5. More Stokes heroics | Newlands | 2020

Just when you thought Ben Stokes’ powers must be wearing out.

Twenty-three days after winning the 2019 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award for his superhero performances in the World Cup and the Ashes, Stokes was back at it.

Really, we might have known that some bowling heroics were imminent, after a 2019 of saving his side with the bat. Stokes is usually only a decent fourth seamer for England, but, typically, can deliver the occasional performance to match the world’s finest.

With England labouring on a flat wicket, and without a potent spinner, the second Test match of the series in South Africa was drifting towards a frustrating draw – until Stokes wrestled it back their way.

The hosts were seven down but seemed in control before he had Dwayne Pretorious hopping and skipping to keep out one over, dismissing both Pretorious and Anrich Nortje in the next.

By the time Vernon Philander had nicked a snorter to third slip 20 minutes later, Stokes was a sweaty, shattered mess.

When celebrating with bat or ball, Stokes tends to stand still and punch the air, like his capacity to run any further has been exhausted.

There is nothing left for merrymaking or self-regard, which is why it won’t be long until he does it all over again.

4. Graham Onions, the batsman | Newlands | 2010

“Which time?” you might ask, for Onions clambered England onto the lifeboat and away from wave after wave of a venomous pace attack twice in the 2009/10 series in South Africa.

The second of the two occasions is the more remarkable, though, not least because a tailender cannot be expected to pull off such an escape once, let alone again.

At Newlands, he was also only supported at the other end by Graeme Swann, where senior batsman Paul Collingwood had stood in Centurion weeks earlier. The threat of Morne Morkel in the final over of this match was also far more considerable second time round than Makhaya Ntini had been first.

Ian Bell and Collingwood seemed to have steered England to safety earlier on day five of the third Test match of this series, but a flurry of wickets saw Onions come to the wicket with 17 deliveries remaining.

Swann negotiated the penultimate over from Steyn, but was unable to get the single required to take the final six balls, leaving the England dressing room covering their eyes for the second time in a month.

After batting Ntini away a fortnight earlier, Onions was able to leave Morkel’s final delivery to preserve the visitor’s 1-0 lead in the series, and ensure that he will always be remembered more for his batting than his bowling.

3. England regain the Ashes | The Oval | 2005

England winning the urn back after 18 years on the back of a maiden century for a future great was a fitting end to the greatest Test series of all time.

But it all could have been so different, not least earlier in the summer.

England emerged victorious from two heart-stopping day-four finishes at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge, while a gripping day-five finale at Old Trafford saw Glenn McGrath and Brett Lee survive four overs to secure a draw for the tourists.

That third Test could easily have made this list, but if we are to give a nod to any 2005 match, it has to be the occasion when England came closest to throwing it all away.

The hosts entered the day needing to bat as long as possible to secure a series-winning draw, with Michael Vaughan and Marcus Trescothick at the crease.

The duo batted well for 40 minutes but two wickets in two balls from Glenn McGrath left England leading by just 73 runs with seven wickets in hand and, crucially, most of the day remaining.

In most people’s minds, this is the point at which Kevin Pietersen strode to the crease and saved the game for England.

In fact, Pietersen had to survive a fierce onslaught from the Australian attack before cutting loose for his famous century.

He was rightly given not out despite a massive appeal on his very first ball, dropped without scoring in the slips and then put down again on 15.

Had the Aussies taken any of those catches the match, series, and much of cricketing history since could have been totally different.

As it was, Pietersen took the game away from the Aussies with a display of power hitting that would become his trademark, eventually perishing for a brilliant 158.

Australia did end up batting again, but just four balls were bowled before bad light took some of the gloss off a dramatic final day.  

Following a farcical 15-minute delay, the umpires whipped off the bails and England were declared Ashes winners for the first time since 1987.

2. England win in the dark | Karachi | 2000

This will never happen again, because it badly endangered the safety of the players and umpires.

Still fun, though.

On day five of the third and final match of this series, Pakistan walked out to bat at 71-3 in the third innings of a game that seemed destined for a draw.

Even when England knocked the hosts over fairly quickly, chasing a target of 176 in under 50 overs seemed a long shot, with the light likely to deteriorate early.

But after the visitors’ quick start, Pakistan, led by their captain Moin Khan, begun to get twitchy. Umpire Steve Bucknor didn’t like their time-wasting tactics and insisted that the game would be played to a finish, or until England’s batsmen decided that it was too dark.

With the end of the match completely in their hands, Nasser Hussain and Graeme Thorpe, who must have been binge-eating carrots the night before, felt liberated to smash and stroke the ball around the near-pitch-black field, where bemused fielders stood with their arms outstretched.

Hussain greeted the winning runs with delight, punching the air towards the dressing room, before he and the 14 others begun navigating their way off.

1. Anderson and Panesar make Ponting fume | Cardiff | 2009

One wicket remaining. 69 balls to survive. Two of England’s most feeble batsmen at the crease.

What followed were 40 of the tensest minutes in Test cricket history, as Jimmy Anderson and Monty Panesar somehow repelled wave after wave of Aussie attack to rescue the unlikeliest of draws for England.

Having earlier compiled a respectable first innings score of 435, England had been ground into the Sophia Gardens turf by an imperious Australian batting line up.

No fewer than four Aussies reached a century across two-and-a-half days, with Simon Katich leading the way, followed by Ricky Ponting, Marcus North and Brad Haddin as they declared on 674/6.

England ended day four on 20/2 as Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara fell quickly, with day five expected to see Australia take an early 1-0 lead in the series.

There was nothing in the morning session to suggest any different, with Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Strauss and Matt Prior all falling within the first 90 minutes.

It was, of course, Paul Collingwood who provided most resistance for England, gutsing it out for 245 balls before flaying to gully with 11.3 overs remaining to leave England with a solitary wicket in hand.

At this point the Cardiff crowd were resigned to the inevitable but, ball by ball, the impossible became possible as Jimmy and Monty mounted their flimsy final stand.

Finally, as the clock struck 6:40pm, with the light fading and his bowlers exhausted, a fuming Ponting had no choice but to offer his hand – England had done it.

It was nothing short of a cricketing miracle, and most importantly, one that would prove decisive - England would go on to win the series 2-1 to regain the urn, the first of three consecutive Ashes victories.

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