Is That The Ashes? Yes, England Have Won The Ashes!

So spoke Brian Johnston, in black and white, over half a century ago. And yes, England have won back the Ashes from Australia, by an ultimately convincing 197 run margin. Even though this Australian team didn’t have the greatness of the line up that included Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne and Brett Lee back in 2005, it still matters when we put one over on them. Because the Aussies compete.

When you play the Aussies at any sport, there are no easy wins, no gimmies. Games like cricket are played in a fair but fiercely competitive spirit: they want to win, and if you want to beat them, you not only have to be good enough, but tough enough to want it. Today, Andrew Strauss and his team really did want it.

I’m cooking a celebratory curry right now. As Mrs T once said, just rejoice at that news.