Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have provided most enjoyable time

Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have provided endless drama and the most enjoyable time as England rewrite the Test rulebook after action-packed Ashes

• No Test team has ever put on a show like this and risked defeat at the Ashes 
• There has never been more deserving moral victors than this England team
• Bazball has provided wall-to-wall drama and been both pulsating and exciting 

Has there ever been a more dramatic transformation of any side in any major sport?

Has there ever been a more consistently entertaining and action-packed Test cricket team than Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s England?

Has there ever been a more convincing ‘moral victory’ than England’s thrilling 49-run win at the Oval that gave them only a share of an Ashes series they have dominated?

The answer, of course, to all three questions is ‘No’. No side have ever responded to a rock-bottom run of one win in 17 Tests by winning 13 of the next 18, mainly against the best teams in the world in a range of conditions and with pretty much the same personnel.

No Test team have ever put on a show like this, risking defeat even in the biggest series of them all in the pursuit of high-octane victory while completely eliminating the draw apart from when hit by a Manchester monsoon.

There may not be a more consistently entertaining and action-packed Test team than England

Brendon McCullum (above) and Ben Stokes risked defeat even in the biggest series of them all

And, no, there has never been more deserving moral victors than an England team who, with a fair wind behind them, could have won this Ashes by four or five nil.

That last comment, of course, is a little mischievous because it is guaranteed to make Australians bite, as they have been doing ever since Harry Brook said England were aiming to win the ‘Moral Ashes’ at the Oval – and just about throughout an Ashes where Australia have made whingeing an art form.

They were at it again right until the end of this extraordinary series, moaning about a changed ball at the Oval which apparently, as far as Australians are concerned, suddenly swung and seamed round corners without any assistance from England’s bowlers. 

And moaning about an apparent snub over a post-series drink when England seemingly offended them by spending too much time celebrating their victory with their families while marking the Test retirements of Stuart Broad and Moeen Ali.

Truly, there can never have been a more negative, passive Australia team than this one.

One of their many moans came when Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne apparently took offence at one spectator at the Oval telling them they were boring. But that would surely be upheld as fair comment in any slander case in any court of law. 

Bazball spooked Australia, the world Test champions, and provided wall-to-wall drama

There has never have been a more negative, passive Australia team than this one, however

Bazball did that to the world Test champions. Bazball ensured Pat Cummins was spooked from the start when he posted a deep point for the very first ball of the series at Edgbaston, one that set the tone when Zak Crawley crashed it to the boundary.

Bazball has been responsible for the most enjoyable and eventful 15 months I have spent reporting on the Test team in 17 years as Daily Mail Cricket Correspondent. It has provided wall-to-wall drama. It has been pulsating and exciting in equal measure. More than anything, it has been great fun.

Yes, this England team can still exasperate with their refusal to follow any sort of convention. I confess there were times in this Ashes for the ages when they infuriated me. Once I even wrote: ‘There is Bazball and then there is brainless…’

If only they had not lost too many second-innings wickets too quickly when they were in control at Edgbaston – the first innings declaration is pretty much a red herring because it did not affect the result – they would have won the first Test.

And if England had put their foot down on Australia’s throats at Lord’s after Nathan Lyon was injured – as significant a moment as Glenn McGrath stepping on a ball in 2005 – rather than becoming happy hookers, they would have won the second, too. 

As they are, England are winning plenty of Tests and providing unforgettable experiences

Zak Crawley set the tone at the start of the series and proved all those who doubted him wrong

But, truly, the good far outweighs the bad. Yes, if England just add a touch more ruthlessness to their enterprise they would win even more games but they are winning plenty as they are and providing unforgettable cricketing experiences.

Stokes talks about making moments and that is what England have done this summer. Like Crawley’s opening salvo at Edgbaston, then Joe Root attempting to ramp the first ball of day four for six. Like Stokes making 155 off the back of Alex Carey’s gamesmanship to dismiss Jonny Bairstow and almost repeating his Headingley 2019 miracle.

Like Crawley proving all of us who doubted him wrong and proving Stokes and McCullum absolutely right in backing him with one of the great Ashes innings, 189 at Old Trafford, and safe hands that saw him pouch nine slip catches in the series.

Like Bairstow responding to criticism of his rusty wicket-keeping on his comeback after serious injury by bristling with bulging eyes and returning to his absolute best with bat and gloves in the last two Tests.

Like Chris Woakes and Mark Wood, two of the nicest guys in cricket, combining to win the third Test in Leeds with the bat and bowling so well that Wood produced some of the fastest deliveries ever seen at Headingley and Woakes ended up as player of the series.

Above all, like Broad throughout what became his final Test series. 

Jonny Bairstow responded to criticism of his rusty wicket-keeping with both bat and gloves

England are rewriting the Test rulebook and Stokes is set to become one of the best captains

And what a series it was, full of wickets, defiant batting and sporting theatre. There will never be a greater Ashes showman than Broad and there will never be a farewell better than hitting his final ball for six and winning an Ashes Test by taking a wicket with his final ball. It was perfect.

Australians might get stuffy about it but England really are reinventing Test cricket. They are doing to the great old game what Sri Lanka did to 50-over cricket with their gung-ho approach to the 1996 World Cup.

They are making Test cricket more attractive to a new audience than any marketeer could ever dream of from T20 franchise or Hundred cricket.

England are rewriting the Test rulebook and, while it may not have won them the Ashes, it produced the best Test series I have covered.

As Rob Key said when he made the genius decision to bring Stokes, now well on his way to becoming one of the best England captains, and McCullum together, ‘buckle up and enjoy the ride’.

It is some ride, and it has barely started…

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