New Zealand have taken a giant stride in the ongoing Christchurch Test after posting a massive total of 521 for six in the first innings and declared, and right after that, Bangladesh suffered a familiar batting collapse in the format.  At the end of day two, New Zealand are leading by 395 runs.  Read:Latham, Conway come up with thumping response Devon Conway completed his second hundred of the series off the first ball of the day while Tom Latham registered his double ton.  After Conway was trapped run-out by Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Ross Taylor came to bat, and the Bangladesh players gave a guard of honour as he was playing his last Test.  Taylor could only make 28 runs in, probably, his last innings in the format. With this Test, Taylor played a total of 112 Tests and he amassed more than 7500 runs with 19 centuries and 35 half-centuries.  In reply to New Zealand’s massive total, Bangladesh ended up on 126 for 10 after they were brought down to 11 for four. Yasir Ali Rabbi hit his maiden fifty while coming up with a 60-run stand in the sixth-wicket partnership.  None of Bangladesh’s top five batters was able to reach a double-digit score with two departed with a duck each. Yasir ended up on 55 while Nurul Hasan Shohan, who was playing to replace injured Mushfiqur Rahim, posted 41. After Yasir and Shohan departed, Bangladesh’s innings ended fast.  Trent Boult scalped five wickets— his ninth five-for in his Test career while Time Southee took three and Kyle Jamieson bagged two.  Along the process, Boult completed 300 wickets in Tests.  Read:Pumped-up Tigers aim for monumental series win against Blackcaps “Milestones don't really matter, there are some big names in this list. There was a good amount of pace and bounce on this wicket, enjoyed bowling on the surface - with Southee in, gives us a left-right combination well,” Boult said at the end of day’s play.  Bangladesh won the first Test by eight wickets— which was Bangladesh’s maiden Test win against New Zealand and the first win in New Zealand soil in 32 attempts across the format.

Australia won the 2021-2022 Ashes series after three straight victories against England. When the Sydney Test began, they were on a mission to whitewash England. However, England's tail-enders survived a tense last hour of the match to deny Australia a 5-0 series victory. Australia will play the fifth match in Hobart with the goal of completing the series 4-0, while England will try to restore some pride. The series' final match will begin on January 14. The fourth Test match report of Australia vs England is discussed in this article.   Australia vs England 2021-2022 Ashes: Fourth Test Match Report     When England batted in the closing hour of day 4, they had a mammoth 388-run target. Therefore, the English campaign preferred to save the match rather than go after the target. The English openers survived the fourth day, scoring 30 runs in 11 overs. The openers started fresh with the hopes of drawing the match, but new sensation Scott Boland gave Australia an early breakthrough in the first hour on day five. He sent Haseeb Hameed back to the pavilion in the tenth over of the day. Read BPL 2022: The Favourites, Outsiders and Underdogs The England batters tried to build big partnerships in the middle but were unable to do so. In fact, most of England's partnerships lasted 10 to 15 overs. With only two wickets remaining in the closing hour of day five, the match was heading towards a nail-biting finish. Steven Smith infused some excitement into the match by dismissing Jack Leach two overs short of the scheduled over. England were able to draw the match with the help of two veteran cricketers, James Anderson and Stuart Broad. Zack Crawley (77) and Ben Stokes (60) both scored crucial runs for England, while Australia's most successful bowler in the second innings was Scott Boland (3/30). Read: Memorable International Cricket Moments in 2021 Australia made one major change for the fourth Test in Sydney. Travis Head was replaced by Usman Khawaja. The elegant left-hander made the most of his opportunity, smashing back-to-back hundreds in the contest. Khawaja's 137 in the first innings contributed to Australia's 416/8d total. For England, Stuart Broad took 5 wickets in the first innings. However, England were bowled out for 294 runs in their first innings, handing Australia a 122-run lead. Jonny Bairstow scored 113 runs for the visitors, while Scott Boland took the most wickets for the hosts with four. Australia were much more aggressive in the second innings. They declared their innings on 265/6d after setting England a 388-run target. Usman Khawaja sparkled once more with the bat, finishing undefeated on 101*. Jack Leach took the most wickets with four for the English team. Player of the Match Osman Khawaja was awarded player of the match for his amazing batting effort in the game. He scored centuries in both innings, allowing Australia to take complete control of the Sydney Test against England. Read: England clings on for a draw in dramatic 4th Ashes test 2021-2023 ICC Test Championship Points Table Sri Lanka top the ICC Test Championship points standings with 100 percent PCT, ahead of Australia and Pakistan. On the other hand, England have plummeted to the bottom of the current points table. ICC Test Championship Points Table (as of January 9, 2022) Position Team PCT (%) 1 Sri Lanka 100 2 Australia 83.33 3 Pakistan 75.00 4 India 55.21 5 South Africa 50.00 6 Bangladesh 33.33 7 West Indies 25.00 8 New Zealand 11.11 9 England 10.41            Source: https://www.icc-cricket.com/world-test-championship/standings Bottom Line The England team is having a very hard time in the ongoing Ashes series. England's top order has appeared to be shaky to face an inspiring Australia bowling unit. As a result, England's middle-order has been put under a lot of pressure, reducing their prospects of dominating during the match. England's bowlers have performed well in the series, although not as well as their opponents. Australia are expected to reclaim the number one position in the ICC Test Championship after this Ashes series. Oppositely, England's place in the standings may decline further, causing a major blow in their quest for the second cycle's final match.      Read BPL 2022: SWOT Analysis of all Six Teams