England relied on vibes and sprites when Cummins went a little Bazball | Jonathan Liew


Five tempestuous, hysterical days ended with Australia playing the old-fashioned way until desperation won the day

Everyone talks about big first hours. That’s because first hours need all the hype they can get. Nobody needs to sell the last hour of a Test match. And particularly not a Test on this epic, colossal, orchestral scale, a Test that shook you from its very first ball and never stopped shaking.

Take the devastating tension of a tight Twenty20, the ebb and grapple of a really good one-day international, and then make it big. Stretch it out over almost a week. Throw in some random weather phenomena, enough booze to fill the Caspian, batters forced to bowl and bowlers forced to bat. Cricket: good. Worth your time. Might just catch on.

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