I'll be staying up for at least a while tonight, mainly because England and Australia are as interestingly poised as they have been in any of these Ashes Tests. Will we push on and rack up a big lead tonight? Or will we pay the price for having surrendered too many runs to the Aussie tail last night?
We may have already retained the Ashes but, of course, our goal is to win the series. Winning it 3-1 would be very satisfactory indeed. Whether we achieve that, or a drawn series and a slightly tainted sense of celebration, could well be decided on tonight's events.
Anyway, earlier on in the series, I questioned whether winning the Ashes in Australia would be a 'great' achievement. With the series drawing to a close, I guess its an ideal time to reflect on that same idea. Let's assume for argument's sake that we go on and win this final test. Will it be a 'great' victory? Has it been a 'great' series? Have we proven ourselves to be a 'great' team?
I'm sad to say that the answer is no to all of those questions. I'm as pleased as the next Englishman to see us retain the Ashes on Australian soil. I'd be delighted to see us seal that 3-1 victory. But, crucially, I'm realistic enough to not get carried away about it.
Too often we English get carried away with our sporting success. Already the noises from the England dressing room are about becoming the top-ranked team in Test cricket. That is fine as an ambition - so long as no-one thinks that we are anywhere near there yet.
The signs are good. Our established bowlers continue to impress. The less established ones - Steven Finn, Chris Tremlett and Tim Bresnan - have each grasped their opportunities with both hands, and the selectors will have some difficult, but welcome, selection posers in the summer. We have bowled well - although it would be denying the patently obvious to say that the profligacy of the Australian batsmen hasn't helped us out. How many Australian wickets have fallen to catches from deliveries which could (or should) have been left well alone?
Can our bowlers put together the sustained spells of aggression and accuracy required to snare patient, world-class batsmen - the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid - who make you get them out?
After this series, our batsmen will mostly come away with their reputations enhanced by some big scores. Admittedly, that has to be taken in the context of Australia's bowling attack which has, predominantly, been very ordinary.
Against a more experienced, better-balanced bowling unit featuring a genuine, Test-standard spinner, would our batters have been so comfortable?
Well, later this year those questions will be answered. We play India at home and then in the sub-continent.
Now those should be 'great' contests, between two better-matched foes, and they might just be the ones which define whether this England team is truly 'great.'
