 34 in the first innings and seven in the match, while he blazed 24 runs in England’s first innings and 16 in the second to see them over the line along with fellow series debutant Chris Woakes.

The Warwickshire all-rounder took three wickets in each innings and finished unbeaten on 32 as he struck the winning runs. Woakes also has 23 wickets at 18.48 in five Old Trafford Tests, with Wood set to play his first.

Promotion for Moeen

Moeen put his hand up to bat at number three in the second innings at Headingley and though he made just five, the experiment will be repeated.

It solves an England conundrum in Ollie Pope’s absence, with Harry Brook having made just three in the first innings, while Joe Root is most comfortable at number four, but has not been a productive spot for Moeen in Tests.

He has batted everywhere in the top nine in his 66 games, but mainly at six, seven or eight. That means some small statistical samples elsewhere but at number three he averages 13.14, consisting of 92 runs in seven innings. A strike rate of 32.39 is also hardly in keeping with England’s aggressive philosophy.

September 2018’s Test against India at the Oval accounts for 70 of his runs at number three, with scores of 50 and 20. He made nine against them in the previous Test and five in 2016, batting at three for the second innings only on each occasion, and a first-ball duck followed by three against Sri Lanka in Galle in 2018.

He averages 12.75 at number two but taking his six innings as an opener overall, that average of 14 leaves number three as his lowest anywhere in the order. His best is 51.20 at number four, while in his regular positions he averages 21.50 at number six, 33.48 at seven and 25.93 at eight, with an overall Test average of 27.82.

A two-wicket win for the tourists in Birmingham has put Pat Cummins’ side in the driving seat to retain the urn but the confidence of Ben Stokes’ men and their commitment to the aggressive ‘Bazball’ style remains undeterred.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the key talking points before the action gets under way at the home of cricket.

Australia braced for Tongue-lashing

Josh Tongue’s surprise inclusion in England’s XI continues his superb ascent since contemplating retirement from the game last year. Tongue impressed on his Test debut against Ireland at the start of June, but this will be a step up in opposition and occasion. While plenty had predicted England could go with an all-seam attack for the second Test, especially given Moeen Ali’s finger injury, Mark Wood had been expected to get the nod. Instead, Tongue will try to ruffle some Australian feathers with his pace and some short-pitched bowling.

Another day one declaration?

The knifes were out after England lost the thrilling series opener over the decision of captain Stokes to declare on the first day at Edgbaston with centurion Joe Root well set and England on 393 for eight. England’s vice-skipper Ollie Pope insisted there was method behind the so-called “madness” during his press conference on Monday and in truth, the bold choice – in keeping with the ‘Bazball’ style – ensured a result occurred on the final day. Could the same happen at Lord’s? You bet, with England wedded in their commitment to push the game on at every opportunity.

All eyes on Jonny

The instant post-mortem from Edgbaston also saw scrutiny heighten on Jonny Bairstow’s role behind the stumps. Bairstow, preferred at the start of this summer to Ben Foakes, endured a mixed display with a string of missed chances countered by his excellent 78 in the first innings. There was never any suggestion Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum would recall Foakes at Lord’s, but Bairstow will hope for a strong display with the gloves to quieten the doubters. The majority of the blots on his wicket-keeping copybook in Birmingham also happened in the first innings with the hosts hopeful that would have been down to rustiness.

Can Robinson’s ‘nude nuts’ deliver again

Ollie Robinson has copped plenty of flak since his headline-grabbing exploits in the first Test. An expletive-laden send-off to Usman Khawaja saw the Sussex seamer quickly become public enemy number one Down Under. Aussie greats Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke have dished out criticism – hilariously almost in order of their old batting positions – but the real theatre this week will be how Cummins’ current charges tackle the challenge of Robinson’s “nude nuts” that have claimed 71 wickets at an average of 21.15 in 17 Tests.

Will Aussie star duo fail again?

What made Australia’s series-opening victory all the more impressive was the minimal contribution by star batting duo Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne, who made a combined total of 31 runs. Cummins sent a warning to England on Tuesday when he talked about how history suggests lightning will not strike twice when it comes to the reliable pair, with 41 Test centuries between them, potentially failing again at Lord’s. After Smith and Labuschagne tormented England in the last Ashes series here in 2019, the home of cricket is braced for more of the same.

The tourists were struggling after Stuart Broad dismissed David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne with successive deliveries, but Khawaja rebuilt the innings with a superb 126 not out.

The opener dug in for almost six and a half hours, building important partnerships with Travis Head and Cameron Green, before a late offensive push with Alex Carey saw Australia end the day 82 behind on 311 for five.

Khawaja marked his century with an impassioned celebration that saw him throw his bat high over his head. The 36-year-old has been enjoying a renaissance in recent years, notching hundreds in Australia, India and Pakistan along the way.

Yet runs in England had always eluded him – with a top score of 54 and an average of 19.60 prior to this century – and the fact was not lost on the home fans at the ground.

“I genuinely do not read the media but when I’m getting sprayed (taunted) by the crowd as I’m walking out there today and as I’m going to nets being told that I can’t score runs in England…I guess it was just a bit more emotional than normal,” he said.

“I think it (the celebration) was a combination of having three Ashes tours in England and being dropped in two of them. Not that I have a point to prove, but it’s nice to go out there and score runs for Australia and just to show everyone that the last 10 years hasn’t been a fluke.”

Khawaja, who attended the end of day press conference with his daughter Aisha in tow, spoke of how the realisation that this will almost certainly be his last trip to England had freed him up.

“These young ones keep me young and make me realise that there’s a lot to life and a lot of good stuff, inshallah, after I stop playing cricket,” he said.

“So for me, it’s just about enjoying it. My wife has been awesome to me, she’s been my rock throughout my career.

“That perspective makes it a lot easier for me to go out there and just play and try and enjoy it as much as I can, whether I get a duck or a hundred.

“Every Test match is a bonus for me because we thought my career was over. In my head, it’s the last (Ashes) tour I’ll be on, unless I pull a Jimmy Anderson and come back when I’m 41.”

Only 30 overs were possible on Saturday, where Australia advanced from 113 for four to 214 for five and although they are still 61 runs in arrears, they could be bailed out by the elements.

After persistent overnight showers left a saturated outfield, a planned pitch inspection at the scheduled start time of 11am on the final day never materialised because of a brief band of rain.

Another examination of the playing field took place at 12.15pm and, with an early lunch being taken five minutes later, there was hope of getting on as a start time of 1pm was announced.

However, as England’s players began warming up, the heavens opened once more, forcing them back indoors as the covers were hastily brought back on – seemingly the beginning of another frustrating delay.

England have to make all of the running if there is any play, with Australia content to settle for a draw that would retain a 2-1 lead and the urn to boot, snatching away the possibility of a Kia Oval winner-takes-all decider next week.

The tone of the game may have been different, with Ben Stokes’ side making most of the running across five enthralling days to set up a finish, but the end result was the same as 2017, 2019 and 2021.

Australia held the urn aloft in each of those series, flexing their muscles in matching 4-0 wins on home soil and retaining after a 2-2 draw on tour four years ago.

England will now need to overturn a 1-0 deficit with four games to play, but what should they do to make that happen?

Keep the faith in ‘Bazball’

Defeat against their bitter rivals will hurt, but now is not the time to rip up a playbook that has delivered 11 wins from 14 Test matches under Ben Stokes’ captaincy.

In particular, England have proven that their ultra-aggressive batting style can hurt an Australia attack who hoped they would be immune.

They scored at a rollicking 5.03 an over in the first innings and kept it up at 4.11 on a trickier surface in the second and landed important blows along the way.

Scott Boland went around the park for the first time in his Test career and Joe Root’s reverse ramps will have tested the egos of the Australian quicks.

Fix Moeen’s finger or find a replacement

There was always going to be an element of risk in summoning Moeen Ali out of international retirement when Jack Leach went down with a stress fracture.

The 36-year-old last played first-class cricket almost two years ago and his lack of conditioning came back to haunt England when his right index finger blistered then burst open.

He found it difficult to grip and rip the ball from that point onward and was able to offer just seven overs on day five as part-timer Joe Root picked up the bulk of the work.

If the medical staff are confident they can rectify the situation in the coming days Moeen should get another chance at Lord’s, but if there is a chance of history repeating then Surrey’s Will Jacks looks like the next man in and should be called up.

Dial down the declaration addiction

For the second game in a row England have lost a Test match after declaring eight down in the first innings.

New Zealand edged them by a single run in Wellington back in February and now Australia have snuck across the line.

Stokes’ penchant for calling an early end to his side’s run-scoring has been a fascinating facet of his captaincy and at times has worked brilliantly – including three Tests ago in Mount Maunganui.

But pulling out after just 78 overs, the earliest ever declaration in the Ashes, may have been slightly too radical. Root was racing along on 118 not out and it would not have taken him long to score enough runs to alter the final outcome.

Rally around Bairstow

By choosing to drop Ben Foakes, a player Stokes has frequently described as the best wicketkeeper in world cricket, England opened themselves up to criticism. But with Harry Brook undroppable after a prolific winter and the star performer of 2022, Jonny Bairstow, fit again, Foakes was the fall guy.

Bairstow is an experienced gloveman but put down at least three chances that he would have hoped to take, racking up a tab that his dashing 78 in the first innings did not fully clear.

Those who advocate a Foakes recall at Lord’s can think again, with the squad already announced and Bairstow going nowhere.

For now they need to get behind a player who thrives on confidence and certainty over his role. Neither he nor England can afford any more costly slip-ups, but showing faith might be the best way to avoid them next week.

Let Wood make his mark

One thing England lacked in their XI at Edgbaston was outright pace, a quality Mark Wood brings in abundance. With Jofra Archer and Olly Stone both out injured, he is the only man available who can routinely clear 90mph.

He is best used in short, sharp spells and concerns over Stokes’ ability to share the workload may have played a part in him missing out in the first Test. But on a Lord’s pitch that can play flat, he might be just the tonic.

Wood was England’s most impressive performer Down Under in the 2021-22 Ashes and already has Australia’s respect.

After an unusually quiet outing, record wicket-taker James Anderson could be in line to stand down but it might also be possible to lean on Root’s spin and choose a four-strong pace cartel. Either way, it feels like Wood is a game breaker they cannot afford to overlook.