This victory of England has raised numerous hopes in the English Team.
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Clarke, nearly in tears, announced his impending retirement after England’s innings and 78-run win in the fourth Ashes Test at Trent Bridge on Saturday saw them take an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the five-match series.
“I thought we played well for a game and a half, and [then] we let ourselves down in 10 overs, said Edwards, who plays her club cricket for Kent. “The first two games, I was really happy with where we were at”. I think that we need to stick together and keep the faith. “I know how good these Australia players are”, Bayliss told Test Match Special.
The 16 players who went to the West Indies were supplemented by pace bowler Ryan Harris for the Ashes series, to which the Australians travelled direct from the Caribbean.
Lehmann said he was expecting a “smooth transition” from Clarke as captain to Steve Smith, provided he is endorsed for the role by the Cricket Australia board as required, and that it would not hinder Smith’s batting.
Batsman Marsh failed in both innings, while the lack of his brother’s support as a fourth seamer placed the Australian pace attack under additional strain.
He was given backing by head coach Darren Lehmann on Sunday and Smith says the captaincy is a challenge he would love to take on permanently.
“We’ve got to go and do that for an extended period of time and that’s what we’ve been telling the players”.
“He deserves to finish at The Oval and hopefully with the weight of the series off, we can see him make a big score”.
“I have changed probably just through experience and ¬realizing that I had to be a less stubborn captain than in the past”, said Cook. In the past 20 months of Test cricket, Clarke has only passed 50 twice, struggling with back and hamstring injuries.
“It is not easy playing away but it’s something that we clearly have to get better at”.
He also added that the Australians played well in their own conditions, but it was necessary to identify the good from the great.
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England 5th Test squad: Adam Lyth (Yorkshire), Alastair Cook (Essex, captain), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Jos Buttler (Lancashire, wkt), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Mark Wood (Durham), Steven Finn (Middlesex), James Anderson (Lancashire), Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire).
