The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between international cricket's most celebrated rivals England and Australia and is hosted alternately in Australia and England.
A series of The Ashes is played under the regular rules for international Test-match cricket and  comprises five Test matches with two innings per match. If a series is drawn then the country already holding the Ashes retains them.
The series got its name in 1882 when a British newspaper published a satirical obituary after Australia beat England on English ground for the first time stating that English cricket had died and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. Since then, England and Australia battle for The Ashes every other year.