Story byBen Stokes’s England have been hammered - /Gareth CopleyRob SmythSun, December 7, 2025 at 11:34 AM UTC·52 min readJofra Archer and Steve Smith clashed at the end of the second Test but the fight had drained out of England long before and at 2-0 down in the Ashes they are in a desperate, sorry state. Smith had the last laugh, moments later cracking the winning runs in an eight-wicket victory for Australia who can secure the Ashes in Adelaide. It was just reward for playing disciplined Test cricket for far longer than their opponents, who could not compete for long enough with bat, ball and in the field. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEngland became the first team to lose a day-night Test after posting more than 300 in the first innings and the only consolation is they managed to avoid an innings defeat, which was on the cards at the start of day four when they resumed six down and 43 behind making Australia bat again. For all the failures of the bowling in this Test, and it plumbed new depths for this team, it is the batsmen who have lost two Tests in a row. England can look at dropped catches, and those did not help, but the first-innings 334 was under par and over too quickly, allowing Australia to begin their reply in the sunshine and control the game. The feeble collapse on the third evening finished England off and the over-riding disappointment is the sense of what might have been on Sunday had they batted more securely under the lights and given themselves a chance.
