Australia strengthened their hold on both the Ashes and the World Test Championship with another dominant performance, defeating England by eight wickets in the second day-night Test at the Gabba.
This latest victory keeps Australia securely at the top of the WTC standings with a perfect points percentage, while England slip even further down the table.
Updated ICC World Test Championship Standings
| Rank | Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Points | Win% |
| 1 | Australia | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 100.00 |
| 2 | South Africa | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 36 | 75.00 |
| 3 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 66.67 |
| 4 | Pakistan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 50.00 |
| 5 | India | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 52 | 48.15 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 33.33 |
| 7 | England | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 26 | 30.95 |
| 8 | Bangladesh | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 16.67 |
| 9 | West Indies | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5.56 |
Set just 65 to chase, Steve Smith sealed the win with a towering six off Gus Atkinson, giving Australia a 2–0 series lead.
Michael Neser delivered a career-best 5 for 42 as England suffered another batting collapse. Although not as dramatic as their earlier two-day loss in Perth, England were outclassed in all departments.
Joe Root, Zak Crawley, Ben Stokes, and Will Jacks showed brief resistance, but careless shots on a lively Gabba surface hurt them. Their bowling lacked control with the new pink ball, while Australia excelled despite missing Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.
Fielding mistakes also cost England, dropping five catches in the first innings. In contrast, Australia were sharp, highlighted by Josh Inglis’s brilliant run-out of Stokes.
Stokes admitted the team couldn’t cope when pressure mounted: “Very disappointing. We weren’t able to perform when the game was on the line.”
England’s chances faded after allowing Australia’s lower order to lift the first-innings total to 511, creating a 177-run lead. A late collapse under lights on day three left them battling just to force Australia to bat again.
Stokes and Jacks fought hard on the final morning, but once Jacks edged to slip, the tail folded quickly. Australia needed only 65, and despite two early wickets, Smith and Jake Weatherald comfortably finished the job.
Also Read: Updated Test Championship Standings After Australia Defeats India
