However, Brian Lara, the West Indies captain, predicted England were good enough to give Australia a contest next year and capable of winning in South Africa this winter.
“It hasn’t sunk in what we’ve achieved and it won’t be for a long time that we realise the extent of the history we’ve just made,” the England captain said. “But we are by no means the finished article. We’ve got quite a bit of inexperience but it’s a huge positive that we’re winning games with players who haven’t played many games.
“The summer couldn’t have gone better. We’ve played good cricket, the crowds have poured in and we’ve come through tough periods. It’s very pleasing to win seven on the bounce and 10 out of 11. It’s a fantastic achievement. The players work so hard it makes my job very easy.
“People are bound to mention Australia but they are one of the best teams that ever played the game, so we’ve got a long way to go before we match that. But we’ve certainly got the talent to maybe achieve that. It’s about experience and keeping everyone fit. South Africa’s not going to be an easy tour but if we continue to play like we are we can certainly put them under pressure.”
Lara said of England’s chances in the 2005 Ashes: “If they play against Australia the way the played against us it is going to be a very close series. But you are going to see them asking different questions from us. The Australian bowling is very professional.
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“If England win in South Africa that would augur very well for English cricket. I would really love to see them win.”
Vaughan was full of praise for the way James Anderson stepped into the breach yesterday, a performance that typified the way the team has dovetailed: “We were struggling this morning against Lara and (Chris) Gayle on that kind of wicket and needed a bit of inspiration. The way Jimmy bowled showed that he’s still got it. He’s got a huge talent to be able to swing the ball both ways to get out the likes of Lara and Gayle, who were set.
“It’s been the story of the summer. When we’ve got ourselves in tricky positions someone’s stuck their hand up and it hasn’t always been the same person.
“We’ve lost Nasser Hussain, Mark Butcher and Graham Thorpe but the three guys who’ve come in have done exceptionally well and that shows we have depth. A lot of the players can and hope to be around for a few years yet.
“Andrew Strauss, Rob Key and Ian Bell all look Test match quality. Bell showed what a good player he is the way he batted at 60 for three. They’ve come into the dressing room and taken it as another game.
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“We’ve won 4-0 but it’s not been easy. Taking 20 wickets four times has been no mean feat on the wickets we’ve played on but we’ve got a way to go because we haven’t played as well as we can over the last two games.”
Lara thought it was the best England side he had played against: “This is the first time I have seen an England side that has not looked scared of West Indies. Credit must go to Michael Vaughan, Duncan Fletcher and his support group. They’ve played great cricket and have had a great summer.”
Lara, 35, who has now suffered more Test defeats than any captain in history, said he was not retiring: “This is not my last Test match for West Indies. I’m going to carry on and keep fighting with the young guys and hopefully at some time see our cricket climb the ladder again.”
He said West Indies had to learn from this latest defeat: “You look at the way teams like Australia and England prepare and you can tell it is a really professional set-up and something we can learn from. We fielded badly and dropped some important catches. Being in the field is the one time the 11 guys are together and can back each other. If you look at the two teams in the field, you can see a vast difference.”
He was not disheartened by yesterday’s performance: “All the batters showed fight and it augurs well. If we can fight up front I think you will see a team perform much better. We are asking young guys to do a big man’s job.
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“We’re proud of a lot of them — Dwayne Bravo, Fidel Edwards, Tino Best and Carlton Baugh. This is a team that people should not be overly critical of.”