The Ashes 3 Disc Box Set - England V Australia 2005

The series started less well for the England team at Lord's as they faced a sound thumping at Australia's hands, and particularly the bowling arm of legendary Aussie fast-bowler Glenn McGrath. But as the series progressed England found their feet, and this confident young team started playing their best cricket, particularly impressing with the quality of their bowling. At the start of the final test at The Oval, the series hung in the balance with England 2-1 ahead, despite some of the best bowling of Shane Warne's long test career. A mixture of bad light, Pietersen's batting and Flintoff's impressive display of character and determination managed to wrest the Ashes from Australia's grasp for the first time in sixteen years and the atmosphere at the ground -- and indeed nationwide -- was euphoric. The 2005 Ashes Series will be remembered not just as a series in which a young England team came of age, but also as the the point at which the game of cricket returned to the nation's conciousness after some years in the wilderness. --Duncan Thomson