Greatest Tests: The Shamar show at the Gabba vs England's 2005 Ashes thriller
Shamar Joseph's brilliance in Brisbane or the thrilling England win in Trent Bridge? Which Test was better? Vote now!
ESPNcricinfo staff
24-May-2025 • 12 hrs ago
In the lead-up to the WTC final between Australia and South Africa at Lord's from June 11, ESPNcricinfo, Star Sports and JioHotstar are inviting you to help us pick the greatest Test of the 21st century. There are 32 contenders, with two Tests pitted against each other until we identify the winner. Get voting now!
It was a Test of two halves.
The first 11 sessions were about England's march to a 2-1 lead in the fourth game of the Ashes. The 12th and final session, in which England were chasing a small(ish) target, was dragged into a great fight from the time Shane Warne took a wicket off his first ball. Had Australia won, they would have retained the Ashes with a game to spare.
England were so dominant that they forced Australia to follow-on after being bowled out for 218 inside 50 overs. Andrew Flintoff's 102 off 132 balls and Geraint Jones' 85, had propelled England to 477. In the third innings, Australia rode on half-centuries from Justin Langer, Michael Clarke and Simon Katich to post 387 and set England a target of 129.
It wasn't a cakewalk for England, though.
The fourth innings lasted only 31.5 overs, where Brett Lee and Warne led a courageous Australian fightback. There was a period of calm when England moved from 32 for 1 to 103 for 4. But when Lee dramatically dismissed Kevin Pietersen and Flintoff to leave England at 111 for 6, Australia sensed a comeback. In the next over after Flintoff's dismissal, Warne - who had by then picked up three wickets - removed Jones. It was left to Ashley Giles and Matthew Hoggard to fight it out. Slowly, they picked off the runs even as Lee peppered Hoggard with a mixture of bouncers and yorkers. Giles hit the winning runs to the delight of a joyous England balcony.
Carl Hooper and Brian Lara broke down. Even the most patriotic Australian fans cheered for the opposition. The world Test champions were stunned. It was all because one bowler with a broken toe who staged a siege at the Gabba.
Australia hadn't lost a Test to West Indies since 2003, or at home since 1997. They had never lost a pink-ball Test. That changed in Brisbane.
They came into the second Test having decimated West Indies in Adelaide inside three days. At the Gabba, Australia replied to the visitors' 311 with 289 for 9 declared. West Indies fought for 193 in their second innings, setting a 216-run target.
But more importantly, Shamar Joseph had retired hurt after a Mitchell Starc yorker crushed his toe. Australia lost Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne early in the chase, but Steven Smith and Cameron Green took them to stumps, requiring 156 runs to win. Shamar hadn't bowled at all on the third evening.
On the fourth afternoon, Smith and Green looked comfortable. Then Shamar arrived. He conceded 19 runs off his first ten balls and then removed Green and Head. He kept bowling - removing Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Starc, and Pat Cummins in a fiery spell.
All this while, Smith kept at it. But when Alzarri Joseph had Nathan Lyon with Australia still 25 adrift, the end was near. Fittingly, it was Shamar bowled Josh Hazlewood to seal a famous win, finishing with stunning figures of 7 for 68. It was a performance that single-handedly elevated Shamar to stardom.