Australia thrashed England in the first Ashes Test of the series Down Under thanks to dominant performances with both bat and ball.
The two cricket nations were thought to have played out a war of attrition, but England were bowled out for mediocre scores of 136 and 179 – a stark comparison to Australia’s totals of 295 and 401-7 declared.
Fast bowler Mitchell Johnson was the star performer, notching up 5-42 off 21.1 overs in England’s second innings, and match figures of 9-103.
The visitors appeared to be in a reasonably safe position at 142-4 with captain Alastair Cook at the crease, but a disastrous 18 minute spell followed, featuring four wickets and just nine runs.
There was no coming back from that position.
In the end, England were thrashed by 381 runs, and will have much to mull over before the next Test in Perth, particularly after such a shocking collapse in their second innings.
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