"As far as endings go, it ended nicely. People streamed on to the Sydney Cricket Ground, wanting to get close to the trophy presentation and to have a canter on the turf. Nothing thrills an audience more than a chance to walk the stage. On a sun-kissed blue-heaven day, the match had finished early enough to leave plenty of afternoon to spare. Later Usman Khawaja soaked that up with his own crowd of family and friends, on his last day as a Test player."
"The media caravan arrived in Perth after months of build-up, which is media driven but also driven by public interest. We counted down, we prophesied, we prognosticated, we cast bones and read entrails, we tipped coffee cups upside down, sourced skin of salamander and sketched the fine traceries of the wing of a bat. Finally, with all that done, it began. And 31 hours later, it was over."
Spectators invaded the Sydney Cricket Ground to celebrate and to see the trophy, and Usman Khawaja enjoyed time with family on his final Test day. The series delivered moments but felt hollow due to poor overall performance standards. Media hype and public expectation built feverishly, yet several matches collapsed quickly: a Test finished within 31 hours, Brisbane ended after two and a half days, and Melbourne became a two-day embarrassment. Adelaide lasted the distance but involved frequent wicket giveaways. England arrived under the McCullum–Stokes era with selection and mindset aimed at victory, but the approach translated into entitlement rather than decisive success.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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