If England's tour of Australia in 1970-71 lacked the controversy of the 1932-33 Bodyline tour, or the zany commercialism of today's Ashes experience, then it was nonetheless one of the most arduous trips of modern times. In fact, in many ways, it was the first trip of modern times. Hostile crowds and a hostile press are these days a common feature of Australian tours, but the 1970-71 series was made particularly noteworthy by the first-ever one-day international - an addition to the touring calendar that has transformed world cricket. When rain ruined the third Test at Melbourne, with the series locked at 0-0 after two evenly contested matches, England and Australia agreed to stage a 40-over match on what should have been the final day. Australia won by five wickets with five eight-ball overs remaining, and the format proved so popular that within four years, the inaugural World Cup had been arranged.

The abandonment of the third Test had further repercussions, when the team managements agreed to an unprecedented seventh match, held at Melbourne in early February. This meant that four Tests had to be squeezed into little more than a month, and it was to England's credit that they emerged with a 2-0 victory, their first Ashes triumph for six series. Remarkably, they were not awarded a single lbw decision in any of the matches, and it was the first time since 1888 that Australia had failed to record a victory in any series. When Raymond Illingworth, the 39-year captain, was chaired from the field after a superb win in the final Test, it might have been more through exhaustion than elation.

As captain, Illingworth had a particularly torrid time, though his Yorkshire cussedness saw him and his team through in fine style. From the start he was accused of negativity - the crime of the day in an era when entertainment was paramount - by both Don Bradman and the Australian papers, and following a pitch invasion at Melbourne, Illingworth felt obliged to lead his team from the field in the final Test at Sydney, after John Snow was assaulted by a spectator and pelted with beer cans.

Illingworth was further hamstrung by the attitude of Colin Cowdrey, who had been overlooked for the captaincy and suffered a particularly disappointing series. When Alan Ward, Illingworth's fastest bowler and, with Snow, the spearhead of England's attack, pulled out before the Tests with a broken foot, all England's best-laid plans looked to be going to pot.

But Snow rose to challenge of leading the line, banging 31 wickets in the series from pitches that were too sluggish to aid anything but the most extreme pace. He was ably backed up by Peter Lever and a coltish Bob Willis, recruited for his first tour at the age of 21, and until he broke a finger towards the end of the trip, Snow had taken 26 wickets in four Tests. Derek Underwood, who had bowled England to a famous victory over Australia at The Oval in 1968, was a disappointment, though he and Illingworth both played prominent roles in the series decider at Sydney. Australia went into that final Test with a new captain - Ian Chappell - after Bill Lawry had been dismissed and then dropped, ironically for his negative tactics.

Despite Cowdrey's lack of form, England's batting was led triumphantly by Geoff Boycott, who scored more than 1500 first-class runs on the tour, and whose 77 and 142 not out at Sydney laid the foundations of England's 299-run victory in the fourth Test. John Edrich was equally consistent, while England were spoilt for choice in the wicketkeeping department, with Alan Knott winning selection over Bob Taylor - as would be the case throughout the decade - by dint of his superior batting. Knott demonstrated his class by claiming an Ashes record 24 dismissals in the series.

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