ENG vs AUS 2024, ENG vs AUS 5th ODI Match Report, September 29, 2024

Australia 165 for 2 (Short 58) bat England 309 (Duckett 107, Brook 72, Head 4-28) at 49 runs (DLS method)

Australia's chase would never reach around 310 in 50 overs – the 20-over DLS moving with wickets lost was the deciding factor. The visitors knew the totals well and after an attentive first three overs, Head and Short called it quits as 62 were scored in the next four overs. At 100 for 1 after 10 overs, they were so far ahead that they had room for the loss of a few wickets.

Brydon Carse hit the first ball to remove the head and Short fell behind after a 23-ball first ODI fifty. But Smith, who successfully tested lbw against Matthew Potts in the 10th over, and Josh Inglis ensured there were no further setbacks, although England won the review in the 15th for a lead off Inglis at 122 2 missed. However, given Australia's great start, England needed more than another breakthrough and the tactics became clear when Brook returned to full throttle on a pitch-assist spin in place of Adil Rashid (and Potts suddenly realized he needed a new boot).

The rain, which had initially started during the break, then returned four balls after a result was secured with a DLS of 116 for 2. Australia couldn't quite defend their way there as the weather picked up a little more slowly than it initially looked likely: Inglis hit consecutive sixes off Carse in the 20th over. Under normal circumstances, Rashid and England's other spinners might have been able to turn the game around, but given the way they fought on the field, Australia conceded well enough to win.

As with Trent Bridge, it was a game that fell apart for England due to a very strong batting base. A wild stand of 132 from 98 balls between Duckett and Brook brought their 200 in the 25th over, but from the moment Brook fell to Zampa the innings fell away and the final collapse was 107 for 8. Smith took advantage of 23 in a row Overs with spin and 28 from the last 29 in total.

After 2.2 overs, Zampa's figures stood at 0 for 42, but he became a significant threat on the dry surface, offering increasing help to the spinners. Head scored a List A best of 4 for 28, including the key scalp of Duckett for a 91-ball 107, the highlight of which was how quickly he gained length early on against the quicks, a hallmark of his batting during one productive home summer. But the momentum changed so much that England managed only one boundary between the 27th and 43rd overs. The 194 spin balls were a record for Australia in a men's ODI.

Phil Salt set the tone in the opening, which included three boundaries against Mitchell Starc and two plays and misses. That meant at that point Starc's final two overs of the series had cost 40 after being bowled by Liam Livingstone at Lord's. Salt continued to oscillate between misses and hits, hitting a strike over the deep third for a six against Starc, before scoring a brace of far more convincing sixes against Hardie's first two balls, bringing up England's fifty in the seventh over.

But Hardie fought back. First he had Salt well captured at deep point by Marnus Labuschagne after adjusting the ball up the field and then delivered a great throw to clear Will Jacks for a duck. There were a few consolidating overs from England before Brook gave Josh Hazlewood his first boundary after hitting ninth. He then continued the team's approach of being aggressive against Zampa by finishing his first over with four and six. A delightful late cut that drew comparisons to Eoin Morgan's Mahela Jayawardene on commentary and then a strike at the short, straight boundary.

There was much more to come from Brook as he hit three more sixes after Zampa's second knock, leaving Smith searching for options. Duckett reached 50 in 45 balls and Brook raced to the mark in 39 balls with another six down the leg side against Hardie. Brook took his tally of sixes to seven with another brace against Zampa as he returned at the start of his second outing and had the attack at his mercy.

But then there was a break for Australia when Brook Zampa hit the ground and Glenn Maxwell hit the long throw. Maxwell continued to do excellent work with the ball, finding clear purchase from the surface and pushing the ball through Jamie Smith. Zampa then found Livingstone's top edge with one that spun and bounced and suddenly the bottom center edge was exposed.

The onus fell on Duckett to lead the rest of the innings as he produced an outstanding century. Both he and Jacob Bethell held back for a while, but after sending Head's third ball over long-on, Duckett tried to do it again and twisted a catch to long-off, meaning Carse in the 34th over came in.

Head then sharply reversed the throws, leaving Bethell caught off guard and Carse lbw, allowing Rashid to take the total to 300, but eyes were already on the sky and Australia successfully transitioned into T20 mode to claim the spoils secure.