England fended off another improbable comeback, holding on to win the fourth test by three wickets Sunday for a 2-1 series lead and edged closer to snapping Australia's eight-series domination of the Ashes.
Australia has held the coveted urn since 1989, the longest winning stretch in Ashes history.
"We realize we're on the verge of something special," England captain Michael Vaughan said.
PHOTO: AFP
"We didn't change anything in the last four weeks, after we lost at Lord's or won at Edgbaston. We won't change anything now."
Ashley Giles hit the winning runs off Shane Warne to midwicket after a tension-filled finish at Trent Bridge.
He finished unbeaten on seven in an unbeaten 13-run partnership with Matthew Hoggard (8).
Vaughan's unchanged XI has dominated this series since losing the opening match at Lord's by 239 runs. England rallied for a two-run win at Edgbaston -- the narrowest margin ever in an Ashes contest -- and went within a wicket of winning again at Old Trafford.
"It's great to be 2-1 up with one to play, and I'm sure that will be another epic," Vaughan said.
Typically in this series, the result wasn't certain until the very end.
"We got close today, but to be honest, closer than we should have been," Australia captain Ricky Ponting said. "We haven't been in this position before ... We have to turn it around very quickly if we want to keep these Ashes."
Warne took 3-7 in 29 balls as England slipped to 57-4 chasing 129 for victory. Warne took 4-33 in the second innings, the champion leg-spinner almost orchestrating an unexpected win for Australia.
Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff combined in a 46-run stand before Brett Lee dismissed them both inside 11 balls and England slumped to 111 for six.
Battling warne
Warne struck again in his 12th over when Geraint Jones miscued to Michael Kasprowicz, the seventh English wicket falling with 13 runs still needed to win.
Warne finished with 4-31 and Lee took 3-51.
"Once we got to four, we knew we were home. Up until then, they could have gone, bang, bang, bang and it would have been anyone's," Vaughan said. "We can be proud of what we've done."
England had raced to 32 without loss before Warne struck with the first balls of his first and second overs.
The champion legspinner had Marcus Trescothick (27) caught at short leg in the sixth over and skipper Vaughan (0) caught at slip in the eighth.
England moved from 36-2 to 57 before losing two wickets in three balls.
Warne struck again, when Andrew Strauss (23) glanced to Michael Clarke at leg slip. The decision was made by TV umpire Mark Benson after on-field umpires Steve Bucknor and Aleem Dar could not determine if Clarke got his fingers under the ball.
Ian Bell (3) hooked erratically at Lee in the next over and guided a catch to Kasprowicz at backward square.
Flintoff (26) and Pietersen (23) were coasting when Lee struck with the first ball of a new spell to swing the momentum again.
Coming into this match, Australia had been unbeaten at Trent Bridge since 1977 and had clinched the last two Ashes series in England at the Nottingham ground.
But England held the ascendancy from the time Vaughan won the toss and elected to bat.
Flintoff posted his maiden Ashes hundred and shared a 177-run stand with Geraint Jones as England amassed 477 in the first innings.
Matthew Hoggard snared three top-order wickets and Simon Jones took 5-44 to dismiss Australia for 218, allowing Vaughan to become the first English captain since Mike Gatting in November 1986 to enforce a follow-on in an Ashes test.
Hoggard chipped in again with valuable wickets before and after lunch Sunday and Steve Harmison claimed the last three wickets as Australia was out for 387 in its second innings, leaving England 41 overs on the fourth day to get the required runs.
Ponting was fined 75 percent of his match fee -- or A$8,062.50 (4,957 euros) -- for "conduct unbecoming his status, which brings the game into disrepute," while Simon Katich was docked half of his A$10,500 (6,452 euros) match fee for showing "serious dissent at an umpire's decision" in regards to their dismissals in the second innings.
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