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Version 5 Version 6
England slump again in Melbourne Sorry England thrashed by innings
(about 2 hours later)
England were facing another heavy defeat after slumping to 90-4 at tea on day three of the fourth Ashes Test. Australia bundled England out for 161 to win by an innings and 99 runs inside three days in the fourth Ashes Test.
Stuart Clark bowled Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen, Glenn McGrath trapped Ian Bell lbw and Paul Collingwood drove Brett Lee to short extra-cover. The Aussies were dismissed for 419 in the morning, with Sajid Mahmood taking 4-100, but ran through the tourists.
Andrew Strauss battled away for an unbeaten 31 but his team need another 170 to make Australia bat again. Brett Lee took four wickets, Stuart Clark three and Shane Warne - in his final Test on his home ground - two.
The hosts were dismissed for 419, with Sajid Mahmood taking 4-100 and Steve Harmison removing Andrew Symonds (156). The result puts Australia 4-0 up and needing a win in Sydney next week to clinch the first Ashes whitewash since England lost 5-0 to them in 1920/21.
Resuming on 372-7, Symonds added only two to his overnight score before getting a thick edge behind trying to play an expansive drive off Harmison. That looks a distinct possibility based on the domination the Aussies enjoyed at the MCG.
Shane Warne was determined to enjoy himself in his last Test at the MCG and thrashed six boundaries in an entertaning unbeaten 40 off 54 balls. England briefly rallied in the morning, with Andrew Symonds adding only two to his overnight 154 before getting a thick edge behind trying to play an expansive drive off Steve Harmison.
Mahmood bore the brunt of his strokeplay before having Clark and McGrath caught close in, while Chris Read finished with six catches. Mahmood then had Clark and Glenn McGrath caught close in and Chris Read finished with six catches after the Lancastrian had suffered at the hands of Warne, who made an entertaining 54-ball 40.
The enormity of England's task soon became apparent, however, with McGrath consistently making the ball move away off the seam from just outside off-stump. From then on, however, it was once again a tale of the visitors being exposed by accurate bowling on a pitch that had become easier to bat on.
Clark did the early damage with two wickets to rock the tourists McGrath consistently seamed the ball away just outside off-stump in a probing opening spell and should have had Alastair Cook lbw after the youngster passed 1,000 runs in his first calendar year of Test cricket.
Cook passed 1,000 runs in his first calendar year of Test cricket but should have been out before lunch when the veteran seamer rapped him on the pad with a straight delivery that held its line. The veteran paceman rapped him on the pad with a straight delivery that held its line but umpire Rudi Koertzen somehow ruled in his favour.
South African umpire Rudi Koertzen somehow ruled in his favour but McGrath's fellow metronome Clark accounted for him soon after the interval. Pietersen was among the failures as England slumped again
A lazy drive from the young left-hander caught the inside edge before the ball crashed into middle-stump. Fellow metronome Clark accounted for him soon after lunch anyway when a lazy drive led to an inside edge into middle-stump and McGrath then nipped one back into Ian Bell to win only the second lbw verdict of the match.
McGrath then nipped the ball back into Bell to win only the second lbw verdict of the match, although there was some doubt whether the ball would have gone on to hit the top of the stumps. Clark was asking plenty of tough questions with a combination of swing and movement off the pitch.
Pietersen came in at four, not his preferred five, and was soon trudging back to the pavilion after Clark bowled a beauty which jagged back in and went through a big gate. Even Kevin Pietersen, moved up the order to four, had no answer to a beauty which jagged back in and went through a big gate.
Collingwood played sensibly to lead a brief rally with Strauss until he also drove loosely and left his side with a mountain to climb. Paul Collingwood and Andrew Strauss (31) drove loosely at Lee either side of tea, while Andrew Flintoff was undone by one that Clark angled in and was adjudged leg-before.
It could have been worse had Hayden held on to a difficult chance at gully off Strauss, and had Lee hurled the ball in more accurately from long-leg with the opener yards short. From then on it was a question of how long the tail could defy Warne.
The great leg-spinner rolled back the years to unfurl a series of vicious leg-breaks, googlies and the once-deadly flipper.
Mahmood and Harmison were lbw after being bamboozled by the flipper and slider, while Chris Read's bat was beaten at will during his 77-ball 26.
Monty Panesar cheered the sizeable English contingent in the crowd by delightful flicking Lee off his pads for four and driving Warne past mid-on for another boundary.
That joy was short-lived and he fended a vicious Lee delivery to Michael Clarke at fourth slip.
With shadows enveloping the outfield in the evening, Lee cleaned up Matthew Hoggard to wrap things up and end England's misery.