RICKY PONTING warned England their worst nightmare was about to come true after Australia closed in on the first Ashes whitewash in over 80 years.

The Aussies chalked up their fourth straight win of the series after skittling England twice inside three days in Melbourne. But skipper Ponting insisted they weren't finished yet.

It leaves a shell-shocked England - all out for 161 in their second innings - needing a minor miracle to avoid defeat number five when the sides meet in Sydney on Tuesday.

An Australian win at the SCG will complete the first Ashes clean sweep since 1920-21 - and it would be no more than either side deserves.

Ponting said: "We've still got a few things to prove to people around the country and to ourselves.

"You've got to play each Test like it's your last and we will be going all out to win in Sydney. England will be pretty demoralised and we aim to capitalise on that.

"We aren't making any mistakes and we aren't letting them back into it.

"Those little doubts they will have had after the first and second Tests will have turned into big doubts.

"We want to play every bit as well as we can at all times and we are all very keen to do that again in Sydney."

What will linger longest in the memory after this morale-sapping series will not be England's ham-fisted efforts with both bat and ball but the way they let Australia close the door every single time a chink of light appeared.

Few would dispute that England's latest defeat was more conclusive than those they experienced in Adelaide or Perth - but yet again they had their chances.

It is their failure to make the most of them that has left the travelling Barmy Army crying into their beer night after night.

England looked well set on 101 for two in the first innings and had Australia on the rack at 84 for five, but they failed to grasp the nettle on both occasions.

Beleaguered skipper Andrew Flintoff said: "We have got to regroup and work hard. No-one wants to go home after being beaten 5-0.

"We all want to win a Test match on this tour and Sydney is our last chance to do that.

"It was a tough Test for us. Australia played some fantastic cricket and they outplayed us for all of the three days.

"We've got a couple of days off and a chance to get some practice in. We've got one Test left and we want to make the most of it."

Wicketkeeper Chris Read ended with six catches - equalling England's Ashes record and falling just one shy of the world record as Australia added 47 after resuming on 372 for seven.

It left them 260 in front on first innings, with Andrew Symonds adding just two to his overnight 154 before Read snaffled him off Durham paceman Steve Harmison.

Sajid Mahmood made light work of Stuart Clark and Glenn McGrath to end with four for 100 and things perked up temporarily when openers Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook put on 41.

It was England's highest first-wicket stand of the series.

But by the time Ian Bell (2), Kevin Pietersen (1) and Paul Collingwood (16) were back in the pavilion the writing was well and truly on the wall at 75 for four.

Strauss top-scored with 31 over the best part of three hours, while Flintoff made 25 in what has proved as miserable a series with the bat for the stand-in skipper as it has with the captain's armband.

Read's stubborn 26 not out gave coach Duncan Fletcher a timely reminder that England's No. 1 wicketkeeper might not be a million miles behind his rival Geraint Jones in the batting stakes.

But he soon ran out of partners and England are fast running out of chances to avoid seeing their names etched into the history books for all the wrong reasons.