A great player, a wonderful competitor, the pleasantest of men Freddie, naturally, is the side’s bedrock. 10Geraint JonesThe jokes about him only just outnumber the chances he missed (there were actually seven). But it is a tribute to him and the team that he kept going, often as if nothing had happened, when the Ashes seemed to be sitting right there on the floor He scored crucial runs quickly, especially at Trent Bridge The type of man you want to succeed 6Ashley GilesThe King of Spain was never more regal. In the end he responded to it like a choirboy confronted by a mobster. By The Oval it was no contest, but he was fearless at short leg, caught the most outfield catches, scored twin fifties in the Old Trafford Test and still has a future at this level. 5Kevin PietersenBrings something new to international cricket in every way. The outrageous streak atop his head is matched by something similar in his batting.

He will infuriate at times (and not only with his hair) but he played one of the all-time great innings last Monday at The Oval to defy critics. Ignore the flashiness, he is a diligent cricketer needing love and craving plenty of attention. 8Andrew FlintoffThe collision of man and moment has just occurred. He is an instinctive yet increasingly intelligent cricketer who recognised what was at stake for him and the team. No praise can be too high for his achievements or the manner he went about attaining them. 10Marcus TrescothickThey said his feet were encased in concrete and he would be found out. In Somerset they can make concrete boots look like ballet pumps He established the tone No hundreds, three fifties but only one score under 20.

He gave the start England needed by a combination of careful, unorthodox leaving, as if drawing curtains, and some thunderously effective strokeplay. 8Andrew StraussDismissed six times by Shane Warne, he still scored two hundreds and averaged close on 40. Only five players have made more runs for England after as many innings (36) – two of them became knights and the others were Herbert Sutcliffe, Wally Hammond and Denis Compton. The only graduate in the side, he talks and listens well, and his series diary should be a best-seller. 8Ian BellHaving been preferred to the grizzled veteran Graham Thorpe, the blue-eyed novitiate was always under intense scrutiny.

This makes a mockery of the affair, and the great and the good who selected the side are compromised. Unruffled, elegant, masterful, the Cary Grant of cricket captaincy Batting occasionally brittle, now watch it go. But these players are ever mindful of the spirit of the game and the traditions of the game, and the respect that the game deserves.”FOR THE RECORDFirst Test, Lord’s: Australia 190 (Langer 40, Harmison 5-43) and 384 (Clarke 91, Harmison 3-54) beat England 155 (Pietersen 57, McGrath 5-53) and 180 (Pietersen 64no, McGrath 4-29) by 239 runs.Second Test, Edgbaston: England 407 (Trescothick 90, Warne 4-116) and 182 (Flintoff 73, Warne 6-46) beat Australia 308 (Langer 82, Flintoff 3-52) and 279 (Lee 43no, Flintoff 4-79) by 2 runs.Third Test, Old Trafford: England 444 (Vaughan 166, Warne 4-99) and 280-6 dec (Strauss 106, McGrath 5-115) drew with Australia 302 (Warne 90, Jones 6-53) and 371-9 (Ponting 156, Flintoff 4-71).Fourth Test, Trent Bridge: England 477 (Flintoff 102, Warne 4-102), and 129-7 (Trescothick 27, Warne 4-31) beat Australia 218 (Lee 47, Jones 5-44) and 387 (Langer 61, Harmison 3-93) by 3 wkts.Fifth Test, The Oval: England 373 (Strauss 129, Warne 6-122) and 335 (Pietersen 158, Warne 6-124) drew with Australia 367 (Hayden 138, Flintoff 5-78) and 4-0.Men of the series: Andrew Flintoff and Shane Warne.Player-by-player ratings: England’s Ashes smashers, by Stephen BrenkleyMichael VaughanNext month the so-called official Rest of the World side play Australia in a so-called Super Test and Vaughan, the obvious captain, is not there. But overridingly, the characteristic of the series has been sportsmanship, a word that has slipped increasingly from the professional sportsman’s lexicon.As Lloyd says: “It’s very difficult to get across, through microphones or in column inches, just how tough it is out there in the middle of a cricket match It’s a rough, tough game The ball hurts you and the game can hurt you.