What does the latest chapter of Australia cricket's pay stoush mean?

The contracts of approximately 230 players expire at midnight on Friday. They are all unemployed come Saturday. The women's World Cup squad has been paid in advance of the ongoing tournament. The next series at risk of being affected is next month's Australia A tour of South Africa.

HOW DID IT GET THIS FAR?

Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) have been deadlocked regarding the issue of revenue sharing. There has been no progress for months. The governing body says the model that has governed players' salaries for 20 years is no longer viable. The union, backed vocally by David Warner and other stars, believes it must remain.

Australia v England, 5th Test, Sydney, 4th day

Australia 280 and 7 for 213 (Smith 24*, Siddle 17*) trail England 644 (Cook 189, Prior 118, Bell 115, Johnson 4-168) by 151 runs 

England were three wickets away from an emphatic 3-1 series victory after more superlative all-round cricket left Australia in tatters on 7 for 213, still 151 runs short of making the visitors bat again. James Anderson produced an outstanding display of reverse swing, and Chris Tremlett battered the batsmen with hostile pace, to follow up Matt Prior's first Ashes hundred which led England to their highest total down under.

Stats...

Matt Prior's century is his fourth in Tests and his first against Australia. This is also the sixth century scored by an England wicket-keeper against Australia.

England made their fourth total over 500 in this series, which is only the fourth time a team has done so in a series.

In England's first innings, three batsmen scored centuries. This was only the seventh occasion overall and the second time this series that three or more batsmen have scored hundreds in an innings for England against Australia.

England batsmen have scored nine centuries in the series so far, the most by a visiting team in Australia.

If Australia lose by an innings, it will be their third innings defeat in the series and their fourth since 2009. In contrast, they lost only three times by an innings between October 1988 and November 2010.

Swann proceeded to take 17 off five balls against Johnson and his last four-over spell cost 48 runs. It's a long time since Australia have been dominated so extensively in a five-match series on home soil and on Friday the final nails will be hammered in.

Michael Clarke quits Twenty20

Michael Clarke has quit Twenty20 cricket, giving up the captaincy of Australia's shortest format side, in the aftermath of the Ashes humiliation.

Just as Ricky Ponting gave up Twenty20 after 2009's Ashes loss to focus on his Test career, Clarke has followed due to his poor form in this series.

Clarke will now hold no full-time captaincy position, with Ponting expected to return from injury to lead the one-day and Test teams.

Clarke came under heavy criticism for his slow scoring rate in the Twenty20 format. He steered Australia to its first World Twenty20 final in the West Indies in 2009, but with pressure to retain his place in the Test side mounting it's understood he believes he has little choice but to retire from Twenty20 to prolong his career in the long format.

Cricket Australia refused to comment on Clarke's decision but it will be made official at a press conference after play at the SCG today.

Clarke assumed the captaincy of the Twenty20 side after Ponting retired from that team immediately after losing the Ashes 2-1 in England in August 2009.

In 34 Twenty20s for Australia, Clarke averaged 21.21 with a strike-rate of 103.17.

Selectors must find new order for next tour

ONCE the final day of this one-sided Ashes campaign is wrapped up by England, seven long months await before an Australian Test line-up next takes the field. Much soul searching lies ahead for a set-up thoroughly humiliated and in drastic need of a re-think.

The scale and tone of an all-but-completed 3-1 series defeat - hammered home by embarrassing mis-matches in Melbourne and Sydney - demands that heads roll. By the time Australia lands in Sri Lanka in August for a three-Test series, the team will have a new bowling coach, and quite possibly a new chairman of selectors in the shape of Greg Chappell. Upheaval in the playing ranks is also required.

There is no such reprieve for Michael Clarke on evidence to this point. Leadership skills aside, his batting is plainly not up to scratch. An alarming slide since his move to No. 4 (he averaged 8.75 in India in October and slightly more than 21 in the Ashes) point to Clarke no longer being untouchable.

Instead, after Ponting comes Michael Hussey, Australia's most outstanding performer since November, and Watson, who moves to a more conventional all-rounder's position, No. 6. Brad Haddin remains as wicketkeeper.

Peter Siddle, whose persistence has earned rave reviews, would stay but the other two members of the pace trio are gone. An ineffective Ben Hilfenhaus and inconsistent Mitchell Johnson fall to an experiment of genuine generational change. Their replacements: highly-rated Victorian seamer James Pattinson and threatening NSW left-arm quick Mitchell Starc (who turns 20 later this month).

Worst effort in Ashes history

THE worst Australian team ever fielded for an Ashes series will today watch England celebrate a 3-1 victory at the SCG in the knowledge it is the first side wearing baggy greens to have lost three Tests by more than an innings.

Few could have imagined that such a gulf in class between the sides would be exposed at the conclusion of the 2010-11 Ashes, or that Australian cricket would be in its deepest crisis.

Never has Australia lost three Tests in a series by an innings, a result that will be confirmed today when England takes the last three wickets in the fifth Test. Not since Bangladesh in 2007, against Sri Lanka, has any Test-playing nation had such a thumping in one series.

In a brutally frank assessment of the slide - Australia's last Ashes series at home was won 5-0 four years ago - opener Shane Watson conceded the careers of many players are on notice.

''It's not great to actually be a part of something that has been as disappointing as it has, over the last little while in Test cricket to be honest,'' Watson said last night. ''It would be nice to be in the golden era as a player, unfortunately we're just not playing well enough to be a part of that.

''Losing so far by two innings is not good at all. It means we've been convincingly outplayed in the two Test matches so far, and it's not looking great for tomorrow.''

Asked what state Australian cricket is in, Watson replied: ''Nowhere near the heights it was four years ago. With our performances we've showed over the last little while, we've got to turn it around.

''There's no doubt it does come down to the players alone to be able to turn that around. No doubt there will be an inquest into what's happened and we do have to turn it around.

Australia's top-order batsmen, yesterday set 364 simply to make England bat again, were dismissed to an array of poor shots and brilliant bowling. It has been a repetitive tale this summer, exposes Australia in every department and will result in Andrew Strauss receiving the replica Ashes trophy some time today.

''It will hurt in a big way, but the English have totally outplayed us,'' Watson said.

Watson knows the pain is to come

England will rattle off three wickets at the SCG this morning to complete a 3-1 Ashes triumph that officially brings Australian cricket to its knees.

An official review of the dramatic fall from grace will be held by Cricket Australia at the end of the season.

Every player, coach, selector and official will be under the microscope.

"There's no doubt there will be an inquest," Watson said. "It feels very disappointing. As a group we were trying to rebuild after Melbourne.

"We don't want to be losing the public support we've had for such a long time with the Australian fans.

"We've got to play so much better for them to keep the faith. We've got to do everything we can to turn it around. We had everything to play for in this game but we have been totally outplayed again."

"For how well England have played, and how complete a team they are, how they've continually stood up all this series, it really has been very impressive," Watson said.

"Unfortunately, the Australian team hasn't done that. It's not just our batting. It's finding ways to get wickets on flatter pitches. That's something we haven't been able to do either. It's both aspects of our game which are letting us down."

Australia's next Test is against Sri Lanka in August. Asked if the current squad was capable of turning the king tide, Watson said: "You'll have to ask the selectors if you think it's the right team. We're doing our absolute best and it hasn't been good enough. No doubt, losing by an innings two times so far, it's no good at all."

There are gaps aplenty in Australia's batting line-up, but don't bother telling prolific Tasmania batsman Mark Cosgrove; he's too busy making runs to care.

Cosgrove has gone from sacked by South Australia to the Sheffield Shield's second-leading run-scorer.

His 510 runs from six four-day matches this season have come at an average of 56.67; only SCG Test debutant Usman Khawaja has scored more in the four-day game this summer.

Cosgrove, 26, is in form, enjoying his cricket, and he can bat anywhere in the first six. It's a compelling case for inclusion in an Australia side flattened by the Ashes annihilation.

Almost every discussion about Cosgrove's claims for national duty is prefaced by one provision: his fitness, or supposed lack of.

"Playing for Australia again is not on my mind when I go out to bat," Cosgrove told foxsports.com.au.

"It's not something I am thinking about at all, to be honest.

"If it happens, that will be great; I will be ready.

"But for me and the team, it's about playing well and winning every match we play.

"We want to do well in the Big Bash, and play well in the four-day game.

"The selectors will look at the players doing well in the teams that are winning in state cricket.

That, Cosgrove said, gives the Big Bash added importance.

"Definitely, we have seen guys play well in the Big Bash get their chance for Australia," he said.

The Tigers opened their Big Bash campaign with a win on the road against Western Australia. Their next assignment - another road trip against Queensland - could set their tournament up.

"It's (the Big Bash) all over pretty quick so if we can start well that gives us a good chance of pushing for a spot in the final," Cosgrove said.