As skipper Ricky Ponting often says, “We can get into trouble as easily as any other team but we always know how to get out of it.” In that respect they have, indeed, been flawless. They did it again, recovering from 5-190 to win the fifth and final Test by 10 wickets. It was only the fourth such score line in the 129-year history of Australian cricket, the others being against England in 1920-21, South Africa in 1931-32 and the West Indies in 2000-01.

Australia has never been beaten so heavily in a five-match series.

The members of Warwick Armstrong’s team, who demolished a war-wearied English side 86 years ago are all long dead, of course, so nobody can say for sure what their emotions were at the time. But we do know the joy was unconfined for Ponting’s superb side undoubtedly one of the best ever assembled some of whom launched into the celebrations with Australian flags knotted around their necks.

For them, the last run of the series, scored by veteran opening batsman Matthew Hayden, constituted much more than one more victory. There was also a large measure of atonement - revenge is not too strong a term - but most of all it was the perfect farewell for the three retiring champions, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Justin Langer and coach John Buchanan.

Not that anybody was looking too hard, but negatives were hard to find. The only obvious example- and it’s an authentic one - is that as a contest the series did not live up to its extravagant billing as the most anticipated in memory. In that sense, it was an anticlimax- the Ashes back where they belonged after just three of the five matches. But that’s not Australia’s fault. They can hardly be blamed for playing too well.

Anyone seeking a refund on their tickets — or in the case of tens of thousands of English visitors, their travel exes — should invoice the touring party. While they had the crippling misfortune to lose three good players - regular captain Michael Vaughan, batsman Marcus Trescothick and pace bowler Simon Jones before a ball was bowled — they then erred in almost every important way: preparation, selection, strategy, attitude and teamwork.

But that’s for them to mull over now. As the saying goes in this country, winners can laugh and losers can please themselves. For Australian fans, the focus should be on what Australia did, not what England didn't’t. The margins were impressive — 277 runs, six wickets, 206 runs, an innings and 99, and 10 wickets. (In 1920-21, it was 377 runs, an innings and 91, 119 runs, eight wickets and nine wickets.)

But that big differential becomes massive when you consider two complete days and 12 sessions in all were not required by the Australians, who also had 40 wickets — two matches’ worth — up their sleeves. Not that this ever happens, but if all five matches lasted the entire five days, 2250 overs would be bowled. Nearly 950 of those were not, which is another way of saying fans were shortchanged by the equivalent of
two matches.

The showpiece Boxing Day match in Melbourne finished two days early while Sydney lost one and only narrowly avoided having to make refunds. This cost Cricket Australia several million dollars, but the profit was enormous anyway. And at least in the build-up,so was the increase in interest,especially among young players.

Now the authorities must hope it lasts. Happily for them, Australians love their cricket like few — if any — other sports, which is why the build-up challenged soccer’s World Cup as the biggest event on the national calendar last year. Outside Melbourne, the Commonwealth Games just wasn't in the same league. Reflecting cricket’s status in the national psyche, the Prime Minister led the cheering. He was at the MCG for one day and at the SCG throughout, as usual. So the new Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd joined in, claiming to have once been a wicketkeeper. Perhaps he was, but Mr Rudd can only dream wistfully of one day becoming as famous and popular as Warne, McGrath or Langer.

Short of declaring war on someone, even the PM would struggle to command the extraordinary level of media attention that accompanied Warne’s retirement, 700th wicket, and MCG farewell.

Ponting claims sentiment and individual milestones play little part in his captaincy, but the facts often suggest otherwise and it was entirely predictable that Warne and McGrath were bowling in tandem at the death of the England innings- and their own fabulous careers. Langer had a less fulfilling denouement but was overjoyed to be at the crease when the winning runs came. Every bit as fitting were the two presentations made to Ponting. The first was the Compton-Miller medal for player of the series, named after Denis Compton and Keith Miller, and presented by Denis Miller, who was named after his legendary father’s great mate.

Already statistically Australia’s most successful captain, Ponting is now on a streak of 12 wins, four behind the record created by his predecessor Steve Waugh from 1999 to 2000.

The second presentation was the large crystal urn that is now the official trophy for the Ashes. It is not the much older and smaller real thing, which has attracted enormous interest on its tour of Australia and is currently at the Melbourne Museum (and will be at the MCG next week), before returning to its permanent home at Lord’s.

Yet another campaign stirred briefly this week to have it remain here for as long as Australia “holds” it. But this ought not be pursued. Its unavailability is part of the romance of the Ashes legend and it certainly doesn’t create any confusion about which is the superior cricket nation. Never in history has that been less in doubt.