Waugh celebrates last Ashes series victory

PERTH - Steve Waugh celebrated the last Ashes series victory of his long career after leading Australia to another crushing defeat of England in the third Test at the WACA Ground.

Waugh equalled Allan Border's national record of 32 Test victories as captain when Australia finished off England by an innings and 48 runs inside three days to record its eighth consecutive Ashes series win.

England is broken, losing the first three matches in a combined 11 days, and its tour was typified by the sight of tailender Alex Tudor leaving the ground on a stretcher after he was struck by a short-pitched delivery from Brett Lee.

Tudor required six stitches to a gash above his left eye but the wound inflicted on England by the rampant Australians is yet to be realised.

The tourists were dismissed for 223 in their second innings, just 38 runs more than they managed in their first dig after Australia compiled 456 in its opening innings.

Waugh admitted the Australians yearned for another tough series to rival last year's epic battle in India but the 37-year-old may not receive that wish before he retires.

He still pushed away retirement talk but it is almost certain he will be gone when England hosts the next Ashes series in 2005.

"I know it's sooner rather than later but I haven't put a date on it," Waugh said.

"I didn't want to consume myself with the thought of retiring. I want to go out and enjoy my cricket and at the moment I'm doing that.

"There will be a time when I've got to sit down and have a serious think about it.

"The ultimate goal in the back of my mind is winning in India but that's a long way off - it's 18 months away.

"If there is one thing that would entice me to keep playing is to win in the subcontinent but that may be out of my grasp."

A farewell Test against England in front of his Sydney home crowd next month looms as the perfect ending to Waugh's career but the determined captain has rarely shown a sentimental side.

He has become cricket's most ruthless leader, pushing Australia towards only the second 5-0 cleansweep in an Ashes series, but he admitted the success had its downside.

"Some of the series we've had - beating the West Indies 5-0 (in 2000-01) - and some recent series it has felt a bit hollow," Waugh said.

"We would like to come up against a side that would really get stuck in and play tough Test match cricket and make it really tough to win.

"I don't want to sound big-headed about it but some of the victories have been a little bit easy."

The three victories over England have been landslides - 384 runs in Brisbane and an innings and 51 runs in Adelaide - before Australia edged towards another predictable result today.

The victory was delayed by the fight of England captain Nasser Hussain (61) and Alec Stewart (66 not out) after Mark Butcher (0) gave the tourists a disastrous start to the third morning.

He was involved in the run out of Michael Vaughan (nine) before being trapped lbw by Glenn McGrath from the next delivery, swinging his bat into the stumps in anger as he left the field.

Butcher was fined 20 per cent of his match payment, about $2,200, by referee Wasim Raja while Hussain also vented his frustration after his dismissal by kicking equipment in the dressing room.

"I believe the dressing room is a sacerd place and after the last couple of months I have had I believe I can kick a cricket case in my own dressing room if I want to," Hussain said.

"We have been very, very poor in three games and we have not put the ball in the right areas and we have not batted particularly well and we have been outplayed.

"We have let people down. We have been brought down by a great Australian side and our own inadequacies and the injury situation which has been unbelievable."

Tudor added to the injury woes but he should be ready when the Test series resumes in Melbourne on Boxing Day after a break for the first section of the triangular one-day series, also featuring Sri Lanka.

Tudor fell to the ground in pain amid genuine concern from the Australian team, including Lee.

"This is the fastest pitch in the world and you've got quick bowlers on both sides and there is always going to be a lot of bumpers," Waugh said.

"The odds are someone is going to get hit at some stage and you just hope it's not going to be serious."