ENGLAND crashed to another predictable defeat in the Fifth Test as they surrendered the Ashes in a 4-1 series defeat.
Ben Stokes’ team had the capacity to win against a fading Australian team but self-destructed with poor preparation, erratic game plans and so much daft and weak cricket.
The jobs of supremo Rob Key, head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Stokes are on the line after a disastrous tour.
The likelihood is that the trio will survive – although McCullum needs a good performance in the Twenty20 World Cup in the coming weeks.
Stokes and McCullum confirmed after the game in Sydney that they want to carry on.
But there must be a change in culture with more professionalism, less looseness and an overhaul of the backroom staff and training methods.
The Bazball project is effectively dead.
Stokes said: “We’ve played too much three-out-of-ten cricket. If you do that in big moments, the likelihood is that things won’t fall your way.
“Teams are understanding how to operate against us and we need to work out what we can do better.
“We have to be honest and straightforward in the dressing-room. I don’t think you can progress otherwise.”
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On the final day, Jacob Bethell took his maiden Test century – and, indeed, maiden first-class century – to 154 before being caught behind and No.11 Josh Tongue’s dismissal left Australia needing 160 for victory.
Left-arm champion and Player of the Series Mitchell Starc snared both wickets and took his tally for the series to 31.
Stokes was unfit to bowl because of the groin injury he suffered the previous day but Tongue again impressed with 3-42.
Tongue persuaded Travis Head to sky a catch to mid-wicket, Jake Weathald top-edged to fine leg and Usman Khawaja dragged on in his final Test innings.
Head finished with 629 runs in the series.
Will Jacks, who had endured such a troublesome match with a dropped dolly catch and an awful shot, spun one through Steve Smith’s gate and bowled Australia’s stand-in skipper.
Matthew Potts was not trusted to bowl after his first innings horror show but got in the action by running out Marnus Labuschagne.
There was a sloppiness and end of series feel about proceedings – even from the triumphant Australian team – but the result was never seriously in doubt.
Fast bowler Brydon Carse was so angry at another Snicko controversy that he had to be guided away from umpire Ahsan Raza by Stokes.
Opener Weatherald swished at a ball from Carse and, although there appeared to be a sound, on-field official Raza ruled not out.
A small ripple of a spike on the discredited ball-tracking device was not enough for third umpire Kumar Dharmasena
Amid the disbelief, Carse remonstrated with Raza before Stokes pulled him away. Stokes asked the umpire: “What is going on? There’s a spike and a noise as the ball goes past the bat, a frame after. Where is the consistency?”
It was the latest controversial decision caused by Snicko – most of which went against England.
After the match, Stokes added: “It’s frustrating. Technology shouldn’t be the talking point of what’s happened over the past eight weeks.
“You feel for the umpires in the middle – they’re the ones who end up copping it even though it’s not their decision. The consistency just hasn’t been there. But that’s not the reason we lost 4-1.”
Quite right, England loss was largely self-inflicted. The team management and many of the players will end up regretting their performance for the rest of their lives.
Stokes admitted: “Everyone in the dressing-room has the talent – we just need a bit of a recalibration.
“I hold my hands up and say I’ve made some mistakes as captain in this series.”
