The Ashes: 'Aussies have grown a leg' says Allan Border

The Ashes may have again not been regained but Australia's newspapers followed the example of Michael Clarke's tourists by coming out fighting in the aftermath of the drawn third Test.

"That last ball bowled before lunch on the final day at Old Trafford, with the rain already beginning to fall, was far more than the final act of this Ashes series, it was the first act of the next series," wrote Wayne Smith in The Australian, a view that was echoed by most of his compatriots.

The Sydney Morning Herald carried an interview with Sir Allan Border, the former captain credited with dragging the Baggy Greens out of the doldrums in the mid-1980s. He is in no doubt that the balance of power is already beginning to swing back in Australia's favour after they lost the first two matches of the series.

"After copping a hammering at Lord's, the team grew a leg in this Test," said Border.

"They showed real fight and England are worried. The Poms were playing catch-up cricket from day one, going slow with over rates and doing everything they could to negate our chances of winning. The way this side is going over the next few months, look out. Australia has the momentum."