Bazball 'perfect storm' helps England break 14-year drought in Boxing Day Test

England has won its first Test match on Australian soil since January 2011, breaking a 5,468 day drought.

The Boxing Day Test remarkably saw 20 wickets fall on day one, and then 16 on day two, coming down to a frenetic English run chase, in front of 92,045 fans.

England needed 175 to win on the afternoon of day two, with some early aggression leading them to victory.

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The Melbourne Test proved to be one of the strangest ever, with wickets tumbling and batsmen struggling on a pitch covered in 10mm of grass.

It was certainly an unconventional win, but it gets the 14-year monkey off the back, even if the Ashes have already been secured by the Aussies.

Australia came in to bat on day two with Scott Boland alongside Travis Head.

Boland lasted 20 minutes before Gus Atkinson removed him, while Head managed to keep the scoreboard moving, top-scoring with 46.

That 46 was the highest individual score of the match. The Test became the first Ashes contest since 1981 without a batsman reaching 50.

Atkinson would leave the field with hamstring soreness soon after, but the rest of the English bowlers picked up the slack.

Jake Weatherald and Marnus Labuschagne's struggles continued. Neither made double digits and both were dismissed in familiar fashion.

Steve Smith came in and batted out the remainder of the Australian innings. Wildly, that only comprised of 39 deliveries.

Usman Khawaja was dismissed for a duck, while Alex Carey made 4.

The amount of seam and movement in the pitch made it incredibly difficult for all batters, with balls turning like off-break deliveries, only at 140km/ph.

Despite the pitch, Mark Waugh was disappointed with the Aussie batsmen.

"I don't think they batted well, Australia. They batted like they were 3-0 up. They'd be disappointed. If it was even, they wouldn't have batted like this. I know it's been a tough track," Waugh told Fox Cricket.

Michael Vaughan had a little more sympathy for the batsmen.

"I'm enjoying it, but this is a lottery. You can't tell me this is Test match cricket," Vaughan said

Australia needed to bat deep into day two and build a sustainable lead, but only lasted 34 overs, making 132 and setting England 175 to win.

While 175 looked extremely tricky on this pitch, it actually provided the perfect scenario for 'Bazball' to shine.

Waugh describing it as the "perfect storm" for the aggressive brand of Test batting to thrive.

And he was quickly proven right. Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett swung for the fences from ball one.

Their efforts more resembled a T20 run chase than day two of a Test match, but it proved effective.

Duckett threw the kitchen sink at every ball, even nailing a ramp shot for six. He made 34 off 26 balls before being bowled by a searing Mitch Starc yorker.

Brydon Carse then came out as a designated hitter at three, but only managed 6 before holing out in the deep.

Despite losing two wickets, England had reduced their target to just 98 runs thanks to their aggression.

"They're swinging, as they should. I think it's the right approach on this pitch," Vaughan told Fox Cricket.

Crawley carried England to the halfway point, making 37 off 48 and building partnerships with both Duckett and Jacob Bethell.

Bethell, in his first Test on Aussie soil, helped steer the innings from there, making 40 before smashing one straight to Usman Khawaja in an unlucky blow.

Joe Root gets to experience his first Test win in Australia, but Jhye Richardson removed him lbw with 15 runs left to chase.

Similarly, Ben Stokes also didn't get to hit the winning runs, nicking off Starc for just two. Thankfully for the visitors, the chase was elementary by this point.

Harry Brook and Jamie Smith navigated the final 10 runs as the Barmy Army erupted in the stands. Brook anticlimactically winning it with leg byes.

The landmark result comes after greats of English cricket called for the sacking of coach Brendon McCullum and the end of the 'Bazball' era.

Breaking their drought and avoiding a whitewash in Australia however might just buy him an extended run in 2026.