Joe Root’s side, who are 3-0 down in the series, take on an Australia team unbeaten in day-night home Tests
Hobart’s role on previous Ashes tours was often to put a chill into English cricketers during their final tour game before being plunged into the tropical heat of the Gabba in Queensland like lobsters being dropped into a pot of boiling water.
This time, however, after Perth ruled itself out through a hard Covid border, the Bellerive Oval hosts the Ashes denouement that begins on Friday. A boutique ground with views of the spectacular Derwent estuary, it has staged 13 Tests since its first in 1989 but none between Australia and England. Tim Paine, the local favourite who lost the Test captaincy before the series, will be heartbroken to miss this slice of history.
