It was a day when you wished you were Australian. Not because England were hopeless - they weren't - but because this team are irresistible. From the tips of Shane Warne's magical fingers to the iron of Steve Waugh's backbone, they are the cricket team of dreams - or an Englishman's nightmares. There is an inevitability about them, which confounds natural law. You know that sooner or later things will come full circle and that what has happened to West Indies in the last few years, will happen to Australia. But on the evidence of today, it just doesn't seem possible.

They eat up other teams, squeeze hope out of them as effectively as a drunk guzzling the last dregs from the bottle. England had been given a chance by the two-session washout yesterday. But the team that seemed inspired by the weather were the rested and refreshed Australians. As they tripped out into the steamy sunshine of The Oval, they tattooed their hearts with 4-1.

Shane Warne looked at the pitch set before him and licked his lips. Glenn McGrath looked at the batting line- up set before him and grinned broadly. England, despite a defiant cameo from Darren Gough, who has suddenly rediscovered his book of batting, could not resist. Between them they took nine wickets in the innings (which made it a mere 63 for the series).

So England went down 4-1. They deserved to. They haven't suddenly become a poor side - those victories over West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka did mean something. And they did have terrible luck with dodgy digits and calves this summer. But a moderate Mondeo was never going to beat a Porsche- however inspired the driving (that's if the captain could get into the car for a start.)

And they now know where they lag behind Australia - but it is too heartbreaking to spell it out.

But there is some good news. This will be the last time we see the Australian team in this shape over here. Goodbye Steve Waugh and Mark Waugh, goodbye, probably, Shane Warne.

And thank you.

Tanya Aldred is assistant editor of Wisden.com

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