Bresnan proves he can deliver the goods for England in every format

For on December 29, Bresnan claimed the wicket that saw England clinch the Ashes in Melbourne.

No one can take that away from the Yorkshire all-rounder.

Bresnan's moment of triumph is vivid in the memory . . .

The 25-year-old – playing his first Ashes Test – comes charging in to bowl to Australia's Ben Hilfenhaus.

He produces a typically good ball on an off-stump line.

Hilfenhaus pushes forward uncertainly and edges to wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who takes a tumbling catch.

England's players mob an ecstatic Bresnan as the Barmy Army go wild in the stands.

Now, one month after that historic wicket helped England to their first series triumph Down Under for 24 years, Bresnan is back in his beloved Yorkshire.

The calf injury that curtailed his participation in the subsequent one-day series was a frustrating blow for a man anxious to play as much international cricket as possible, but what a winter it has been for the self-effacing star.

After all, it is not every day you take the wicket that wins your country the Ashes.

Truly, it is the stuff of childhood dreams.

"I suppose it will be a pub quiz question in the years to come," laughed Bresnan, who has played seven Tests and 35 one-day internationals.

"You get remembered for things like that, but I honestly wasn't thinking about it at the time.

"Initially, all I was thinking about – and all the rest of the lads were thinking about – was trying to get that last wicket to win the match.

"Then, when we got that wicket, I was just so happy that we'd won – that was my immediate emotion."

Such comments are typical Bresnan.

There are no histrionics about him, no boastful reflections.

As Bresnan is first to acknowledge, England's victory was a genuine team effort – a collective achievement underpinned by captain Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower.

He merely applied the coup de grace.

"It was a magnificent team effort; that was the great thing about it," adds Bresnan.

"All the batters got runs, all the bowlers took wickets, and it wasn't just one bloke sticking up his hand.

"Chris Tremlett bowled brilliantly, Alastair Cook was phenomenal, and so on.

"You could go through the whole side and praise everyone."

Bresnan's contribution was not simply confined to the wicket of Hilfenhaus.

After replacing Steve Finn for the crucial fourth Test at the MCG, where the series was on a knife-edge after Australia's win in Perth, Bresnan captured six wickets in the match as England won by an innings and 157 runs to establish an unassailable 2-1 lead.

Then, with an outright series victory at stake, he claimed five wickets in the final Test in Sydney to finish with 11 wickets at 19.54 as England completed a 3-1 victory.

Bresnan's tour stats highlighted the Test match credentials of a player more commonly feted for his one-day contributions.

"I felt as though I was perhaps getting pigeon-holed a little bit, but hopefully I've proved to everyone I can play Test cricket," says Bresnan.

"I want to become a regular for England in all forms of the game – not just in the one-day stuff.

"I felt really fresh going into the Tests and really looked forward to them; I certainly didn't feel nervous in any way.

"The way I look at it, if you can't get up for 87,000 on Boxing Day at the MCG, you can't get up for anything."

When England previously won the Ashes in Australia in 1986-87, Mike Gatting's men partied with rock star Elton John.

This time the celebrations were more low-key.

"We just had a couple of beers after winning in Melbourne," says Bresnan. "Then, at the end of the series, we had a few drinks with our families; that was about it really. My parents were out in Australia – they saw the Melbourne Test and they really enjoyed the Christmas and New Year – and it was just a brilliant experience for everyone."

Bresnan was delighted with the support he and his team-mates received.

"The supporters were brilliant and there was obviously a lot of attention in England while we were away," he says. "But it's only when you get home and receive requests for interviews and that sort of thing that you get a little bit of a wake-up call as to what the country has been feeling.

"You don't really see that on tour; you're in a bit of a tour bubble and you don't really read the press – particularly the Aussie press – because you don't want to believe your own hype or the negative side."

Since returning home, things have been getting back to normal for the affable Bresnan.

"I've been spending time with my family and that sort of thing," he adds. "It's been pretty quiet really.

"I've also been catching up on laundry, so nothing changes.

"I came back from tour with two big suitcases of washing to be done."

n Tim Bresnan was speaking at the Elland headquarters of Marshalls, which supplies hard landscaping products to domestic, public sector and commercial markets. The company are proud sponsors of Bresnan.

Tremlett backs england to nick an unlikely win

England paceman Chris Tremlett believes England can win the one-day international series against Australia, despite facing three more must-win games in order to achieve it.

After falling 3-0 behind in the series, England proved they have a stomach for the win-or-bust occasion – despite fears of a post-Ashes malaise – when they claimed a 21-run win in Adelaide on Wednesday.

That the victory came in front of 36,072 Australian fans, who were expecting to celebrate their national day by clinching the series, made England's victory even more laudable.

While Jonathan Trott's century and two wickets were the cornerstone of the success, England could rightly claim – for the first time in the seven-match series – that they outplayed their rivals in all departments.

It was a performance that Tremlett thinks can inspire a run of wins to snatch the series and put the seal on an already satisfying tour.

"It's always a big mountain to climb going 3-0 down, but we've always believed we are a good side and that we can compete against Australia," the Surrey bowler said.

"If we can be solid in our batting and keep going well with our bowling there is no reason why we can't do it.

"If you go 3-0 down and you come back and win four in-a-row then that's pretty awesome. That's what we're aiming to do. It would be pretty special if we could do that. We're taking one game at a time and we'll try to play like we did the other day."

If England are to stay alive in the fifth match of the series in Brisbane tomorrow they will, however, have to play a spoiler's role.

The match will act as a fundraiser for those affected by the floods that devastated the Queensland capital and its surrounding region earlier this month, and Australia's players would like to secure the series in Brisbane as an added act of goodwill.

While that may cast England into a slightly uncomfortable role, they have been proactive in their support of the flood victims during the tour with the players donating part of their match fees from the first Twenty20 international in Adelaide.