Australia have reclaimed the urn after defeating England at Perth and have taken an unassailable lead of 3-0. Now Australia will target a 5-0 victory to make it a second straight Ashes whitewash at home.
For England it gives them a chance to prove they are not just here to go through the motions, but here to put up a fight and win a Test or two. There is no bigger motivation than doing well in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG.
England have a much better record in Melbourne than at the Gabba or in Perth. In last 10 Test matches played at the MCG, England have won four and drawn four.
The likes of Alastair Cook and James Anderson will have fond memories of doing well during the 2010-11 tour. The senior pros, especially Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad, need to put on a good show following the nightmare they had in the last Test.
Cook was dismissed for cheap scores in both innings in his 150th Test and Broad recorded his worst figure in Test cricket (0-142 in one innings). Anderson has somehow managed to do well when the ball moves around with 5-43 in the day-night Test to record his first five-wicket haul in Australia. A late burst of four wickets at Perth gave him decent figures of 4-116.
Captain Joe Root hasn’t had great returns yet with just 176 runs in three Tests, while his counterpart Steve Smith has led from the front with 141* at the Gabba and his highest Test score of 239 at Perth.
(Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
Mitchell Marsh, in one innings of 181, has overtaken the runs scored by Root (176) and Alastair Cook (83) in the last three Tests.
The last two Tests gives Smith (945 points) the chance to close in on Don Bradman’s batsman rating (961), while Cook has an opportunity to stand up and prove doubters wrong amid experts calling for his head after poor returns.
Mark Stoneman, who averages 32.16 in the series with a best of 56, will look to get a big score, while Dawid Malan would like to continue from where he left in the last match. Broad is seven dismissals away from 400 Test wickets and Australia know when he is on song he can single handedly turn the tide in his team’s favour, much like retired Mitch Johnson.
The Marsh Brothers and Tim Paine, who have surpassed expectations with their performances over the last few weeks will want to maintain same consistency and cement their spot for the next tour of South Africa.
David Warner, after a half century in the second innings at the Gabba, hasn’t contributed much and the flat pitch at the MCG will work in his favour. Usman Khawaja will want to get over demons of getting out to spin bowling and claim his first Ashes hundred.
James Vince will want to continue the same way he did during his knock of 55 before getting out to the ‘ball of the century’ from Mitchell Starc.
More importantly, these two Tests gives England a chance to restore some pride before starting with the limited-overs series. And give the Barmy Army something to cheer about on the Boxing Day Test.
There’s still plenty to play for. The urn is in Australian hands but for England a 3-2 finish looks much better than a 5-0 whitewash.
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