From Sir Don Bradman to Steven Smith, the Ashes series has a rich tradition. Not only the Aussies, but many English players have also left their mark in this rivalry. An Ashes series traditionally consists of five tests hosted in turn by England and Australia at least once every two years. The longest format of cricket jumps into life for the entire cricketing world whenever an Ashes series takes place.
The term "Ashes" originated from a satirical obituary published in The Sporting Times, a British newspaper, in 1882. The obituary was written in response to Australia's victory over England in a cricket match at The Oval in London. The article stated that English cricket had died and its remains would be taken to Australia. It famously stated that "the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia." The phrase "the ashes" was meant metaphorically to symbolize the remains of English cricket.
The obituary gained significant attention and sparked public interest in a series to be played between England and Australia. The following year, when England traveled to Australia for a Test series, a group of Melbourne women presented a small terracotta urn to England captain Ivo Bligh. The urn is believed to contain the "ashes" of English cricket, further cementing the symbolic association between the term "Ashes" and the cricketing rivalry between England and Australia.
After England had won two of the three tests on the 82-83 tour, the small urn was presented to Ivo Bligh. The contents of the urn are reputed to be the ashes of a wooden bale and were humorously described as the ashes of the dead Australian cricket.
After Ivo Bligh's death the urn was presented to Merrill Bone cricket club which has it on display at the Lord's cricket ground in London. The urn has come to be strongly associated with the Ashes, the prize for which England and Australia are said to fiercely compete. If the series is tied the winner of the previous edition retains the title. The first time it happened was in 1938 and being the defending champions, Australia retained the Ashes.
As far as the toughest format of cricket is concerned, there is no greater spectacle than England taking on Australia. An air of anticipation always fills the mood preceding an Ashes series and this excitement knows no bounds when the modern England of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes's Buzzball locks horns against the typical Aussie line up.
Iftekhar Alam is a freelance contributor.
