"Australia blew us away" - Joe Root

Home team Australia won the third Test match at MCG to take an unassailable lead of 3-0 in the 5-match Ashes series! Let us look into what both the captains have said at the toss and at the end of the match!

Image Credits: Sky Sports

Toss: Australia won the toss and opt to bowl first on a green surface at MCG.

Pat Cummins (Australian captain): "We are going to bowl first. It was tough sitting on the couch at home, but I thought Smith led the boys really well and they played some good cricket. It feels like a bowling day as there's some good grass coverage. It doesn't necessarily mean we will bowl them out this morning. Scott Boland has been a seasoned performer for Victoria at the MCG, plays really well. We had earmarked him for a while, and a few injuries made the decision easier. We are happy to have him."

Joe Root (England captain): "We would have probably done the same to be perfectly honest. We have spoken to some local guys who have played a lot of Shield cricket on a similar wicket and it looks to be a reasonable place to bat on if you apply yourself well. The first hour is crucial always, so we need to start well. I expect a reaction this week. We are a better side than we have played so far and it's a great opportunity to show what we are capable of, it's the best stage to do it. I'm really looking forward to the opportunity of this Boxing Day Test."

Match Result:

Australia won the Test match by a margin of an innings and 14 runs! England were bowled out for just 185 runs in their first innings before bowling out Australia for 267 runs conceding an 82-run lead in the first innings. And then, homeboy Scott Boland wreaked havoc with the ball bagging 6 wickets in 4 overs conceding just 7 runs to bowl England for just 68 runs in their second innings.

With this innings victory, Australia have now won all the first three matches of this 5-match series to win the series. Australia have now also retained the Ashes urn after they shared the 2019 Ashes series in England. Scott Boland also bagged the Player of the Match award for his amazing bowling spell.

Here is what both the captains said after the match result.

Pat Cummins (Australian captain): "It is pretty insane. Just an awesome few weeks, so proud of the group as everything clicked and everything worked out. Thrilled for Scott Boland playing in front of his home crowd here. We have been relentless. The bowlers have just turned up and owned their areas outside off-stump. There have been big partnerships, everyone's performed, everyone's contributed - it's a great feeling. The batsmen have left well and have been brave when the opportunities have presented themselves. We were really confident that Scotty would do a great job; maybe not 6 for 7. Any Ashes series is where you make a mark in Test cricket. The last series was 4-0, the one before that was 5-0, and it is a chance for us to cement our identity in the next few years."

Joe Root (England skipper): "It is what it is. We have come to deal with this sort of environment for a while now. Credit to Australia, they blew us away last night, and they have outplayed us in this Test match, in fact, the series so far. We have a lot of hard work to do now and come back strong in the last two games. The covid threat wasn't ideal. The way we went about our cricket, especially our bowling was excellent yesterday. Credit to the boys for managing it and giving ourselves a chance in this game. We just have got to do things for longer. There have been pockets, but that's just not enough. We know where we need to work and we have to stay very strong and make sure we look at the next two games as a real opportunity to take something away from this tour."

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The 5-match Ashes series is now 3-0 in favor of home team Australia. The fourth Test match of this series is scheduled to be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in Sydney beginning from January 05.