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<\/p>\nMoments after Scott Boland claimed the final wicket of Josh Tongue, Cummins gave Nathan Lyon a bear hug, acutely aware of the frustration the injured spinner would have felt \u2013 even if he would never show it \u2013 at being unable to be part of the onfield huddle.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone\u2019s pretty pumped up in there,\u201d Cummins said at his press conference, having lost half a can of beer during an impromptu kid\u2019s cricket game on the field after play.<\/p>\n
As Alex Carey was named man of the match, the contrast between the winning and losing teams was stark. McCullum stood near the boundary with a BBC microphone under his chin. Metres away, a procession of English cricket writers marched towards him, laptops under arms and hard questions at the ready after a campaign that has unravelled in spectacular fashion.<\/p>\n
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Ben Stokes is interviewed after the defeat in Adelaide.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Earlier on day five, with momentum building, the Barmy Army had belted out Bon Jovi\u2019s Livin\u2019 on a Prayer.<\/p>\n
\u201cOhhhhhh, we\u2019re halfway there …\u201d<\/p>\n
Even as hope faded, they followed up with Elton John\u2019s I\u2019m Still Standing.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/e87e664080a01517a0c4850757ff7a755603133e.jpeg\")
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The Barmy Army in action. Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Joe Root, who has more catches in Test cricket than any player, jokingly inspected Marnus Labuschagne\u2019s palm as they shook hands after play \u2013 perhaps checking for superglue, so good has the Australian\u2019s catching been throughout the series.<\/p>\n
Cricketing royalty flooded into the Australian change rooms after an open invitation from Cummins on the morning of day five.<\/p>\n
In came Ricky Ponting, Mark Taylor, Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden and others, all bound by a shared appreciation of thumping England.<\/p>\n
![\"Jake](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/aedd818a4eddeb451097148eadaf95997bf0ee0b.jpeg\")
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Jake Weatherald and Steve Smith celebrate Australia\u2019s Ashes win. Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Stokes was generous in crediting Australia\u2019s execution and relentlessness. But when asked where this Australian side ranked among the great Ashes teams he had faced, his glare said it all.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve been better than us,\u201d Stokes said.<\/p>\n
The question was reframed. Stokes was in no mood to inflate the praise.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve been better than us,\u201d he repeated.<\/p>\n
While two Tests remain, the damage has been done. Australia will be without Cummins and Lyon in Melbourne \u2013 and perhaps Head for a few days of training, depending on how long the celebrations last \u2013 but a whitewash remains elusive for this group, which had to settle for 4-0 series victories in 2017-18 and 2021-22.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to Melbourne absolutely desperate to win that one. And Sydney too,\u201d Cummins said. \u201cIf you get 5-0, it\u2019ll be amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the afternoon wore on, Australia\u2019s players and staff drifted to the western side of the Adelaide Oval. Despite a short five-day break before the fourth Test, celebrations were unavoidable.<\/p>\n
Head, the designated social coordinator, delivered once more \u2013 still in a \u2018Ronball\u2019 shirt \u2013 producing jugs of his \u2018Headliner Spritz\u2019; an apple and watermelon gin cocktail.<\/p>\n
![\"Australian](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/30aa078c51a98366b1ac15aa6f6e1be05ab218e7d58b824e74332680aa22a204.jpeg\")
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Australian players and staff at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday. Credit: Instagram <\/p>\n
McDonald had a pink cocktail in hand, but he refrained from donning a Ronball shirt. His style has always been understated.<\/p>\n
At 5.58pm local time, players and coaches returned to the field. Lyon ditched his crutches, standing in a team circle, weight gingerly on his right leg.<\/p>\n
Carey, the team\u2019s songmaster, played True Blue on a portable speaker, an echo of the live performance by John Williamson before day one in the wake of the Bondi shooting attack.<\/p>\n
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The wicketkeeper kissed the turf, a nod to Head\u2019s celebration after making a century here two days ago, as Cummins and Labuschagne sprayed beer and cocktails across Head\u2019s Ronball shirt.<\/p>\n
Then they all came together, after doing what they had said they would do.<\/p>\n
Under the Southern Cross I stand,
A sprig of wattle in my hand,
A native of my native land,
Australia, you f—ing beauty.<\/p>\n