Rod Marsh has slammed Australia's "deplorable" batting in the Ashes series after England regained the little urn with one Test remaining.

Australia were strong favourites to retain the Ashes after winning the previous series 5-0 on home soil before continuing their resurgence under Darren Lehmann, as a new-look England side went through a transitional period. 

However, batting collapses in three of the four Tests have seen the tourists lose the series 3-1 ahead of the final match at The Oval, resulting in captain Michael Clarke announcing his retirement from international cricket.

Australia were dismissed for only 60 in their first innings in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge last week and chairman of selectors Marsh pulled no punches with his assessment of their batting.

"I'm just racking my brain to try and think of who else we could have picked," said Marsh. "If I had my time again, to sit down and choose the batsmen to come to England it would have been exactly the same.

"How the hell do you see that? How do you see some of the best batsmen in the world make no runs in the first innings of four Test matches? It just staggered me.

"Our first-innings batting, it's been deplorable ... guys have let themselves down. I think our blokes have got to be more selfish [with the bat]. You're allowed to bat all day.

"Our longest partnership [at Edgbaston] was something like 18 overs. That's appalling in a Test match, I don't care what you're playing on.

"You should be better than that and I'm sure all the batsmen are feeling exactly the same.

"We were walloped and it hurts like hell. It hurts me like hell."