So it has finally come to pass, after a handful of ritual hammerings and humiliations over the last two decades England have stood up to the Aussies and retained the Ashes in Melbourne.
This is a considerable achievement considering the recent past and especially the last tour which ended in a whitewash of such epic proportions that it was surprising that Russell Crowe wasn't considered for selection as trouncing followed annihilation. England weren't just beaten they were pulverised, with nothing more painful than the Adelaide test when Flintoff (remember him) declared and we still lost by 6 wickets. This current side are not necessarily world beaters but there is no way that they would have allowed such a dominant position to slip away.
The crucial issue is whether the balance has swung England's way because of their excellence or is it down to Australian weakness. It is surely more the latter as most Australian batsmen have failed, with captain and vice-captain most culpable. Only Hussey has really made a positive contribution and his failure at Melbourne paved the way for England's big victory. The bowlers have hardly covered themselves in glory with only Siddle showing anything approaching consistency and he is not exactly Glenn McGrath.
England are a solid unit and their strength in depth showed when Broad was injured but his replacement, Tremlett was amongst the wickets and continued to make inroads into the soft underbelly of Australian batting. Also Bresnan proved to be more than up to the job when replacing the dangerous yet profligate Finn and taking crucial wickets in the fourth test.
So is this the dawning of a new era or just a temporary switch in fortune? Somehow I cannot see there being another quarter century before Australia start to dominate again, so we might as well revel in the glory before the phoenix rises from the Ashes.
