ENG vs AUS: Australia Retain Ashes As Rain-Affected 4th Test Ends In A Draw

Chris Wakes hogged the limelight with the ball after taking a  five-wicket haul in the first innings and then Zak Crawley smashed a brilliant 189 along with Jonny Bairstow’s brilliant unbeaten 99.

It was a sad day for the English team as they had to settle for a draw as Ben Stokes’ led team required five wickets for a win. On the final day on Sunday, there was no play possible and the result meant, the Kangaroos retained the Ashes series with one match to go in the series. Chris Wakes hogged the limelight with the ball after taking a  five-wicket haul in the first innings and then Zak Crawley smashed a brilliant 189 along with Jonny Bairstow’s brilliant unbeaten 99.

Joe Root, Harry Brook, and Ben Stokes also made crucial half-centuries. Mark Wood also made a mark by scalping a three-wicket haul. For Australia, it was Marnus Labuschagne who hammered a century and gave some hope to Australia with rain around. 

Ben Stokes, the England Captain after the match said, "It's a tough one to take, you know. The kind of cricket we played on the first three days and to be on the wrong side of the weather, it's a tough one. But it's a part of the journey. I think coming into this game, it was a do-or-die game for us. Bowling them out for 320 and scoring 590, we couldn't do much. We'll have a lot of pride to play the next game. The injury to Pope made us think about the structure of the team. Very pleased with everyone's effort. I have been vocal about Crawley, what Zak does is he changes the game, the way he plays, and the way he takes the bowlers on. That was an incredible innings, we knew an innings like that was not far away. It's amazing (their record). Broad and Jimmy have been unbelievable examples. Broad loves the battle and he loves playing against Australia, he has a good record against them. (When asked on having any regrets about Edgbaston) No. We know what the last game means to us as a team and we want to finish off on a high. Want the crowd to come out and support us."

The two teams will now be meeting in London at The Oval for the fifth and final Test, beginning on July 27. Australia will be looking for a first away Ashes series victory since 2001, Stokes' men will look for redemption with the hope of levelling matters.