Steve Smith, the Australian captain, knew fully well the significance of these Ashes. He grasped that legacies and personal perceptions for Australians are often shaped by performances against England. Smith’s captaincy reign may be fledgling but his first Ashes campaign as skipper always loomed as a major litmus test.
Expectations were high with Australia entering the series as favourites, but question marks hovered over Smith’s team, which had been notably erratic in recent times. An Ashes hiccup would have been a calamity for Smith and cast a shadow over his leadership.
Fuelled by the stakes, an inspired Smith never wavered and his redoubtable batting has undoubtedly been at the fore of the series, which is now over with dead rubbers to follow in Melbourne and Sydney. Smith, often criticised for his surly demeanour in the field, has exuded an unwavering steely resolve to inspire his charges and ensure Australia maintained a stranglehold over England despite the occasional stumble.
Buoyed by Smith’s determination, Australia sealed an emphatic Ashes victory with a decisive innings and 41-run victory over England in the third Test at the WACA to take an unassailable 3-0 series lead. Australia’s talisman was notably ecstatic in the afterglow of a convincing Ashes triumph, which could well be a defining series for Smith’s team.
“An Ashes series is huge for Australian and English cricketers,” Smith told reporters after Australia’s Ashes victory on Monday (December 18). “There is always that added pressure, it was my first series as captain in an Ashes. I wanted to make my mark and do something really special. What the boys have done over the last couple of weeks has been exceptional.”
Make no mistake, Australia still have their flaws and work needs to be done for them to ascend to a powerhouse. Victories at home are entirely expected and so was an Ashes rout. Trickier overseas challenges await starting with an upcoming tour of South Africa and tours of Pakistan (in the UAE) and England in 2019.
However, it feels like Australia are forming something special that can genuinely last, unlike previous teasing efforts. Even their destruction of England four years ago felt somewhat fleeting, having being built on the back of several unexpected renaissances from veterans.
On this occasion, Australia seem headed for long-lasting continuity after several missing pieces of the puzzle have been found. Notably, Mitchell Marsh, the maligned allrounder, scored a breakout Test century in Perth to stamp himself as the team’s No.6. Question marks revolve around several other batting hotspots but the strength of the bowling ensures Australia can almost always be in the hunt to collect 20 wickets.
Pat Cummins is finally fit and firing to provide a dynamic partnership with fellow quicks Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. The highly talented Cummins has also shown a liking for the bat and seems destined to become a bowling allrounder – ensuring important depth for Australia’s batting order.
Smith raved about his bowling firepower and paid tribute to the meticulous preparation to get the injury prone quicks up and about. “I think here in Australia it makes a difference (having explosive pace) on the flatter pitches,” he said. “We’ve made sure to have these big three quicks on the park and ready for this series. A couple of them skipped the ODI series in India and we knew what was coming up. We were preparing for this series and we wanted the big three on the park.”
For Smith, it’s been an astounding sight to see his three quicks unleashed but their fragilities will always likely be a lingering concern. Accordingly, Starc bowled within himself on day five after suffering a bruised heel, which has put him in doubt for the Boxing Day Test. Australia have named an unchanged squad but Jackson Bird could be a call-up if Starc fails to recover.
“He wants to play,” Smith said of Starc. “He’s a little sore but he said it didn’t get any worse when he was bowling. That’s something we have to sum up. We have an important South African tour after this.”
On a dramatic last Ashes day at the WACA, Australia’s inevitable triumph was in jeopardy when play was delayed due to a wet pitch from heavy overnight rain. Eventually, play started three hours after schedule but Australia needed just 34.3 overs to claim victory.
Smith admitted he was worried about Perth’s unseasonal inclement weather. “I did look at the forecast on 35 different sites last night to try to get a gauge on what was going to happen,” he quipped. “I did hear it was clearing and going to be ok in the afternoon. Fortunately the rain stayed away and we could go out there and get it done today.”
With the Ashes wrapped up, Australia have set their sights on continuing England’s misery and completing another home whitewash. “It would be fantastic to do that and we will talk about Melbourne when we get there,” he said. “I was part of the 2013-14 Ashes (whitewash) when we did that and it was an amazing part of my life. We will take it one step at a time and enjoy the success we’ve had.”
With Smith at the helm, Australia appear in good hands and on course to reaching the apex of Test cricket in due course. Smith is hopeful that Australia can reach the pinnacle, but right now, he’s basking in the sweet taste of Ashes success.
“I would like to hope that this team can keep growing and work our way up the rankings,” he said. “We still have a long way to go but this has been an incredible couple of weeks.
“To know that everything has worked out and we’ve got that urn back…I’ve really enjoyed every moment of it,” he added.
