Boasting one of the oldest sporting traditions globally, the Ashes are one of the sport's most significant battles.
The birth of the Ashes has been passed down through families for generations, and it all started in 1882 when Australia defeated a full-strength England XI for the first time on English soil. As is a common trend in the 21st century, the English media condemned their chargers for such a catastrophic failure, publishing a satirical obituary in the Sporting Times.
'In affectionate remembrance of English cricket which died at The Oval, 29 August 1882'.
-N.B. The body will be cremated, and the Ashes taken to Australia'.
With the sudden death of English Cricket, one man was hell-bent on reclaiming the urn, and his name was The Hon. Ivo Bligh. Akin to King Arthur searching for the Holy Grail, Bligh embarked on the noblest sporting quest and captained England to the 1882/83 Ashes victory on down under.
As the story goes, Bligh was celebrating Christmas at the Rupertswood Manor, the elaborate home of Sir William Clarke, when he was presented the burnt bails of the Third Test in a tiny terracotta urn by his future wife, Florence Morphy.
Australian sports journalist Clarence Murphy revived the concept of 'The Ashes' in the 1890s. It became an integral part of the Australian/England rivalry when English captain Pelham Warner published a novel after his resounding 1903-04 Tour win titled 'How We Recovered the Ashes.'
Specific Tests have been played that will go down in the annals of the long history. Some have shocked us, some have enthralled us, some have devastated us. Let's look into the Top 10 Greatest Ashes Tests in History and dive into the players who created their own history.
3. 2006-07
Second Test, Adelaide, 1-5 December (Australia won by 6 wickets)
England 6/551 (168) dec 129 (73) & Australia 513 (165.3) 4/168 (32.5)
The greatest victory in Australian Test cricket history.
England won the toss, batting first and batting all but nine overs of the first two days, building a score of 551. Paul Collingwood and Kevin Pietersen shared 310 for the fourth wicket, which lasted 84.1 overs. Collingwood finished on 206 off 392 balls, and Pietersen made 158 off 257.
Two of Australia's finest bowlers of all time, Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, had combined figures of 1/274 off 83 overs for the innings. With the pitch offering nothing for the bowlers thus far, Australia responded with 513, including 142 off 245 balls from Captain Ricky Ponting and 124 off 221 deliveries from Michael Clarke. 1/59 off 19 overs at stumps, the Test seemed to be dragging out towards a draw going into day five.
Enter, S.K. Warne.
With the free license to play around use his bag full of tricks, Warne opened the bowling on day five and produced his most extraordinary spell of bowling. Needing a bit of luck, Opener Andrew Strauss was caught at bat-pad by Michael Hussey, even though his bat or glove wasn't near the ball. First innings centurion Kevin Pietersen was next out, getting meticulously bowled off-stump around his legs.
Ashley Giles was next to go edging one to Matthew Hayden at first slip. The scores now read 6/97, with England's lead only at 135. Matthew Hoggard was bowled six overs later with the perfect wrong-un, and Shane Warne's spell of 4/19 off 25.5 overs had catapulted Australia into the territory of winning this Test. As the old saying goes, 'form is temporary, class is permanent' Warne and McGrath finished with figures of 6/64 off 42 overs in the second innings.
Australia required 168 from 36 overs for an unlikely victory and found themselves 2-33 early in the chase. Ponting pushed his way to 49 until Michael Hussey, and Michael Clarke put on 47 off the next 10 overs to chase the score with three overs to play. When he celebrated hitting the winning runs, Hussey's distinct roar still burns in the hearts of many Australian cricketing fans.
