Australia are just New Zealand in disguise (plus Michael Clarke and Ryan Harris)

Thumping Australia is grand; thumping Australia without playing well almost feels like cheating. But in a good way. This is where England find themselves today. The Ashes are safe for another few months and England have not had to be very good to keep them. Which is just as well, frankly, since even though they are unbeaten in 12 tests England are not quite as good a side as they like to think they are.

They are good enough to defeat these hapless Australians, however. The Australians are basically New Zealand in disguise. Like New Zealand they are a side good enough to get themselves into good positions but not a side good enough to take advantage of those good positions. So, yes, they have had their moments in this series but we should expect that just as we should appreciate that the repeated failure to press home advantages is a reliable indicator of a side that’s playing at a level one step beyond its abilities.