Ashes 2023: Australia break 75-year-old jinx as they stun England at Edgbaston

Why you're reading this: Pat Cummins led Australia to a two wickets win in the first Test of the England vs Australia, Ashes 2023 series on Tuesday. The win at the Edgbaston Stadium handed the visitors a 1-0 lead in iconic series which has a lot of history of its own. The Aussie side also overcame a massive jinx that lasted for 75 years. 

3 Things You Need To Know

• Pat Cummins remained unbeaten on 44 runs in the 4th innings
• Australia needed 281 runs in the 4th innings for the victory
• Ben Stokes-led England declared their 1st innings on 393/8

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World Champions Australia continue their climb up the record books

With their chase of 281 runs in the fourth innings of the first Ashes 2023 Test, Australia managed to register their highest successful run chase in the historic series since 1948. Their previous highest run chase in Ashes came 75 years ago, when the Aussie side chase down a mammoth 404 runs at the Leeds. At the same time, the Pat Cummins-led Australian side shattered several other records with their win in Edgbaston.

This was Australia’s fourth-highest successful run chase in the history of Ashes. Alongside the chase of 404 runs in 1948, Australia chased down 315 runs in Adelaide during the 1901-02 series and 286 runs in Melbourne during he 1928/29 series. This was also the fourth joint-highest target chased down by a visiting team in England.

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Pat Cummins goes all guns blazing in Edgbaston

In the fourth innings, Cummins scored a crucial knock of 44 runs off 73 balls in the fourth innings, which consisted of two sixes. Earlier during Australia’s first batting innings, the Aussie skipper hit 38 runs off 62 balls, while hammering three sixes. His total tally of five sixes in the first Ashes Test now places him second on the list of Australian captains to hit the most sixes in a Test match.

It is worth noting that the match-winning partnership of 55 runs between Cummins and Nathan Lyon was the highest ninth wicket partnership during a successful chase in the history of Test cricket. While Cummins remained unbeaten on 44 runs, Lyon was not out on 16 runs off 28 balls. Having said that, Australia and England will now head to the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground for the second Test of the Ashes 2023 series.