England regain Ashes in Trent Bridge

In a series that has so far seen no match last the full five days, England needed barely three to win the fourth test and take the much-coveted Ashes urn back from Australia at the Nottingham ground.

The final three Australian wickets fell in just 40 minutes' play on Saturday, with only 12 runs added to the overnight score of 241.

The only real Australian resistance on the final day of play came from test newcomer Adam Voges, not out on a plucky 51.

But although fast bowler Mark Wood finished the match by bowling Nathan Lyon at number 11, English bowling honors go to Stuart Broad, who took a magnificent eight for 15 in the first innings, and to all-rounder Ben Stokes for his test-best six for 36 in the second.

Negative record

Mostly due to Broad's brilliance, the Australian first innings was the shortest completed first innings in test history, with the hapless Aussies, perplexed by the Nottingham seamer's skillful movement and pace, making just 60 runs in 111 balls.

Australian captain Michael Clarke, 34, has drawn what in the end seemed an inevitable conclusion from his own and Australia's failure, announcing on Saturday that he will be retiring from test cricket at the end of the series.

Clarke, a virtuosic right-handed batsman who has failed to find form in recent times, has played 114 tests and scored over 8,000 runs, including 28 centuries.

In the current series, he has achieved an average of just 16.4, scoring 117 runs in eight innings.

The final match in the series starts at The Oval, London, on August 20.