Australia clinched a 49-run victory on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in the final ODI against England to seal a 3-2 series win. (More Cricket News)
Australia clinched a 49-run victory on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in the final ODI against England to seal a 3-2 series win
Australia clinched a 49-run victory on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in the final ODI against England to seal a 3-2 series win. (More Cricket News)
Having won the third and fourth ODIs to tee up a grandstand finish to the series in Bristol, England started well on Sunday.
England, inspired by Ben Duckett's second ODI century and Harry Brook (72), looked well set after storming to 202 before the latter was dismissed.
Yet the hosts slipped from 202-3 to 238-6 in less than 10 overs, with Duckett going for 107, and though Adil Rashid (36) steadied the ship, Australia were set a manageable target of 310 to win.
In total, eight wickets fell for 107 runs, all of them to spin, with Travis Head (4-28) doing the damage for the tourists, who subsequently set about making inroads into the target.
Head reached 31 from 26 balls before he was dismissed by Brydon Carse (1-36) in the eighth over, while Matthew Short had plundered his way to 58 by the time he was sent packing in the 13th.
Steve Smith (36 not out) and Josh Inglis (28 not out) subsequently took control before the rain closed in with Australia on 165-2 with 29 overs remaining, leaving them clear winners once DLS came into play.
Data Debrief: England's comeback falls short
The weather ultimately frustrated England, but they only have themselves to blame for another batting collapse.
England have slipped to their first defeat in an ODI series of four games or more since a 3-2 loss to South Africa in February 2016, while this loss also snapped a run of three straight 50-over wins at the County Ground.
Australia, meanwhile, clinched their first win in an ODI series of at least four games since they beat Pakistan 5-0 in 2019.