Despite the Ashes having already been regained, Mark Wood dismissed talk of complacency in the England ranks after Australia dominated the opening exchanges of the dead-rubber fifth Test.
The fast bowler claimed one of the three wickets to fall on day one at the Kia Oval after Alastair Cook won the toss and elected to field, with Steve Smith’s unbeaten 78 and 47 not out from Adam Voges seeing the tourists to 287 for three when bad light ended play early.
It was the first time since the second Test at Lord’s that Australia batted through a day’s play and a far cry from their 60 all out on the first morning at Trent Bridge. But Wood maintained there has been no drop-off from the home side with a 4-1 series scoreline possible.
“The intensity was there and there was no complacency in terms of it being the last game and the Ashes are secured,” said Wood, who had the opener Chris Rogers caught at slip for 43. “With the overhead conditions it was the right decision to bowl. We just didn’t get the wickets.”
With 79.4 overs bowled, the second new ball is two deliveries away in the morning, with Wood eyeing early strikes. “It was Australia’s day. A couple more wickets and it would have been even but we have the new ball around the corner so, if we get two or three in the morning, we can grab the momentum back.”
Asked about his own motivation for the Test, Wood added: “I’ve got a point to prove to stay in the team as has everyone. This is the Ashes, you are playing for your country, we have the opportunity to win 4-1 and it would be a huge moment for English cricket. We can’t take our foot off the gas.”
England came out to a standing ovation and gave a guard of honour to the retiring Australia captain, Michael Clarke, who made 15 before Ben Stokes had him caught behind. “The respect shown for Clarke was for a phenomenal career and the great player he is. It was the right thing to do,” said Wood.
David Warner, who made 85 and will become vice-captain after this Test match, said: “Credit to the English bowlers – they have bowled fantastically well through this series.
“Today it just looked like they probably didn’t hit their right lengths. For a lot of the time out there I felt like they bowled just a fraction too short. In every other game they’ve bowled fantastically.”
The day began with a protest outside the ground by Change Cricket, a campaign set up by the producers of the film Death of a Gentleman which documents the last year’s restructure of the International Cricket Council.
Among the 100 or so present was Damian Collins, Conservative MP for Folkestone and Hythe, who claims he will be asking his fellow members of the Commons culture, media and sport select committee to summon Giles Clarke, president of the England and Wales Cricket Board, for questioning on the subject.
Clarke, the former ECB chairman, was central to the changes in early 2014 that saw the boards of India, England and Australia take greater control of the ICC and allocate themselves 52% of revenues generated by global events.
“This is very detrimental to the game. I will ask the sports select committee to summon Giles Clarke to explain his role,” said Collins. “I will be asking the committee if they are interested in taking this further. They have a role to play in asking the questions people want to avoid answering.”
The protest, which featured a three-minute silence, was also attended by the prominent sports ethics campaigner Jamie Fuller, whose sportswear business SKINS took out a full page advert in the North Somerset Times, Clarke’s local paper, that featured a mock obituary to cricket.
