England finally broke their long Australian hoodoo by winning the fourth Ashes Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, chasing down a target of 175 despite losing six wickets on the final day. The victory ended an 18-match winless run for England in Australia and marked their first Test success Down Under since 2011. While the result did not change the fate of the Ashes, with Australia leading the series 3-1, it carried enormous emotional weight for Ben Stokes and his side.Stuart Broad’s reaction became one of the most talked-about images of England’s breakthrough win at the MCG, perfectly capturing the emotional swing of this Ashes Test. The former England fast bowler, now part of the commentary team, wore a broad smile as the winning runs were struck, a sharp contrast to the dejection seen earlier in the series. The moment stood out because fans had not forgotten Broad’s expression during the Perth Test. Sitting in the commentary box then, Broad was caught looking crestfallen as Joe Root was clean bowled, an image that quickly went viral. In Melbourne, the story flipped completely. As England crossed the line in a tense chase of 175, Broad could be seen beaming, celebrating a result that ended England’s long wait for success in Australia. The joy of the win was matched by strong criticism of the pitch, which produced a result inside two days. “When you go out there and you’re faced with those conditions, you’ve got to crack on and deal with it,” Stokes said after the match. “But being brutally honest, that’s not really what you want. You know, Boxing Day Test match, you don’t want a game finishing in less than two days. It’s not ideal.” Australian captain Steve Smith echoed those concerns, pointing to the heavy grass covering. “It was tricky. No one could really get in,” Smith said. “I think when you see 36 wickets across two days, that’s probably too much. It probably did a little bit more than they wanted it to.” Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg was even more blunt, warning about the wider impact. “A simple phrase I’d use is short Tests are bad for business. I can’t be much more blunt than that,” he said, adding that a better balance between bat and ball was needed. Former players were equally scathing. Michael Vaughan labelled the pitch “a joke”, while Alastair Cook called it “an unfair contest”. Yet amid all the debate, it was Broad’s smile that lingered. From visible despair in Perth to pure joy in Melbourne, his reaction mirrored England’s Ashes journey, one that finally delivered a rare and emotional win on Australian soil.
