EXCLUSIVE BY MIKE KEEGAN: Sportsmail understands that hours of revealing footage has been collected from the last year, which includes Australia's trip to England for World Cup and Ashes.

Former captain Steve Smith who won the Ashes for Australia has opened up about the sandpaper scandal saying there was a time when he thought he wouldn't play again for the country.

Steve Smith's glorious Ashes has raised calls from some fans and pundits for his restoration to the Australia captaincy but incumbent Tim Paine has no plans to hand over the reins quietly.

PAUL NEWMAN AT THE OVAL: Root wore the tired, almost haunted, look of many an England captain coming to the end of the road as he tried to summon up one last effort on Wednesday.

His time in charge is destined to be remembered for a phenomenal improvement in white-ball cricket, capped off by this summer's World Cup win at Lord's.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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

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.

EXCLUSIVE BY LAURA LAMBERT: Sky is being investigated by Ofcom for three separate incidents of the word 'f***' being audible during its cricket coverage this summer. Sky declined to comment.

Stokes has enjoyed an unforgettable year, playing a starring role in the historic World Cup victory at Lord's then producing one of Test cricket's greatest ever innings in the Third Ashes Test.

Ben Stokes has revealed being sledged relentlessly by David Warner was the motivation behind his stunning match-winning century against Australia at Headingley in August.

Ten of the UK's most iconic oaks, sycamores and pines have been shortlisted for the 2019 Tree of the Year award. One on the Isle of Wight, that is shaped like a dragon, was listed.

The 1000-year-old Allerton Oak in Calderstones Park, Liverpool, will represent the UK in the European Tree of the Year contest which begins in February.

From the bushfire crisis ravaging New South Wales and Queensland to the final climb of Uluru, Getty Images has reveals its most powerful photos from the past year.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY RICHARD GIBSON: England's greatest ever bowler Jimmy Anderson is fit again and is targeting the 2021 Ashes series which begins in November that year.

An abandoned baby deer (left) has been miraculously pulled from the ashes of the devastating bushfires without injury.    

Craig Overton, Olly Stone and Saqib Mahmood are said to be the pace trio identified for the long-term care programmes which the ECB are planning to put in place in a bid to regain the Ashes.

In the first of our series looking back at the greatest moments of the sporting year, we reflect on Ben Stokes's incredible innings in the third Ashes Test at Headingley.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal some of Ivan Milat's ashes were scattered in water during a private family ceremony at a small inlet south of Sydney, with the remainder given to his brother Bill.

Amy McGlade, from Adelaide, spent her life watching families struggle with what to do with the leftover embryos through her career as a midwife.

Sky Sports breached Ofcom's broadcasting rules on swearing during their cricket coverage this summer, but have been cleared over David Gower using the f-word in his final Test.

Siddle, 35, made his debut in 2008, took 221 Test wickets at an average of 30.66 apiece, and played his last Test in the fifth and final match of this year's Ashes series in England, which England won.

JOFRA ARCHER: Much was made about the two full tosses I bowled in consecutive balls at Anrich Nortje on the second evening, and they certainly weren't beamers.

Mo Bobat says winning is more important than the strength of the teams defeated when England Lions begin their tour of Australia next week.

James Lattimer, 51, was accused of kissing the woman and allegedly 'grabbed her bum cheek' during the England v India test match on 9 August 2018.

Companies rising out of the ashes to avoid paying tax, wages and other debts will face a crackdown when regulators get increased powers.

A new documentary on the Australian cricket team has captured the moment when the worst was feared for Steve Smith after he was struck by a Jofra Archer bouncer in last year's Ashes series.

A large crowd of English cricket fans were seen taunting the Australian team as they boarded their bus during the Ashes tour in 2019.

Alistair Shipsey said his uncle Ivan Milat is a 'victim' and initially suggested his ashes be scattered in Belanglo State Forest, near Sydney, where the hitchhikers he murdered were found.

The Riley Lynx is a pristine example of fourwheeled elegance from the early days of motoring. But only five years ago, this 1934 Riley Lynx sports car was a burnt-out shell in Yorkshire.