The Baggy Greens v The Three Lions – The Final Ashes Test, Day Four: Action Unfolds

Events are handled superbly in Australia. On the first day of this fifth Test came a fitting tribute to the victims and first responders of the Bondi incident, and on the third day the Sydney Cricket Ground was turned into a ocean of pink to once again generate donations for the McGrath Foundation.

Between the wickets, however, Australian charity was in far scarcer quantity. Across three sessions their batters wore down the English attack, addressing any queries about their incentive since securing the Ashes and raising a few more about their vanquished foes.

Faces flush from the ordeal, Ben Stokes and his team departed at stumps seeing pink elephants. Steve Smith’s 37th hundred in Tests, 129 not out from 205 balls, had succeeded the concluding stages of Travis Head’s sizzling 163 from 166, and with it Australia had achieved 518 for seven from 124 overs. The lead stood at 134 runs overnight and looked an ominous one.

The legendary Neil Harvey, 97, gave his views in a charming interview.

I've been disappointed in England. I think the way they approach the batting side of things, they get too impetuous, nobody seems to want to play a long innings, like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.

It might work against average opponents but when you get a quality outfit like Australia it's a completely different proposition. I used to score runs quite rapidly, and everyone gets a lot of satisfaction out of it, but when you try to play this aggressive approach it reduces the chances of winning an important Test. I'd like to see them show more restraint.

Shortly after the start of a quietly overcast morning at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Matt Potts came into the England attack from the Randwick End, and immediately began trying out his change-ups.

His first ball was full and wide and clobbered through cover by Travis Head. His second ball was both back of a length and outside off and slashed over gully by Travis Head. His third ball was on a good length and driven past midwicket by Travis Head. His fourth ball was blocked with a show of concentrated care, to jeering shouts from a crowd that had begun to settle in for the day's play. A grueling introduction, Pottsy. And yes, it's always like this around here.

There was a time, while Steve Smith was at the pinnacle of his batting prowess, when “best since Bradman” was used with confidence. The thing about that line is that even when the recipient has dominated for years, it gets applied too quickly, given the point of comparison is a career enduring for 20 years. Lots of players hit their peak for a time, no other has remained there.

The blend of those phases, though, elevated him to a exceptional position on the third day. In the record books of the game there are milestones, then there are mountaintops. For a long time in Smith's Ashes-centric career there have been two peaks slowly approaching in the mist. Donald Bradman's 5,028 runs against England is one that even Smith will never climb. Jack Hobbs's 3,636 runs against Australia is the one he overtook on Tuesday.

The latest Ashes series, perhaps the most underwhelming series in the 144 years since Fred Spofforth caused havoc at The Oval, is staggering to a fitting conclusion. Australia are poised to crush England at Sydney and win the series 4-1, a scoreline not even the most one-eyed Pom could contest.

It's been a triumph of maturity, maturity, discipline, skill and Travis Head. His audacious 123 at Perth opened English wounds that have yet to heal; four Tests later he is happily compounding their misery. Head's surprisingly ruthless 163 helped Australia to 518 for 7 at the end of day three, a lead of 134. Steve Smith will start again on 129 after making a century that looked inevitable even before he faced his first ball.

Australia, despite a number of flaws in their team, have won the series with an comfort that is hard to fathom. Maybe that's an English perspective. It's not Australia's fault that England did not show up – even if, on some level, they probably craved a greater challenge.

The concluding chapter will be administered either this evening or tomorrow. There's a chance of a one-sided finish when England bat, just as there was in the concluding effort of 2013-14 and 2021-22. Their bodies are tired, their confidence broken, their spirit broken. It's nearly time for everyone to go home.