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If you’ve developed a taste for fifth Ashes Test dead rubbers then good news! We’ve a contrived one to tell you about. The final episode of the latest series of our Ridiculous Ashes podcast is now up and (spoiler!) there was nothing to play for but pride (in one’s own ridiculousness).
Going by standard scoring, the 2019 Ashes stood at 2-1 as the teams headed to the Oval, so it was a sort of quasi-dead rubber in that Australia had already retained the Ashes even though England could still level the series. Ridiculousness-wise, however, the series had already been definitively won. We won’t say which way in case you’re behind and want to listen to the series from the start (and actually give a shit about the outcome, which seems vanishingly unlikely).
But of course every Ridiculous Ashes Test is important and there were some unlikely star performers in this match: Jos Buttler in England’s first innings, Joe Denly in the second, Mitch Marsh with the ball. Elsewhere, Jonny Bairstow delivered a grand wicketkeeping cameo, while Steve Smith was again predictably prominent, as were Stuart Broad and David Warner.
Have a listen! Here’s a link to all the episodes in this series, including this latest one. You can also find previous Ridiculous Ashes series on the same page if you want to go back and listen to those.
And hey! Why not also buy the book? (Shiny, full colour, utterly devoid of 2026/26 Ashes content.)
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