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England have won the Ashes. I'd love to sit here using all manner of superlatives to describe England's performances and the magnitude of the achievement but that would be inappropriate. This England team is a well-drilled side with a handful of world-class performers, an intelligent and meticulous coach and very able captain. That proved more than enough to beat one of the worst Australian sides we've seen for many years.

England will face far tougher tests than this and we'll have a more accurate picture of where they stand in the longer format of the game when they host India next summer.

The 3-1 scoreline is probably a good reflection of the difference in class between the two teams and if you think that's harsh on the Australians, consider this: how many of their players would have got into the best 11 of the two sides? I'll give them Michael Hussey at five ahead of Paul Collingwood and then I'll be really kind and pick Peter Siddle as part of a four man bowling attack ahead of Tim Bresnan and Steve Finn - because he played all five Tests, bowled with heart and aggression during all of them, got just one wicket less than Mitchell Johnson at a far better economy rate and gave Australia a great chance of winning the First Test after that hat-trick on day one.

But that's it. The rest of the team was made up of big-name players who didn't come to the party (Ponting, Clarke, Johnson), good Test cricketers who performed to the level we'd expect (Hilfenhaus, Watson, Haddin) and youngsters who may or may not make it but were far too raw for a Series of this importance (Hughes, Smith, Docherty).

England's superiority should come as no surprise to betting.betfair readers though. Anyone who was asked to give their opinion on the outcome of the Series in these pages was very much in the England camp: from the best cricket tipster in the business Ed Hawkins, former England skipper Michael Vaughan to Sky Sports pundit David Lloyd, who was so confident in England winning the Ashes that you suspect he'd started the car before a ball had been bowled; the latter tipping them up as big as 4.0 to win the Series back in June last year.

The win and the performances leave England in a very good place. Only Paul Collingwood under-performed and done the sensible, mature thing which is best for both him and the team by calling time on his Test career. He'll still captain the T20 side, be an important part of the ODI side and give something back to Durham after almost five years of rarely turning out for them because of the terms of his Central Contract. He's been the ultimate team man and given his all and can bow out with his head held high. Ian Bell will surely move up a place in the batting order in the long-term so Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara will battle it out to fill the number six slot. The injury to Stuart Broad was unfortunate for the Notts man but in the process England unearthed a real gem in Chris Tremlett whilst Tim Bresnan sent the message to the Selectors that, while he may not be a world-beater, he won't let anyone down when called upon.

As for Australia, the Series has thrown up questions that don't have obvious answers. Is Michael Clarke really the man to captain this side? Has Ricky Ponting played his last match in international cricket in any format? Why was Nathan Hauritz ignored by the Selectors? Was Shane Warne's mentoring of promising batting leg-spinner Steve Smith mostly conducted at McDonald's?

At least Australia have some time to make decisions, with their next Series not for another few months. ODI cricket is the name of the game now and England are marginal favourites to win the best-of-seven upcoming Series. That price (2.0, the drawn series is a runner in the market) should be snapped up before it's gone. After all, England have looked more comfortable in Australian conditions than their hosts, only Matt Prior and Alastair Cook aren't part of the squad and England won the last ODI Series between the two back in the summer.

There will be a full preview of the ODI Series and of every individual match here on betting.betfair.com.

Recommended Bet:

Back England to win the One-Day Series at 2.0

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