Ashes 2013-14: Australia crush England to seal 5-0 whitewashEngland folded in dismal fashion to lose the fifth Test within three days and with it the Ashes series 5-0 to end their miserable winter in entirely appropriate style.
Alastair Cook's men were bowled out for a feeble 166 inside 32 overs to be thrashed by 281 runs in Sydney, at one stage losing four wickets in 11 balls.
It was the story of the past six weeks compressed into one final chastening day as Mitchell Johnson took three more pivotal wickets with ferocious pace to end with 37 in the series at an average of 13.9. Ryan Harris mopped up the tail to claim 5-25.
All of England's senior batsmen once again failed on a tour when not a single one has totalled 300 runs, and when six Australians have well in excess.
It is only the third whitewash in Ashes history, and is arguably the worst tour England have ever undertaken, after they came into this series as favourites and against a side beaten in seven of their previous nine Tests.
England won the toss here at the SCG but ended up humiliated once again, a team unrecognisable in personnel from the one that began the series in Brisbane but suffering an identical hiding.
Not in a single Test have they got close, losing by 381 runs, 218 runs, 150 runs, eight wickets and now this.
They were set a distant 448 to win but could not even last three hours as Michael Clarke's rampant side capped their remarkable renaissance by taking all 10 wickets in under two sessions.
Australia had been branded the worst team ever to tour England en route to losing last summer's corresponding series 3-0.
But they fully deserved every thumping victory on their own soil, their tactics, aggression and desire dismantling opposition that had travelled with such confidence and expectation.
- BBC
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