Record stand revives England

Australia 331 for 6 dec and 64 for 1 lead England 314 (Knight 157, Marsh 55, Osborne 4-67) by 81 runs
Scorecard

Heather Knight made her first Test century as England continued their dogged rearguard action well into the third day at Wormsley. Knight's 157 from 338 balls was the seventh-highest Test score by an England woman and she was joined by the equally obdurate Laura Marsh in a stand of 156 - England's best for the seventh wicket and one run shy of the Test record - that went a long way to staving off the threat of defeat to Australia.

With six points on offer in these multi-format Ashes, the incentive to win was clear and evinced by Jodie Fields' decision to declare with her team six down on the second day. But with the prospect of defeat coming at such a price - a draw will give each side two points - England have knuckled down in an attempt to make sure they don't lose. Australia had extended their lead to 81 by reaching 64 for 1 by the close, making a draw the most likely result.

Resuming on a perilous 172 for 6, still 149 runs behind, Knight and Marsh forged on in the same manner in which they had gone about their business on the on previous evening. The pair soaked up 73 overs of pressure before Knight was run out after being sent back looking for a single.

Knight was dropped on 105, wicketkeeper Fields missing a chance down the leg side, but by then she had long-since surpassed her previous best innings, in her only other Test, of 19. She hit 20 fours in all and was particularly strong off her pads in making the third-highest individual total for England against Australia.

Marsh, 13 from 114 balls at the start of the day, had progressed to 35 when she lost her partner and Katherine Brunt, who hit her first ball for four, went soon after. But Danielle Hazell stuck around for another 20 overs as Marsh went to her first Test half-century, eventually facing 304 balls for her 55. By the time Australia claimed the final wicket, Erin Osborne finishing with 4 for 67, the deficit was just 17.

"I'm really pleased, I think when I went in we were pretty up against it," Marsh said. "I was just really pleased to be able to hang in there with Heather and support her.

"It was the job the team needed and I tried to stick in there and be disciplined with my decision-making. It was really helpful to have Heather at the other end for the vast amount of the time I was there because she just played brilliantly and we kept each other going.

"I tried to be positive in defence and approach it that way and pick up runs when they became available."

With a slim lead and a potentially tricky couple of hours to negotiate amid rain showers, Australia's openers began at a similarly watchful pace, reaching 40 before Jenny Gunn removed Rachael Haynes. First-innings centurion Sarah Elliott accompanied Meg Lanning safely to the close but it will take something special from the usually attacking Fields to force a result.

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Napier, ten Doeschate down Durham

Essex 139 for 4 (ten Doeschate 74*) beat Durham 138 (Smith 53, Napier 5-21) by six wickets
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Essex maintained their hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the Yorkshire Bank 40 competition after crushing Durham by six wickets at Chelmsford. The hosts got home with 13.3 overs to spare, successfully chasing down Durham's meagre 138 all out.

Ryan ten Doeschate and Ravi Bopara made light of the task with a fourth-wicket partnership of 94 in 18 overs before the latter departed for 38. Ten Doeschate completed his side's emphatic victory with an unbeaten 74 spanning 64 balls and featuring two sixes and eight fours.

The visitors started the match at the head of Group B but struggled against a wonderful exhibition of pace bowling from Graham Napier. The Essex allrounder took 5 for 21, including a devastating spell of four wickets for one run in 2.2 overs at the start of the innings, as Durham sank to 9 for 4 after 4.2 overs.

Mark Stoneman, Scott Borthwick and Paul Collingwood all failed to score as Napier ran amok. He removed Stoneman with his second delivery of the match and three balls later found an edge as Borthwick pushed forward to give James Foster one of his three catches. Former England batsman Collingwood failed to dig out a yorker while Phil Mustard reached just nine before he became another Napier casualty.

Will Smith made a gallant effort to sustain the innings with a 73-ball half-century that included five boundaries, and he found useful support from Gareth Breese with the pair adding 55 in 11 overs for the seventh wicket. Breese was bowled by ten Doeschate and soon after Smith drove Tymal Mills to Bopara at mid-off as Durham's innings ending as ignominiously as it had started with the loss of three wickets for one run.

Bowled out in 34.1 overs, the visitors did have some early impetus when Essex started their reply as they captured three wickets for 30 runs in 11 overs. Hamish Rutherford edged Mark Wood to slip in the first over, Mark Pettini was pinned in front of his stumps by Chris Rushworth three overs later and Greg Smith played down the wrong line and was bowled by Wood.

But Bopara and Ten Doeschate soon steadied matters as they composed their match-winning stand. When Bopara became a second victim for Rushworth, only 15 more runs were required and ten Doeschate duly completed the win to send Essex into Twenty20 Finals day on Saturday in good heart.

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Centurion Wright slaughters Netherlands

Sussex 188 for 1 (Wright 114) beat Netherlands 185 (Barresi 64, Beer 3-49) by nine wickets
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Luke Wright smashed 114 off just 69 balls as Sussex cruised to a nine-wicket win over Netherlands in their day-night Yorkshire Bank 40 game at Hove. Sussex's fourth win in Group A is unlikely to improve their chances of reaching the knockout stages for the third successive year but they at least managed to end a winless run at Hove that had extended for two days short of a year.

Wright and Ed Joyce put on 175 in 20 overs for the first wicket with Wright cruising to the sixth List A hundred of his career and second of the summer, after he made 115 against Kent in June.

The 28-year-old played the last of his 46 ODIs for England more than two years ago and is to lead England Lions in three matches against Bangladesh A next week. While he ruthlessly exposed the limitations of the Dutch attack it was nonetheless an impressive display of hitting against both seam and spin.

He struck five sixes, either straight or on the leg side, and reached his century with his 11th four, a powerful back-foot force through extra cover off Tim Gruitjers. Gruitjers did have the satisfaction of removing Wright thanks to a superb running catch on the long-on boundary by Pieter Seelar, but it was a rare moment of relief for the seven Dutch bowlers used, none of whom had an economy rate of less than seven an over.

Skipper Joyce hit the winning runs in the 22nd over to reach a 58-ball half-century.

Netherlands had been hoping to build on Sunday's encouraging win over Warwickshire and having won the toss they were well placed after 22 overs on 125 for 3. But the dismissal of top-scorer Wesley Barresi sparked a collapse which saw seven wickets go down for 60 runs in 14.2 overs.

Barresi had shared a stand of 50 from just 35 balls with Gruitjers when he was leg-before to Will Beer for a run-a-ball 64, which included seven fours and a six. Three deliveries later Peter Borren was trapped in his crease by Chris Liddle and Dutch wickets fell regularly after that although Gruitjers hinted at a recovery with 27 before he was stumped down the leg side by debutant Callum Jackson to give Beer, who finished with 3 for 49, another wicket.

It was a good night for the Sussex spinners. On a slow pitch, Mike Yardy and Chris Nash were operating in tandem after nine overs. Offspinner Nash picked up Michael Swart to a catch on the midwicket boundary after the opener had added 44 for the second wicket with Barresi following the early loss of Stephan Myburgh.

Nash, Liddle and Lewis Hatchett all picked up two wickets and a target of 186 was never going to be a test for Sussex, especially after Wright and Joyce had plundered 71 off the first six-over Powerplay.

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Worcs keep Notts waiting

Worcestershire 220 for 8 (Mitchell 56, Shahzad 3-54) beat Nottinghamshire 182 (Taylor 67*, Ali 3-28) by 38 runs
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Nottinghamshire missed an opportunity to secure a semi-final place in the Yorkshire Bank 40 as they slumped to a 38-run defeat against Worcestershire at Trent Bridge. Set a target of 221 in 37 overs after afternoon showers had delayed the start, the home side were bowled out for 182, with James Taylor remaining unbeaten on 67.

Taylor had been left with the lower order after Worcestershire had reduced Nottinghamshire to 83 for 5, with Moeen Ali claiming the wickets of Samit Patel, David Hussey and Riki Wessels on his way to figures of 3 for 28.

Daryl Mitchell had earlier top-scored with 56 as the visitors posted 220 for 8 after being invited to bat first. Mitchell shared in an opening stand of 58 with Ali (28) before pairing up with Alexei Kervezee, who hit a run-a-ball 31 in a second-wicket partnership worth 49.

Tom Fell added 25 and Thilan Samaraweera, who launched the only maximum of the evening, continued the momentum before being trapped lbw by Jake Ball for 38, who ended with 2 for 38. In a comical conclusion to the innings, Ross Whiteley survived three run-out attempts on his way to making just 6 and Brett D'Oliveira was bowled by a Harry Gurney no-ball in the penultimate over.

Ajmal Shahzad claimed figures of 3 for 54, conceding a flurry of late runs as the lower order tried to scramble their way to a respectable total, and Harry Gurney collected 2 for 39.

Paceman Graham Cessford, on his Worcestershire one-day debut, came under an early assault from both Michael Lumb and Alex Hales, who picked him off for five boundaries in his first two overs. But Lumb then fell to Jack Shantry before Ali blew a hole in the batting card with three quick wickets, while Charlie Morris removed Hales for 31.

Taylor passed fifty for the fifth time in this year's competition but then lost partner Chris Read, who holed out for 25. A direct hit from point by D'Oliveira ran out Steven Mullaney, who had received his county cap prior to the start, and the same fielder then caught Shahzad to give Cessford his maiden wicket at this level. Morris delivered the final blow as he clean-bowled Gurney with four overs left unbowled.

While Worcestershire celebrated only their fourth win of the year, Nottinghamshire were left still needing victory over either Sussex or Kent from their final two matches to reach the last four.

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A magical session, but England can get better

Nine wickets in a dramatic session saw England surge to a series victory, but that should not be allowed to gloss over the issues raised against Australia

As the champagne corks flew and the England team celebrated, it was hard to avoid the conclusion that this is the golden age of English cricket.

After all, England have not just retained the Ashes, they have done so for the third time in succession. They have won this series 3-0 with a game to spare and, underAlastair Cook's fledgling captaincy, they have gone 12 Tests unbeaten in a stretch that includes a series win in India. What is more, their team contains three men with 20 or more Test centuries and three with more than 200 Test wickets. For England, at least, it really doesn't get any better.

They may be on the brink of further achievements, too. If England win the final Investec Test at The Oval, they will be the first England side to win four Ashes Tests in a home series. And, if they prevail in Australia, Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen will, fitness permitting, have played a part in five Ashes- winning sides. No England players have won more. England also require only a draw at The Oval to move back above India to second place in the Test ranking table.

There have been some hugely impressive performances from England players over recent days. Bell, who has now played three match-defining innings in the series without winning a Man-of-the-Match award, is fast developing into the batsman his talent suggested he could a decade ago. It would be premature to label him a 'great' - he has unfinished business against quality spin bowling and the newer, harder ball - but he has taken a significant step in that direction in this series. His batting has been the key difference between the sides.

Stuart Broad, too, enjoyed a wonderful game. It was Broad, bowling with pace, persistence and skill, who provided the impetus for England to claim nine wickets after tea on the fourth day of this game with a spell of 5 for 20 in 40 balls. Topping 90mph at times, Broad looked every inch the fine Test bowler his talent has long suggested he could become. His match haul - 11 for 121 - was his best in Tests to date. If he could add consistency to his list of attributes, England would have a special bowler.

In the light of such facts, any criticism seems churlish. But the truth is that there was nothing straightforward about this result. The 3-0 margin does not reflect the ever-improving competitiveness of the Australian team or England's enduring problems with their top-order batting. It does not reflect that Australia have led on first innings in three of the four Tests; that four of England's top seven averaged under 30 and only one of them above 40 or that, by the end of this match, James Anderson looked a shadow of the man who started the series and that Steven Finn, supposedly the future of England's fast bowling, could not even make a 13-man squad containing five seamers.

Most of all, though, it does not reflect the fact that this was a modest Australia team. While the bowling of Ryan Harris, in particular, has underlined the worth of their bowling attack, there is no avoiding the conclusion that this is the weakest Australia batting line-up to contest an Ashes series in England for many years. Any analysis of England's performance has to recognise that.

That may be no bad thing. England have been down this route before. By the end of 2011 they had enjoyed a series of fine victories and dared to look too far into the future with talk of establishing a legacy. Such hubris came back to bite them hard.

This time they know they are not the finished article. They know that Jonny Bairstow's credentials as a Test batsman are unproven, they know that Joe Root's development as a Test opener remain a work in progress and they may be in the process of learning that the burden placed upon the individual components of a four-man attack is unsustainable.

Most of all, they know that one or two of their players are considerably nearer the end of their Test careers than the beginning. This just might prove to be Graeme Swann's final home Test series. History tells us that no player is irreplaceable, but quite how England find a replacement for Swann remains a mystery. It is as close to mystery spin as England can go.

There have been times in this series when England have looked flat and uninspired on the field, too. When they have looked timid with the bat and impotent with the ball. When the somewhat prescriptive - overbearing, even - nature of their coaching set-up has appeared to stifle creativity and limit England to a pragmatic team playing percentage cricket. That will be fine against modest opposition but against the best, against South Africa, it will leave them short. It leaves them a good, but not great, side.

They can be better than that. In Cook and Pietersen they possess great batsman. In Swann they possess the finest spin bowler England have had for decades. In Broad and Bell and Anderson and Jonathan Trott they have players who, freed from the fear of failure, have the talent and temperament to play Test cricket with distinction. England have rarely coaxed the best out of many of those players in recent times. They can improve.

Andy Flower has been at the centre of just about everything good to happen in English cricket over the last five or six years. No England coach has come close to emulating his achievements and his record invites no argument about his future.

But even Flower needs to reinvent himself. Even Flower needs to reflect on the environment in the England camp and decide whether it remains conducive to bringing the best out of his players. If England conclude that recent results justify a continuation of current methods, they will not fulfil their considerable potential.

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Australia forget how to win

Few of Australia's recent losses will hurt like the one at Chester-le-Street, because they know - they know - they should have won it

LLLLLLDL.

That's not the name of an obscure Welsh town, that's Australia's record in Tests since the start of this year's tour of India. Stretch it back to the start of the Australian summer and it's a little healthier, but not much: DDLWWWLLLLLLDL. The victories were all against Sri Lanka, a team that has never won a Test in Australian conditions. Australia were on top in all three draws, against South Africa and England. Some losses have been comprehensive, others close.

Australia seem to have forgotten how to handle the pressure moments, the tight contests. Perhaps it is not so much that they have forgotten but that they've never known, for besides Michael Clarke, none of this current outfit have ever really known extended Test success. The coach, Darren Lehmann, played in 27 Tests and only five weren't wins. Compare that to a man like Steven Smith, who has played in only two victories, both early in his career, from 11 Tests.

Winning is a habit. Get a few successes on the board, especially against quality opponents, and especially in close finishes, and you start to trust that it can be done. Shane Warne often talks about believing it is possible to win from anywhere; Clarke's men appear petrified that they can lose from anywhere. How else to explain their collapse after tea at Chester-le-Street? Few of their recent losses will hurt like this one, because they know - they know - they should have won it.

The target of 299 was a challenge, certainly, but Chris Rogers and David Warner made Australia's highest opening stand in a Test chase in 18 years, reaching 109 for 0. Even after Rogers fell, Australia were still comfortable at tea, at 120 for 1. Then the doubt crept in. The fear. The knowledge that this match was there to lose, a 2-1 scoreline was theirs to give up. And dutifully, they handed England the momentum, their wickets and a series win.

At 5.26pm Usman Khawaja departed, Warner at 5.44, Clarke at 6.10, Smith at 6.22, Shane Watson at 6.29, Brad Haddin at 6.39. Then the bowlers tumbled too, but it wasn't their fault. In the final session Australia lost nine for 104. England's bowling improved - Stuart Broad and Tim Bresnan bowled in tandem, keeping things tight, bringing the batsmen on to the front foot instead of offering up the short-of-a-length stuff they had delivered before tea. But they weren't nine-wickets-in-a-session good.

That Australia collapsed again is almost not a story, for it has happened so often in recent years that it is the norm. But to collapse when the openers had laid such a strong foundation is almost more galling. And how many of the batsmen could say they were done by great balls? Clarke missed a super delivery from Broad that angled in and nipped away just enough, but Watson and Haddin essentially just missed straight deliveries.

They were the two senior men in the lower middle-order. They had to show more resolve, respect the good balls and wait for the bad ones. Rogers had given them the template. Smith tried to do that, go after a short ball, but wasn't good enough to middle it and played on instead. Khawaja was typically elegant, but elegant doesn't win Test matches in tight situations. Fight does. Hunger does. Sheer bloody-mindedness does.

It raised the question - again - of whether Australia's batsmen are good enough for Test cricket. It goes without saying that Clarke is, and Rogers has shown in this series that he has the necessary technique and determination. Warner played a mature innings here but too often is careless. Watson is the No.6 and allrounder because there is nobody better. Smith and Khawaja have both shown signs of being Test batsmen but inspire little confidence in tight spots.

For all of them, this was an opportunity. This was a chance to stand up in a challenging situation, to deliver a victory for their struggling team. Rogers and Warner did the hard work early. Nobody matched them. It leaves the selectors in a difficult position, for they cannot keep picking men who fail under pressure. Phillip Hughes and Matthew Wade could be considered for The Oval Test, but where are the other batsmen applying the pressure?

"I think we are picking the best players," Clarke said after the loss. "Everyone says rebuild, rebuild, rebuild, but you need guys in first-class cricket making runs to take someone's slot. We have to continue to show faith in these guys - it takes time playing against good opposition. We just played South Africa in Australia, we are playing England here then England in Australia, then we go to South Africa - we are playing the best oppositions in the world. I think the selectors are doing the best they can to pick the best sides."

Clarke has had plenty of practice answering difficult questions after losses, but in the post-match press conference he looked drained of all his spark. He paid credit to Broad for his fine bowling, claimed responsibility for his own dismissal and not leading by example, and tried his best to back his men. Ultimately, though, his mood could be summed up by one answer: "It's extremely disappointing - I guess I know now what it feels like to lose an Ashes series as a captain."

Losing matches, losing series - it's all becoming far too familiar a feeling. When he retired after the series win over Sri Lanka during the home summer, Michael Hussey handed custodianship of the team victory song to Nathan Lyon. That was seven months ago. Eight Tests ago. Lyon is yet to lead the beer-soaked choir.

Under the Southern Cross I stand, a sprig of wattle in my hand.

The words are easy to remember, how to win a Test match not so much.

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How England turned the tables

At 109 for 0 and then 147 for 1, Australia were well in command at Chester-le-Street but Stuart Broad, Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann had other ideas

Using the ball-by-ball commentary, ESPNcricinfo looks back on how England turned around the fourth day of the Chester-le-Street Test to clinch their third Ashes series in a row

29.2 Swann to Rogers, OUT, and there she comes, the much-desired breakthrough for England, good length now, fuller than the previous ball, angled in too, Rogers opened up, possibly looking leg side again, but this has gripped, straigthened and hurried on to middle, and the thick edge has gone low to slip

39.1 Swann to Khawaja, OUT, forward and given out lbw in front of off stump. The finger goes straight up, he seemed to just miss a straight ball there, hit his pad not the ball, the ball hit the pad in front of off stump and Khawaja has again played a funny little innings without any real substance. Perhaps he just misread the line

43.4 Bresnan to Warner, OUT, oh what a beauty and finally one is nicked behind just a thin one through to the keeper, Warner goes after a fine innings but he's been drawn forward here to one angled across him and gets a very thin nick to Prior. Dar gives it out straight away and Warner walks off

48.1 Broad to Clarke, OUT, Stuart Broad, you indecipherable, incredible, unbelievable beauty, what a first ball after drinks, ripping ripper, Michael Clarke has no answer, probably no one would have had, angling in, belonging to the have-to-play category, then changes direction sharply and hits top of off, Broad goes off on a run, Clarke takes the long walk back, that was appreciable movement, like a quick legbreak

50.3 Broad to Smith, OUT, oh dear, Smith's played on, how unfortunate is that, short delivery, angled in, around chest-high, Smith went for the hook, and the ball took a bottom-edge to fall on the stumps

51.3 Bresnan to Watson, OUT, no, please, this can't be happening again, how many times can this happen to an international batsman of some repute, it is officially time to rechristen the leg-before-wicket to you-know-what, Watson has planted that massive front leg across, you need to miss only one delivery in the time it takes to get your bat across that blockage, Watson has failed to do that yet again to this angled good length ball, Dar has raised his finger immediately, Watson has reviewed it, and Hawk Eye has that clipping leg stump, and the umpire's call stays

52.5 Broad to Haddin, OUT, now Haddin has been given lbw. He's reviewed it, he'd been jumping to play even good length deliveries, is on his toes as he is hit just above the knee roll trying to work it to leg, Hawk Eye has that grazing the outside of the top of leg stump, oh that is marginal, that is even cruel, a batsman will tell you, but the umpire's call was out, and the umpire's call will stand

56.6 Broad to Harris, OUT, that is gone, looks plumb, Harris pinned in the crease, the length ball jags back in at a sharp angle, and Harris misses, hit in front of middle, and HawkEye says that was hitting leg stump close to the top

60.4 Broad to Lyon, OUT, after those short balls, Broad goes full, and picks up his tenth wicket of the match by splattering Lyon's stumps into the ground, Lyon did manage an inside edge, but it didn't save him as the ball swung in

68.3 Broad to Siddle, OUT, full ball on off stump, loose drive into the off side, oh it's straight to mid-off and England have won the Ashes. Broad the man to finish the job with a length ball that Siddle tried to drive, got slightly wrong and chipped an easy catch to Anderson who turned to the stands and threw the ball to the heavens, that's the moment when England won the Ashes

Commentary provided by Alex Winter and Abhishek Purohit

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Broad responds to call to 'spice it up'

Stuart Broad hailed a "special era" in English cricket after bowling England to a third successive Ashes series victory.

Broad, bowling with impressive pace and skill, claimed 11 wickets in the match as England went 3-0 up in the series at the end of the fourth Investec Test. If England win at The Oval, they will become the first England side to win four Tests in an Ashes series at home.

For much of the fourth day of the Durham Test, it seemed Australia might pull-off a remarkable victory. Set 299 to win, Australia cruised to 109 without loss in the afternoon before England captain, Alastair Cook, called upon Broad to "spice it up a bit."

Broad immediately appeared to find another gear and, troubling all the batsmen with his pace and reverse swing, claimed five wickets for 20 runs in 40 balls as Australia lost nine wickets in the final session of the day.

It left Broad, who finished with Test best figures of 11 for 121 in the match, reflecting on a "special" day for English cricket and a series that has been far more closely contested than the score line indicates.

"It was a very special afternoon," Broad said. "In this game, pretty much for each hour, it could have gone either way. Certainly at 40 for 3 in our second innings we were staring down the barrel a bit. Australia have shown in this series what a fighting side they are.

"We gathered ourselves at tea with Australia having won that session without doubt. Our bowlers were too caught up in hitting the deck hard which was a little too far back of a length. But once we got the ball fuller we got the ball to move and we were massively in the game.

"The great thing about this side is we have a lot of experience in the changing room. There are one or two in our dressing room who could become the leading ever [in terms of series wins for England] in the Ashes, which is a special era to play in.

"The guys put their heads together calmly and decided the best way forward. Alastair Cook was clear what he wanted the bowlers to do. We needed to make the Aussies play off the front foot a little bit more.

"Despite the openers beginning well it was a very hard wicket to start on and we always had in the back of our minds that with 300 on the board we can put a lot of pressure on the new batsmen.

"Once we got some early wickets after tea the bowlers got their tails up and we put the new batsmen under pressure. The crowd gave us a huge lift. It was a special moment when we took that final wicket."

Cook agreed that England had not managed to get things quite right with the ball in the first part of Australia's second innings, but was lost for words to describe Broad's match-winning spell.

"If we are totally honest, we didn't quite get it right with the ball," Cook said. "The pitch behaved a little better than we thought it would. This morning the new ball seemed to jag around a bit more for Australia and a few balls kept low. It didn't do that for us and maybe it took us a while to regroup. But fair play to Chris Rogers and David Warner: they batted very well.

"It was a fine spell of bowling from Broad. That's probably not the right adjective either. As a captain and knowing how important how that session was, well, if we lost that session we would have been struggling.

"Broady knew that and the lads knew that. He really charged in. When everything clicks and he is bowling in the high 80s with the control he has, it is incredibly hard to bat against. I said that against New Zealand when he got that seven-for at Lord's.

"Here was more important in terms of the situation of the game and in the Ashes. Words can't justify how good a spell of bowling that was. We also have to recognise the job Tim Bresnan did at the other end. We talk about bowling in partnerships but that end into the wind wasn't doing that much. He really built the pressure which was a huge credit to him. We built an incredible amount of pressure with a lot of good bowling."

The key moment came after a drinks break when Broad produced a brute of a delivery that left Michael Clarke off the pitch and hit the top of off stump. Losing their best batsman seemed to rock Australia's confidence and their middle-order were brushed aside as England's superior experience and confidence became more apparent.

"We went hard at Clarke and that seemed to work," Cook said. "We spiced it up. "As a side in these last 12 months, we have come through tough situations well. And when you have learned how not to get beaten, even when you are up against it, we have the players to take the game by the scruff of the neck

"When you have that experience as a group of players, it gives me as a captain a load of confidence. I can only praise our side, the fielders, everyone who played their part in making sure there was no let up, no partnership that could develop through a mis-field or anything like that.

"We'll enjoy what is a very special day and one that I'm going to look back on with huge fondness.

"We are going to get greedy and try and repeat that at The Oval. But we can think about that with sore heads tomorrow."

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Bell creates his Ashes legacy

With his side in trouble again, Ian Bell produced another innings to transcend the situation and write his name in the Ashes history books

In years to come, when we reflect on the summer of 2013, it may well be that we remember it as "Bell's Ashes".

Ian Bell has been magnificent in this series. While his team-mates have batted with nervous fragility, Bell has combined the sweet timing with which his batting has always been characterised with the reliability and steel with which it has not. He has scored not just pretty runs, but match-shaping runs. He might well prove to have been the difference between the sides.

Bell will gain plaudits for having registered three centuries in the series. Certainly, it is a fine achievement: only two England players - Maurice Leyland and David Gower - have previously managed such a feat in Ashes series in England. It should also be noted that, following his century in Sydney at the end of the 2010-11 series, he has scored centuries in four of the last five Ashes Tests.

But such statistics tell only part of the story. The important thing about Bell's batting has not been the personal milestones, but the fact that he had come in with his side in trouble and produced under pressure.

This innings at Durham provided a perfect example. Coming to the crease with his side only 17 ahead and three wickets down, this game was in the balance. What is more, Ryan Harris was bowling with pace and skill and the pitch was starting to exhibit signs of uneven bounce.

But while every other batsman in the game has made batting appear a grim struggle for survival, Bell batted with an ease that has transcended the situation, the pitch and the bowling. His cover driving and late cutting, in particular, were things of beauty but, though less obvious, his shot selection and judgement at which balls to leave and which to play - for so long the Achilles heel in his game - was just as impressive. When Bell bats like this, he makes it seem absurdly easy.

It seems almost unthinkable now, but Bell entered this series with questions to answer about his long-term future. After a modest 18 months - he had averaged 32.07 in Test cricket between January 2012 and July 2013 - all the old questions, questions about Bell's mental strength and his resilience under pressure, were starting to re-emerge. All those innings in South Africa or against India in England, or even as recently as in Auckland were in danger of being forgotten.

Those questions have surely been answered permanently now. It is only surprising it has taken 20 Test centuries - only six England players have scored more and two of them are in the same side as him - more than 6000 Test runs and an average of 47 to convince the doubters. And, aged 31, the best should be ahead of him.

So soundly did Bell negate the low bounce, playing straight, late and low, that it appeared this pitch had eased. In truth, that probably owed more to the softening ball - the batch of balls used for this series appears to lose more hardness than normal, increasing the value of the new ball - but it did show what could be achieved if batsmen took their time, retained their composure and refused to be drawn into rash strokes.

The lead is currently 202 but until England have taken it over 300 they will not be comfortable. It will not comfort Australia to hear that England have not lost any of the 19 previous Tests in which Bell has scored a century.

"I'd rather have 200 on the board than be chasing them," Bell said. "But we've seen already with Australia that they will go all the way. That Trent Bridge pitch didn't deteriorate like we thought and this might be very similar. So if we start to get the lead over 300 I might be a little bit more confident. But this Australian team will keep coming and some of their batters are in form now. It will be a scrap over the next two days."

Bell's excellence has helped compensate for the failures of England's top order but concerns about the form of Joe Root and Alastair Cook, in particular, continue to grow. While worries over Cook's form are alleviated by the knowledge that he has a track record of success opening the batting at Test level, Root does not. Indeed, in 10 innings as an opener in red-ball cricket for England - eight in this series and two against Essex - he has passed 41 only once and then only having been missed behind the wicket.

England are not about to lose faith in Root. They knew when they promoted him to open the batting that he was not the finished article and this was always going to be a long-term project. But by promoting him, aged 22 and in an Ashes series, they risked damaging his confidence and, as a consequence, his long-term development. In retrospect, it may well have been wiser to allow him to continue his development in the middle order.

	The Huddle: Bell's playing on a different planet

That decision would have had consequences for Jonny Bairstow. They are not necessarily negative consequences in the long term, though. While Bairstow looked more comfortable in the second innings, he has come into this series - through no fault of his own - hopelessly underprepared for the rigours for which he has been confronted. He did not have a single first-class innings between the Test series against New Zealand and the start of the Ashes - almost seven weeks - and, as an unused played in England's limited-overs squad - hardly batted in white-ball cricket.

For a team that prides itself on long-term planning, which monitors players' progress through the age groups, through Lions sides and through assessing every aspect of their physical and mental characteristics, it seems an oddly ramshackle piece of organisation.

Bairstow's career, Root's career and certainly the career of Nick Compton - a man who has enjoyed none of the continuity of selection afforded his former team-mates - might all have been better served had England persisted with the plans that won them the Test series in India.

Bell's form has allowed England to avoid such uncomfortable suggestions for now, but England cannot rely on individuals masking team failures if they are to retain the Ashes in Australia.

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Harris grits his teeth

Ryan Harris has almost made it. Almost got through three consecutive Tests for the first time in his career. And he has done it - or, almost done it - with style. Harris has been Australia's most effective bowler during this Investec Ashes series, having claimed 16 wickets at 21.37, one fewer than Peter Siddle, who has played one more Test. On the third day at Chester-le-Street, Harris was again the most dangerous man in the attack, his speed, accuracy and movement all troubling England.

That the hosts got away slightly through Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen and extended their lead to 202 by stumps was not the fault of Harris, who delivered a searing new-ball spell that accounted for all of England's top three batsmen. The wickets were the main prize for Harris, but the feeling of making through a third consecutive Test - and after a short three-day break, no less - was a major bonus for a man whose body has kept him to 15 Tests in three and a half years.

"I'm a little bit tired after today but I feel good," Harris said. "I've come out of it nice and strong. I feel really confident in my body. I've had a really good build-up. Unlike in the past I've gone from not bowling many overs to bowling lots of overs, whereas this time I've spent plenty of time on the Australian A tour and bowled lots and lots of overs and finished off the first-class season back in Queensland and bowled lots and lots of overs

"Because I've copped a few injuries, I guess you get sore spots here and there and you doubt whether or not it's going to be bad. Even today I had a couple of sore spots when I bowled a few balls but you ... go back and go again and if it doesn't hurt you're all right. If it does you've got a problem. You've always got doubts, but I'm starting to have less and less doubts."

Harris earned his three early wickets in different ways, his superb outswinger clipping the top of Joe Root's off stump, his accurate bouncer tempting Jonathan Trott, who gloved behind, and his wider ball surprisingly drawing Alastair Cook into a flash outside off. His aggression also nearly had the centurion Bell, who fended a sizzling bouncer off his gloves and fell back onto the ground, almost onto his stumps.

"I went around the wicket to try and muck up his feet and the one he hit me, I got it a little bit wide and a little bit full," he said. "So it was always going to be a short one - one of the next two. I got it on the money but it would have been nice if it had of flown to Usman Khawaja at short leg, that would have been better. It was one of those things where you just have to try. Once he gets in, he is hard to get out."

Bell was mostly responsible for putting England back in the driving position, for batting last on this Chester-le-Street surface will not be easy and Australia cannot afford to let the lead stretch much further. But Harris said a pursuit of 250 to 300 would be achievable and the focus had to be on claiming England's remaining five wickets as quickly as possible.

"The wicket's holding together pretty well. It might spin a little bit but the ball's going through nicely. I think it's pretty evenly poised to be honest," he said. "It's hard to say a target. But it is not breaking up as much as we probably thought. It hasn't had as much sun as it could have had. If it had of been sunny of the past three days it might have been different and dried out a little bit more. There a couple that keep low and misbehave but that's going to happen."

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