Birmingham, July 8: Australia beat England by an innings and 118 runs on shortly after lunch on the fourth day of the First Test here at Edgbaston on Sunday as the home team collapsed in familiar fashion, their last seven wickets going down for 22 runs in 63 balls.

Despite a defiant 76 from opener Marcus Trescothick, England finished on 164 for nine in response to Australia's mammoth 576. The match ended with the fall of the ninth wicket because England captain Nasser Hussain had sustained a broken left little finger while batting, retired hurt and was unable to return to the crease.

He will see a specialist on Monday to assess the damage. Fast bowler Jason Gillespie did the damage in more ways than one, taking three for 52 and with the last ball before lunch clean bowling Craig White for nought to cap an impressive spell of three wickets for four runs in 15 balls.

England should have lost new batsman Ashley Giles for a first ball duck after lunch but Mark Waugh at second slip dropped the catch off Gillespie. It barely mattered as leg-spinner Shane Warne took two wickets in two balls on his way to three for 29 and match figures of eight for 100.

Trescothick went for his lunch score of 76 edging Warne to Mark Waugh at slip. He faced 113 balls including two sixes and 11 fours in a gutsy innings where he was only once offered meaningful support. Giles went the same way for a 12 ball nought and Andrew Caddick was six not out.

Hussain, who had already sustained three hand fractures in the last two years, was forced to retire hurt after being hit by Gillespie's first ball of the day. England started Sunday 234 behind on 48 for one with Trescothick 21 not out and Mark Butcher eight not out.

After Glenn McGrath had predictably bowled the first over, Australia captain Steve Waugh decided to attack with Warne at the other end to exploit the left-handed pair's seeming vulnerability against spin. McGrath went past Trescothick's outside edge with a number of probing deliveries and the Somerset opener was also beaten for pace when he tried to hook a McGrath bouncer bowled from around the wicket.

But when McGrath tried the same delivery a few overs later, Trescothick's hook went for six. Butcher too had his moments against the demon fast bowler, first driving him through the covers for and next ball on-driving him for another boundary. Runs flowed steadily from the other end as both batsmen played some authoritative attacking shots against Warne, no doubt helped by the fact that his stock ball was turning in towards them rather than away.

Butcher square drove the leg-spinner for four and then turned him through four for midwicket. Trescothick also refused to be frightened by Warne's sharp turn, planting his front foot down the wicket and sweeping him for four before going onto the back foot to force him through the offside for more of the same.

Warne was withdrawn after an unusually expensive spell of 4-0-25-0 and his replacement Brett Lee secured the breakthrough Australia wanted. The fastest bowler currently in world cricket surprised Butcher with a viciously lifting delivery from around the wicket that took off from a length and saw the Surrey batsman edge to wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist.

England were 99 for two in the 25th over, Butcher's 41 coming from 74 balls including five fours, the southpaw pair sharing a defiant stand of 95 in 140 deliveries. Trescothick boldly attacked Lee bringing up his fifty from 81 balls with a magnificent cover driven four, his eighth boundary.

But then Hussain, on nine, was hit on the top hand by Gillespie. He tried to bat on, but retired hurt soon afterwards, England 217 for two. Ian Ward played on to Lee for three while Surrey teammate Alec Stewart's 200th Test innings ended when on five he tried to turn Gillespie onto the legside and got a leading edge to Warne at first slip.

Debutant Usman Afzaal went for two after contributing four first time around, lbw to Gillespie and Australia looking to win the Ashes for a record seventh successive occasion were on their way.