English end on high

Australia loses final test but wins Ashes series 4-1

England found consolation with a win in the final test. AP

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- England crushed Australia by 225 runs on Monday to win the fifth Ashes test and end the series on a high-note after being thumped in the four previous matches.

Veteran paceman Andy Caddick captured seven wickets in an inspired display of fast bowling as Australia collapsed to be all out for 226 in their second innings chasing 452 to win.

"It was a great test match, one of the best I've ever played in," England captain Nasser Hussain said.

"But let's not suddenly make out everything's turned round," he said. "It's the same old story really, we lost the Ashes 4-1, that's the bottom line."

Australia resumed the final day at 91-3, needing to bat through the entire day on a crumbling Sydney Cricket Ground pitch to save the test, but folded quickly to be all out 48 minutes after lunch in just 54 overs.

Australia's defeat was their first on home soil against any country in more than four years and their heaviest loss to England since they were beaten by an innings and 14 runs at Melbourne in December 1986.

"I'm disappointed but you've got to give credit to England, they played very good cricket in this test match," Australia captain Steve Waugh said.

"We had our opportunities but we weren't quite good enough and England certainly outplayed us in a pretty comprehensive win."

Caddick captured the wickets of Andy Bichel, Waugh, Adam Gilchrist, Brett Lee and Stuart MacGill after dismissing Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting on Sunday to finish with 7-94, his second best return in 62 test appearances.

Inspirational spell

The 34-year-old ended Australia's last real hope of saving the match when he collected three scalps in his first spell then returned after lunch to mop up the tail and finish with 10 for the match for the first time in his career.

Australia's star-studded batting lineup failed to show any real resistance with fast bowlers Bichel and Lee top scoring with 49 and 46 respectively while wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist made an adventurous 37 when the match was as good as over.

"I think the guys are pretty tired, we've played eight test in three months...but it's not an excuse, we just didn't play well enough," Waugh said.

"It's hard to maintain that sort of intensity and quality over a long period of time and in this test we just weren't good enough and England took their opportunities."

Set a near-impossible 452 to win after England's man of the match and player of the series Michael Vaughan struck a masterful 183 in the second innings, Australia's hopes of at least forcing a draw disappeared when they lost five wickets in the session after starting the day at 91-3.

Innings collapsed

Caddick triggered the collapse when he trapped Bichel leg before wicket in the second over after the Queenslander had failed to add to his overnight score.

Waugh marched on to the ground to another standing ovation after his magnificent first innings century but failed to repeat his heroics as he departed for six, playing on to a short-pitched delivery from Caddick that rolled off his boot onto the stumps.

Damien Martyn followed soon after for 21, just two more than his overnight score, when he nicked a ball from off-spinner Richard Dawson into the gloves of wicketkeeper Alec Stewart.

Martin Love, playing in just his second test, avoided the dreaded pair with an early boundary but managed just 27 when he was bowled by Durham paceman Steve Harmison.

Gilchrist, another first-innings centurion, belted seven fours in a defiant knock before his luck ran out on 37 and he gloved a Caddick bouncer to Mark Butcher at third slip, leaving Australia teetering on the brink at 183-8 at lunch.

Lee whacked nine boundaries and a six in a defiant display after lunch before Caddick had him caught behind then bowled MacGill to complete a largely consolation victory.

"We still lost," says Hussain

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Nasser Hussain delivered a sobering footnote to England's crushing win over Australia in the fifth Ashes test on Monday.

While his team mates scrambled for souvenir stumps and the Barmy Army were dancing in the stands, the captain said England's last-gasp win should not disguise the fact they were outplayed in the series.

"It was a great test match, one of the best I've ever played in," Hussain said.

"But let's not suddenly make out everything's turned round.

"It's the same old story really, we lost the Ashes 4-1, that's the bottom line."

England have a recent history of winning "dead rubbers" against Australia but have not won a series since 1986-87.

They have lost eight in a row, a record run of defeats, and Hussain said Australia would probably win again next time unless changes are made to the way cricket is played and organised in England.

"The immediate future against Australia is not great unless we start turning things around," he said.

"It's blatantly obvious that test match cricket is now being played in completely different conditions to what we're playing in county cricket at home.

"There's every reason why we should beat Australia in the future, why we should have more days like this, but someone has to draw a line and say 'right, how are we going to do that?'

'Best ever'

"My personal opinion is that this (Australia) side is the best side I've ever played against and if we really do want to be the best side in the world then we have to look at what this side are doing."

England finished the series strongly after losing the first three tests, and the Ashes, inside a combined total of 11 days.

They gave the Australians a fright in Melbourne after a generous first innings declaration by Steve Waugh then dominated the last two days in Sydney to claim a crushing 225-run victory, their biggest winning margin over Australia since December 1986.

"Injuries have definitely been our biggest problem, we just needed our full side to be available the full time," he said.

"The result might have been 3-2 or still 4-1 but the other tests would have been closer."

Hussain also defended his decision to bat on in the second innings when it was already apparent he had enough runs to win the match.

No team has ever scored more than 276 to win a test batting last in Sydney but Hussain did not declare until his side were 452 in front.

The Essex skipper explained that while it may have been perceived as a negative tactic, he continued batting because he knew the Australians would find it difficult trying to bat to save a game when they were so used to winning.

"We knew there was plenty of time left in the game, we knew the wicket was deteriorating," he said.

"We knew they would come at us, we knew they were desperate to win 5-0 and we knew the run-rate was never going to be a problem [for Australia].

"We just had to try and keep them out of the game because it's very difficult for an Australian cricketer once they're out of the game."

Veteran paceman Andy Caddick bowled England to victory with a magnificent second-innings haul of 7-94 to finish with 10 for the match for the first time in his career.

"To be honest, I didn't know which of my bowlers was going to turn up," Hussain said.

"But if I knew they were going to turn up like they did today then I'd have probably declared a bit earlier and we could have today off."

Waugh says sloppy fielding cost Australia the test

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Steve Waugh says Australia blew their chance of an historic series cleansweep against England through sloppy fielding.

The Australia captain said his team's loss was not caused by poor batting or the absence of strike bowlers Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne but by dropped catches.

"We missed our opportunities, we know that," Waugh said. "We dropped some catches that could have turned the game around."

Normally one of the best fielding sides in the game, the Australians fumbled a number of chances that came their way during the test.

Mark Butcher made 124 in England's first innings after being dropped by Damien Martyn at gully on 13 then again by wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist on 43.

The England captain Nasser Hussain scored 75 in the first innings after leg-spinner Stuart MacGill dropped a simple return catch when he was on six and player of the series Michael Vaughan made 183 in England's second innings after Justin Langer grassed a chance on 102.

"I'm disappointed but you've got to give credit to England, they played very good cricket in this test match," Waugh said.

"We had our opportunities but we weren't quite good enough and England certainly outplayed us in a pretty comprehensive win."

Fatigued

Waugh said his players were showing signs of fatigue after a gruelling schedule but said that was not an excuse for their defeat.

The Australians have played eight tests in the past three months, including a three-game series against Pakistan split between Sri Lanka and Sharjah just prior to the Ashes.

"I think the guys are pretty tired...but it's not an excuse, we just didn't play well enough," Waugh said.

"It's hard to maintain that sort of intensity and quality over a long period of time."

Despite the result, Waugh said his players enjoyed the match more than the four games they won, including the first three which ran for a total of just 11 days to decide the Ashes.

"I think it's good for cricket. I think the first three test weren't close and weren't contested that well but the last two tests were excellent," Waugh said.

"It's nice to win and nice to dominate but at the end of the day you get more pleasure about doing something special in a real tough, close test match."

The Sydney test was a personal triumph for Waugh in many ways. He made 102 in Australia's first innings to equal Don Bradman's national record of 29 test hundreds, become only the third player to pass 10,000 test runs, and equalled Allan Border's world record of 156 test appearances.

While his job as test captain is secure as long as he wants it, Waugh says he still hasn't made a decision on whether he will play on.

"I haven't made my mind up yet, I need a bit of time away from cricket to think about that," he said.

"I've got to work out if there's something there that still challenges me."

Aussies still No. 1, say Waugh and Hussain

SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Steve Waugh thinks Australia are still the best cricket team in the world despite losing their top ranking to South Africa and the final Ashes test to England on Monday.

South Africa climbed to the top of the International Cricket Council standings with their 2-0 series win over Pakistan on Sunday while Waugh's team slipped to second spot despite their 4-1 thrashing of England.

Waugh felt the South Africans had some genuine claims to the number one ranking after beating India on the sub-continent when his own team failed.

But he said Australia had proved they were the best with their 5-1 home and away series win over South Africa last year.

"South Africa deep down would know that we're a better cricket side than them," Waugh said.

"That's not being big-headed that's being realistic.

"Although from their point of view they can say they've won in the sub-continent and we haven't...I think if you beat a team five times out of six in recent times and they're ranked ahead of you that seems a bit strange."

England captain Nasser Hussain agreed the Australians were better even though his side won the final Ashes test on Monday by 225 runs.

"My personal opinion is that this side is the best side I've ever played against," Hussain said.

 

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Both the Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.