History beckons in Ashes finale

A chance to make history, albeit of different sorts, will confront England and Australia when the final Test of this season's Ashes starts at The Oval in south London tomorrow.
At 3-0 up with one to play, England have already retained the Ashes and won the series -- the first time since the 1950s they've won three successive Test campaigns against their oldest rivals.
But they still have plenty to play as they've never won four Tests against Australia in England and have never taken any Ashes series by a 4-0 margin although they did win 4-1 in Australia in 1911/12 and in 1928/29 before taking a six-match series against an Australia side weakened by defections to the unofficial World Series Cricket 5-1 in 1978/79.

A result of greater resonance to both current sides is that the last England team to win the Ashes and round off the series with a defeat was Mike Gatting's side at Sydney in 1987.
Following a narrow victory, Australia won the next eight Ashes series.
The last thing England batsman Jonathan Trott wants is for his captain, Alastair Cook, to receive the Ashes urn on the back of a loss.

"I don't think anyone wants to go up on the stage and raise the urn after we have lost," Trott said. "If we do that, it will be a bit of a downer."

Unusually, Australia will have a chance for revenge in a matter of a few months, with the return Ashes 'Down Under' starting in November.
"There are another five games (against Australia) after this one so we are not letting up," Trott said. "That is an important message to send. If we take our foot off, you give them hope and they can go back to Australia having won a Test," added Trott, who marked his Test debut by making a hundred against Australia at The Oval in the concluding Ashes Test of 2009 where victory saw England regain the urn.

England have been forced into making a change after Tim Bresnan, who starred with both bat and ball in the 74-run fourth Test win at Chester-le-Street was ruled out of the rest of the season with a back injury.