The urn might be returning to Australia but England still have a job on their hands to ensure their old foes don't win the compelling Ashes series outright.

NASSER HUSSAIN AT THE OVAL: Australia opened the door for England here with dropped catches and a wicket off a no ball but they just could not force their way through.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: Buttler, whose previous eight innings in this series had produced a best of 41, deposited Josh Hazlewood for three sixes to reach stumps on 64 not out.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: In a summer where Test openers have generally enjoyed the lifespan of a mayfly, Rory Burns has come dangerously close to spreading his wings.

DAVID LLOYD AT THE OVAL: England's batting line-up is flimsy. At 130 for two, you would have thought it would be plain sailing for them, with most of the top order getting starts

MIKE DICKSON: The Oval is no stranger to farewells, and this final Test will be the valedictory appearance of both David Gower (left) and Sir Ian Botham (right) on the Sky commentary team.

IAN HERBERT AT THE OVAL: The Australians have demonstrated in recent years the art of salvaging pride when the long shadows of late summer are falling across The Oval.

PAUL NEWMAN AT THE OVAL: For a short, sweet spell Jos Buttler produced a passable imitation of Kevin Pietersen's famous innings here at the Oval in the greatest of all Ashes series.

Mick Jagger cut a casual figure as he watched England take on Australia in the Ashes on Thursday.

Pat Cummins and Mitchell Marsh finished England's innings as the hosts were bowled out for 294 early on the second day at the Oval.

Yvonne Cannings, 60, from Lancashire said her close friend and former employee June Watson was 'worse than heartless', after she was left relying on food parcels following the £225K theft.

IAN HERBERT AT THE OVAL: As if this desultory Ashes summer had not punished David Warner enough, there was to be yet another indignity: an infernal delay as he waited in hope for deliverance.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: Jofra Archer picked up the second six-wicket haul of his fledging Test career as England gave themselves hope of squaring the Ashes on a dramatic day at The Oval.

BUMBLE AT THE TEST: Finally I have an answer to my question. How do you get Steve Smith out? A straight one from Chris Woakes. Simple.

PAUL NEWMAN AT THE OVAL: It did not quite inspire pronouncements on sandwich boards that 'He's out' as news of Don Bradman's demise was once greeted at the Oval.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: There was a moment when a few critics were lured into the view that Jofra Archer was not, after all, the best thing that has happened to English cricket.

When Sam Curran ran in at Mitch Marsh at a packed Oval yesterday it was somewhat different to their first cricketing encounters.

NASSER HUSSAIN AT THE OVAL: England fans may be entitled to ask where Sam Curran has been all this series after a very impressive effort with the ball.

Jofra Archer and Sam Curran combined to hand England a vital first-innings lead in the final Ashes Test, raising hopes of a series-levelling win at The Oval. Follow the action live with Sportsmail.

England set the stage for a series-levelling victory after setting a total of 399 for Australia to chase on the fourth day of the fifth and final Ashes Test. Follow the action live with Sportsmail.

NASSER HUSSAIN AT THE OVAL: The duel between Matthew Wade and Jofra Archer at the Oval typified a fantastically watchable series that has been great for cricket.

PAUL NEWMAN AT THE OVAL: What a way to end England's longest season and what a catch from the flying figure of Joe Root to complete a victory that sees the first drawn Ashes since 1972.

England beat Australia by 135 runs in the fifth Ashes test to see the series end as a draw after the tourists had already retained the urn. Sportsmail gives a rating to every player throughout the series.

BUMBLE AT THE TEST: England produced a fine bowling display to draw the Ashes series with a 135-run fifth Test victory at The Oval. Consecutive Joe Root catches signalled the end of an era.

LAWRENCE BOOTH AT THE OVAL: Joe Root hailed a 'phenomenal' summer of cricket after England squared the Ashes at 2-2 almost exactly two months after England's World Cup win.

IAN HERBERT AT THE OVAL: There was something telling about Tim Paine sitting down to say that his terrible record with the decision review system might require him to 'enrol in umpire school'.

Australia may have retained the urn but couldn't do enough to win the 2019 Ashes series as England clinched a 135-run fifth Test victory to level the scores.

SPORTS AGENDA BY MIKE KEEGAN: Eddie Jones has included lessons on Japanese history as part of England's World Cup preparations

Real estate agent Emma McCarthy, 27, shared a photo with the smiling spin bowler captioned: 'Keeping the urn, so proud of you.' Steve Smith was seen sharing a kiss with wife Dani Willis.

Both men have been staples of the cricketing world since their debuts in the 1970s, but were - in their own words - 'being retired' after the TV network did not renew their contracts.

Channel Nine is reportedly 'unsatisfied' with Sunrise host Edwina Bartholomew's apology after she 'defamed' journalist Seb Costello in a since-deleted Twitter post.

Joe Root knows England have 'something special' on their hands in Jofra Archer but has already started the job of managing expectations around the breakout star of the summer.

Donald Butler's daughter Nicolle, 27, had recently passed away, with family staying nearby in Tampa, Florida, for the funeral when his truck disappeared with his daughter's urn inside.

England have set a minimum target of 425 points in their quest to reach the inaugural World Test Championship final at Lord's in 2021. Joe Root's team claimed 56 from the 2-2 draw in the Ashes.

The biggest cricket summer in living memory provided an unforgettable World Cup triumph and one of the greatest Tests of all time at Headingley. 

Steve Smith assured Jack Leach in the aftermath of the final Test that he was not poking fun at him when he donned glasses to celebrate Australia's Ashes triumph.

Aberdeen will host the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2019 in December. The favourite to land the award is Ben Stokes after his remarkable heroics in the Cricket World Cup final.

Archer took 47 wickets in his first season of international cricket, including 22 at just 20 apiece in the Ashes , leaving new-ball partner Broad to lavish praise on his 'incredible attributes'.

RICHARD GIBSON: As the ghost writer of a soon-to-be-published memoir of Ben Stokes' summer, I have been given the privilege of re-living these momentous events through his eyes.

A cricket supporter has been forced to get a very embarrassing tattoo after Australia failed to win the 2019 Ashes. 

Joe Root has declared his desire to continue as England Test captain despite a failure to win back the Ashes from Australia after a drawn series.

He had a disastrous time at the Ashes in England, scoring just a measly 95 runs. 

Cricketer Nathan Lyon, 31, and his girlfriend Emma McCarthy couldn't take their eyes off each other as they touched down in Australia on Wednesday evening. 

Archer was England's leading wicket-taker in their triumphant World Cup campaign and followed that up by making a huge impact during the Ashes, as he took 22 wickets at an average of 20.27.

Sunrise presenter Edwina Bartholomew resumed her broadcasting duties on Monday, after her 'errant tweet' about Seb Costello earlier this month caused a legal headache for Channel Seven executives

A man's body has been found in the ashes of a suburban Melbourne home which had been subject to a council clean-up order to clear towering piles of junk.

Stokes struck an unbeaten 84 in the final against New Zealand on the way to England's maiden World Cup title and then crashed a barely-believable 135 not out to keep the Ashes alive at Headingley.

Candice and David Warner have been enjoying plenty of family time since their return from England following The Ashes series.

The Ashes star was seen with his hand in wife Clare Stokes' face at the Professional Cricketers' Association Awards Anniversary party in London last Wednesday.

England's top cricketer was seen with his hand on Clare Stokes's face at the Professional Cricketers' Association party in London last Wednesday.