Australia crush England, Bazball inside 11 days to retain Ashes

The Ashes 2025 is over inside three Tests as Australia run over England in Adelaide to retain the urn. Needing four wickets to win the third Test at the Adelaide Oval, the Aussie bowlers did grind a bit in the first session but came back stronger in the second to clinch an 82-run win and seal the Ashes. Although Jamie Smith and Will Jacks showed grit during the first hour, a dismal shot (by Smith) off Mitchell Starc broke the stand, who later picked two more, including that of Jacks, to wrap England on 352 in their second innings.

Australia took 11 days to win the home Ashes, crush the Bazball and retain the urn, something every Aussie player had been working on for the past two years. Starc, who did wonders with both bat and ball in the three contested matches thus far, admitted to feeling ‘bloody good’ about the win.

“Feels bloody good. I’ve managed to work for it. It was a bit of a flat wicket, and they (England) played pretty well, but I think those are the ones you cherish a bit more when you have to work a bit harder, aren’t they? So yeah, another rousing win. It’s been a great atmosphere all week, all series so far,” Starc said after picking three of the four remaining wickets on the final day in Adelaide.

However, all wasn’t nice and pleasing for the hosts as they lost Nathan Lyon to a suspected hamstring injury inside the first session. Lyon, who picked up three wickets in the final innings, including that of Harry Brook, captain Ben Stokes and opener Zak Crawley, all crucial ones, hobbled off the field after attempting to stop a boundary at fine leg. Although he remained on the sidelines, the quicks compensated for the loss, with Starc doing the most damage.

The left-armer first picked up Smith, who played a horrendous shot before removing Jacks, caught excellently by Marnus Labuschagne in the second slip, to end England’s hopes.

The Test veteran then got the better of seamer Jofra Archer, who smashed a fifty in the first innings, to put England’s back against the wall before Scott Boland wrapped up the proceedings by dismissing Josh Tongue caught in the slip cordon.

Watch the moment Australia retained the Ashes -

Meanwhile, the visitors failed to get going across three Tests despite handy performances from just a handful of players. Stokes was one of England’s better batters alongside Joe Root, with Archer and Brydon Carse impressing with the ball, although nothing was enough to keep themselves alive in this series.

The fourth Test of this series begins at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Boxing Day (Dec 26), with Australia leading 3-0.