England win famous Test that will remain in infamy

Travis Head could only laugh in genuine amusement as he walked off after being bowled by a stunning Brydon Carse delivery on Saturday. Until that moment—a good-length ball that pitched on leg and hit the top of off, beating his outside edge—Head had looked at his dangerous best, scoring fluently with minimal risk across two days. His reaction underscored the difficulty of batting on this MCG pitch, a surface that left many batters throwing quizzical glances rather than finding humor.

Nine hours later, the entire English team slowly sauntered to the MCG centre, understandably pleased. As light faded and gulls took over the outfield, players carried chairs and drinks, forming huddles, sharing banter, and enjoying speeches from coaches. Joe Root and Harry Brook escorted Carse to the slips earlier, while Ben Stokes mimicked a teammate in the field. Above all, there was laughter.

England had ended a 15-year rut. Root and Stokes finally tasted a Test win on Australian soil on their fourth and third tours respectively. After a week of intense scrutiny, the visitors recovered to secure a win, avoiding the ignominy of a whitewash ahead of Sydney. They reclaimed pride.

In a Test where 36 wickets fell in less than six sessions, England found joy and key takeaways. Josh Tongue emerged as the biggest gain, winning Player of the Match as the best bowler across both teams—outshining Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland on a pitch tailor-made for them. The Nottinghamshire seamer bowled the most consistent lengths, rewarded with prodigious movement, epitomized by his first-innings dismissal of Steve Smith.

During the narrow chase of 175, England found a hero in young Jacob Bethell, playing his maiden Ashes Test. After Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley provided a strong start, Bethell entered at No. 4 under pressure following a first-innings failure. He played arguably the Test’s most mature innings: taking calculated risks, including a top-edged pull and an audacious reverse ramp off Boland, while striking elegant boundaries like an on-drive and cover-drive. His 46-ball 40 was England’s top score, guiding them to victory in 33 overs in one of Australia’s shortest-ever Tests. Bethell used the MCG’s vast expanse intelligently, rotating strike and nudging England toward their target.

Doing this in his maiden appearance in Australia, before a giant MCG crowd, offered a glimpse into why Bethell is highly rated by England’s management. His performance on a dicey pitch, alongside Tongue’s heroics, proved equally significant as Root and Stokes’ long-awaited away Ashes Test win.

Yet, this drought-ending victory may not escape disclaimers about the pitch and conditions. The 22 yards at the MCG, with 10mm of grass, heavily influenced the contest. Both captains later echoed sentiments from many witnesses: a second two-day Test in this series wasn’t good enough for the Ashes spectacle, especially when the pitch overshadowed the players.

Between Head’s laughter upon dismissal and England’s collective merriment at the end, these manic two days of Test cricket—played at a blink-and-you’ll-miss tempo—will never be forgotten at this hallowed turf. A famous evening in England’s Ashes history, but a Test etched in infamy for how it played out.