Australia vs England, 5th Test, The Ashes, 2025-26 - Live Cricket Score, Commentary

Australia 4 - 1 England! Record attendance for all the Tests and despite the scoreline, it was an entertaining series. We had a lot of fun bringing you all the action. Hope you enjoyed it as well. On that note, it's time to bring the curtains down on the 2025-26 Ashes series. Until next time, it's goodbye from Abhinand Raghavendran, Abhinav Guha and Harish.

And, finally, a shout-out to Mitchell Starc - the Player of the Series. Spearheading the Australian bowling attack, the left-arm speedster set the tone upfront in first Test and then kept the same intensity till the last day of the series. His average bowling speed this series has been above 140kph and he didn't compromise on that even today as he picked the last two England wickets. 31 wickets in 5 Tests at an average under 20 - the leading wicket-taker of the series was the go-to bowler whenever Australia needed a wicket and he delivered almost every time. And not to forget his contributions with the bat, he scored two important fifties.

This wasn't a full-strength Australian side. No Hazlewood for the entire series, Cummins featured in just one match, Lyon hardly had a role in the first Test, was dropped for the day-night Test and then got injured in the third Test. There was a debutant at the top of the order as well. "It's probably the worst Australian team since 2010," were the words of former England bowler, Stuart Broad, before the start of this Ashes. And, yet, they won the series comprehensively and have probably buried Bazball in the process. The Australians, throughout the series, found a way to win crunch moments. In Boland and Neser, the hosts had two accurate seamers to keep the pressure on. Carey scored valuable runs with the lower order under pressure and was flawless behind the stumps even while standing up for the pacers. Head's promotion to the top of the order worked wonders as he finished the series with 629 runs.

England arrived with a lot of hopes. While they definitely fared better than the last three visiting England teams by winning a Test, they'll go back disappointed. Their batting let them down big time. Duckett's highest score this series was 42. While Crawley scored a couple of fifties, he fell under 10 in five innings. Pope was dropped after the third Test. Root struck two centuries but England needed much more from their No. 4. Brook always flirted with danger and got plenty of starts, however, he couldn't convert any of them into a big one and he's yet to score an Ashes hundred. Jamie Smith's shot selection will come under a lot of scrutiny. Barring two slow fifties, Stokes barely had an effect with the bat. The fast bowlers toiled hard and never really gave up but losing three fast bowlers (Wood, Archer, Atkinson) during the series didn't help their cause and the dropped catches enhanced their problems. There were two big positives though for them - Josh Tongue and Jacob Bethell. The tall pacer, who missed the first two Tests, consistently troubled the Australian batters and was the pick of the England bowlers in the last two Tests. Bethell, meanwhile, showcased his talent in the second innings of the MCG Test and then backed it up with a memorable hundred here at the SCG.

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5th Test | Sydney: SCG doled out the best batting deck of the series. Despite Root's 160, it seemed like England left a few runs out there. Australia, in reply, batted long. Head notched up his 3rd century of the series and Smith's love affair with his homeground continued as he raised his 5th hundred at the venue. Having conceded a 183-run lead, England had their backs against the wall. Young Bethell, however, showed his class. On a tricky surface and against quality pace bowling, the 22-year-old batted with a lot of maturity (often lacking with his team-mates this series) to register his maiden Test hundred, which is also his first in first-class cricket. Bethell top-scored with 154 but the next best was 42 and England couldn't set a competitive target. Although the Australian openers got off to a brisk start, England made the home team work hard for their runs and picked five wickets. There were a few nervy moments with the ball spinning a lot but Carey and Green took their team home.

4th Test | Melbourne: While the Ashes dream was over, Stokes promised that his team would still give their everything. Having won a good toss on a green MCG deck, Josh Tongue impressed with a fifer and Australia got bundled out for 152 in 45.2 overs. England, meanwhile, didn't even last 30 overs as they were skittled out for 110. The Test continued to progress at a rapid pace. Despite being a bowler short, the visitors shot out Australia for 132. England hunted down the moderate target to end their 18-match winless streak in Tests Down Under. While the 10mm grass made life difficult, the batters from both sides rightly copped a lot of criticism for their temperament.

3rd Test | Adelaide: Pat Cummins was back at the helm but Smith missed the third Test which forced the Aussies to bring back Khawaja into the XI. While Archer picked a fifer, it was the homeboy - Alex Carey - who grabbed the headlines for his wonderful counterattacking century. There were crucial contributions from Khawaja and Starc as well as Australia posted 371. In reply, England were in a soup at 168/8 and they still managed to bring the deficit down to double-digits, courtesy Stokes' slowest Test fifty and Archer's maiden Test fifty. The two left-handed South Australians - Head and Carey - forged a 162-run stand in front of their passionate home crowd and despite the mini-collapse after that, they set a target in excess of 400. England did put up a fight but fell short as the three senior Australian bowlers picked three wickets apiece. Australia went 3-0 up and retained the Ashes in 11 days.

2nd Test | Brisbane: Starc's love affair with the pink ball continued as he claimed six wickets on the opening day. Joe Root got the monkey off his back by recording his maiden Test hundred in Australia. England, however, completely lost their plot in the field by dropping five catches and letting every Australian batter get a start. Australia took a 177-run lead and had England on the mat at 128/6. Jacks and Stokes binned the aggressive approach and batted conservatively to make Australia bat again. There was a fiery duel between Jofra Archer and Steve Smith in the short run-chase which the latter won convincingly as the Aussies went 2-0 up.

1st Test | Perth: The opening day of the Ashes saw England get bundled out for 172 on a spicy deck, thanks to Starc's 7-for. Despite that, England took a 40-run lead with captain Ben Stokes claiming a fifer. At 65/1 (effectively 105/1), England were right on top before their aggressive brand of batting let them down. An injury to Khawaja forced Australia to open the innings with Travis Head and that worked out incredibly well not just for the opening Test but for the entire series. The swashbuckling left-hander smashed a 69-ball century and Australia went 1-0 up within 2 days.

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Stats by Roshan Gede

Highest run-rates in a Test series (min. 4 matches)
4.07 - Ashes 2025/26 in Australia
3.93 - Ashes 2023 in England
3.86 - Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy (IND in ENG), 2025
3.86 - Ashes 2001 in England
3.8 - Wisden Trophy (WI in ENG), 2004
3.79 - Ashes 2005 in England

Highest run-rates in a successful 150-plus Ashes run-chase
7.23 - Australia, Perth, 2025/26 (Target: 205)
5.5 - England, Melbourne, 2025/26 (Target: 175)
5.38 - Australia, Trent Bridge, 2001 (Target: 158)
5.13 - Australia, Sydney, 2025/26 (Target: 160)
5.11 - Australia, Adelaide Oval, 2006/07 (Target: 168)
5.08 - England, Headingley, 2023 (Target: 251)

300-plus runs and 25-plus dismissals (as wicketkeeper) in a Test series
340, 26 - Adam Gilchrist in Ashes 2001
333, 25 - Adam Gilchrist in Ashes 2002/03
323, 28 - Alex Carey in Ashes 2025/26

Catching efficiency in the series
Australia: 85.3% (12 dropped catches)
England: 75.3% (18 dropped catches)

England in Tests in Australia post their 2010/11 Ashes win
Matches: 20
Won: 1 (Melbourne, 2025)
Lost: 17
Drawn: 2

Steven Smith as captain in Ashes
Matches: 10
Won: 8
Lost: 1
Drawn: 1
Win%: 80%
Of the 29 captains to have led in at least 10 Ashes Tests, Smith’s win% is the joint-highest alongside Warwick Armstrong, who led Australia to 5-0 and 3-0 series wins in 1920/21 and 1921 respectively. Mike Brearley (73.33% - 15 matches, 11 wins, one defeat, three draws) is third on this list.

For just the second time in Ashes history, four matches in a series (the most) have been won by the team fielding first. The only previous instance came in the 2001 edition in England, won by Australia with a similar 4-1 margin.

England in Tests since June 2022 (Bazball era)
vs Australia and India combined: 21 Tests, 7 wins, 12 defeats, 2 draws (Win%: 33.3%)
vs other teams: 25 Tests, 19 wins, 6 defeats (Win%: 76%)

Here's the glory moment! Steve Smith gets the crystal Ashes urn from Steve Waugh. Pat Cummins joins him along with the entire Australian squad and together they pose for photographs with beaming smiles on their faces.

Steve Smith | Australia captain: It was nice to finish on a high note, we know the importance of every Test match with the World Test Championship. To get a result here and finish the series on a high was incredibly pleasing. It's been a really good week, it was a great wicket they produced out here, had a bit of everything. It was a good five days of cricket, hard fought and nice to get over the line in the end. Everyone stood up at different times. Alex, Travis and Starcy were obviously huge standouts but other guys stood up at different times throughout the series. That's what makes a good team. Trusting each other, guys standing up in different scenarios and situations. Everyone did their jobs, so we're really proud of that. It's obviously a big series. As an Australian or an English cricketer, it's the pinnacle. We've got an experienced side. We've played some really good cricket for the last four or five years, obviously making two World Test Championship finals. We've got some guys in there that still want to keep getting better and improving. It's just a great side to be a part of. (On them being a dominant side in home conditions)  I think anyone at home plays better in a way. We obviously know these conditions, we've grown up with them and we're accustomed to them. We know how to play on these surfaces and we did it again this time around. (On Usman Khawaja) He's had a wonderful career. It's been great to be alongside him for all of it. I played in his debut Test match 15 or 14 years ago. He has just grown as a human and as a player. It's been great to play alongside him for a long time and he's certainly going to be missed in that dressing room. Just want to say, thanks again to England, it's been a great series, it's been good fun and you guys are fierce competitors. Thanks for the memories and it's been a great series.

Ben Stokes | England captain: (On his leg injury) It has been better, it has been worse, won't know till I get home. It was a great game to be involved in. Test matches that go to the fifth day and have a bit of drama there at the end is always something great to be part of. I think we should have got a 100 more and we allowed Australia to probably get a 100 too many in their first innings with the bat. If you look at 200 runs on the fifth day there on that type of a wicket, we would have been in the box seat. Australia are an incredible team, they played some incredible cricket. The individuals stood up with the bat and obviously some outstanding performances with the ball as well. You have to give them a lot of credit. But also being truthful to ourselves knowing we've done a little bit of damage to ourselves. It's a tough one to take. We know that we can play a lot better than that but we've got to give full credit to Steve, Pat and the Australian cricket team. They've just been incredible for five Test matches. (Lessons from this tour) The time for reflection properly is not right now. We have got a long time off before we play our next Test series, so we've got some good time to go away and reflect on everything that not only we've looked at from this series, but even series before. Come June back in the UK when we have our first Test series after this one, hopefully we can put the wrongs right. (On Bethell's superb knock) Incredible, for Beth to wait for his opportunity towards the back end of the series, he's put in a lot of hard work and graft into his game if the opportunity did come. That knock we witnessed there was simply incredible. For a 22-year-old lad to come out in the fifth Test of a massive series in a huge game and do that against a quality bowling attack on a pretty difficult wicket was incredible to watch. Josh Tongue just keeps going from strength-to-strength. Every time he gets given the responsibility, he keeps impressing. We've got some unbelievable talent to work with going forward. We are so lucky and thankful to have the Barmy Army. They are going to be as disappointed as us about the way this series has gone. That should never take away the gratitude and the respect we have as an England cricket team towards the fans who turn up day in day out regardless of how things are going for us. It definitely means a lot, singing there till the end for us, it's so lucky we get to represent this country but also we get to represent the Barmy Army and the fans.

Mitch Starc | Player of the Series: (On whether this is the best he has ever bowled in his career) Maybe. It feels like it's going okay, the body is still holding together. It's a great group to be a part of, it's a lot of fun especially when you have Travis at the top there and in the change room. It's been a great group to be a part of and I'm just glad to be playing a role. (On playing all the five Tests) A little bit tired, Scotty and I are on the older side of things, but we still managed to get the job done. Between Scotty, Nes and I, we've certainly been told we're not on the younger side of things, but to play the roles that we did, we were a bit tired and sore yesterday but I think the entire squad ... we haven't just used the 11 players, between the players and the staff, it's been a long series, but it's obviously very fruitful and enjoyable to be a part of. (On chipping in with handy runs during the series) I got a few out of the middle at the start of the series, certainly didn't at the end. There's no better incentive for a bowler than to not have to bowl again. So, it's nice to put a few partnerships together. Batting with Scotty in Brisbane was a big one for us. To get to the night session and bowl with the newer pink ball under lights was a big one for us. It's nice to chip in here and there, but always glad to see Heady and those guys do the scoring. (Significance of the Pink Test) This week is more than just the cricket. It's obviously the final Test in the series, but between England and other opposition that come here and play this Test, they get right behind it. It's fantastic to see that, not only from the opposition teams, the cricket fraternity, the crowd's have been awesome. We saw day three was a huge day. That partnership with McGrath foundation and cricket, not only in this county but as a community, thank all the fans and the crowd for playing their part in that. It's a big Test match.

Travis Head | Player of the Match: It's special (first Test century at the SCG). There's a couple of good names up there. I have always found it tough to bat here, so it was nice to be up the order, nice to face the hard new ball and nice to contribute again. Every hundred you get is going to be well cherished, but I'll probably hold the couple at the start of the series when everything was on the line and we had an opportunity to win the Ashes series, that was the pleasing part. Then, I guess from a personal perspective, it's nice to finish a series well in the fifth Test with runs again and make sure we don't take the foot off. What an amazing week we've had. (On their plans for celebrations) Cummo (Cummins) should probably pull the weight a little bit to organise few things. Starcy's probably ready to go after five Test matches on the bounce and Slug (Webster) will do his thing.

Alex Carey: (On the tense finish) That's Ashes cricket, leaves everyone on the edge of their seats right to the end. I owe Marnus a beer or two tonight. Great series. For this one to go five days, right to the end, one of cricket's greats - Uzzie Khawaja - he is going to be missed, the big fellow, but it's a fitting way to finish the Test. (On keeping up to the stumps for pacers) There were opportunities to come up to the stumps, it wasn't a preconceived idea coming into this series. Obviously we knew it was going to be a different bowling attack. Whoever got a run, did a fantastic job with the ball this summer. Starcy obviously led the way. The way that Scotty Boland got through five Test matches, that's something new for him, and he was fantastic. Michael Neser came in and had a huge impact. Brendan Doggett, Jhye Richardson, Patty Cummins obviously and then you had Slug (Webster) today, Greeny and Trav pitched in as well. And I better not forget Marnus with his wicket as well. (On winning the Ashes series) It's a dream come true really. It's one of those moments I think, in years to come, you're certainly going to miss. The sun's out, it's the SCG, and we've just wrapped up the Ashes 4-1. It's really special. It's made special by the crowd though. We've been really lucky this summer. I think every day that I've gone out on the field, it's been a massive buzz around. The crowds have come out every single day. And even today, right to the end, it was a great atmosphere.

In the same city (Sydney) where he was raised as a kid and made both his first-class and Test debuts, Khawaja retires from international cricket in what has been an eventful 15-year career. A man with a calm demeanour and a resilient approach, he had his ups and down in Test cricket but always found a way to push through. A few of his heroic knocks that come to mind are - A nine-hour marathon match-saving knock against Pakistan in Dubai; Twin centuries at the SCG in his comeback Test in the 2021-22 Ashes which was a career-uplifting one; A marathon innings in Edgbaston in 2023. Since his twin centuries at the SCG in his comeback game, Khawaja has been the top-run scorer for Australia in Tests. Cricket is more of a mind game and Khawaja is a prime example where his tough character shone through. The veteran bowls out after 88 Test matches. He has inspired many off the field as well, taking a strong stand against racism and has always been an advocate for harmony and peace. Take a bow, Uzzie!