Former England cricketer Mark Ramprakash has described the current side's retention of the Ashes in three Tests as "outstanding" after they secured the urn on Monday.

Play was abandoned during the third Test in Manchester, leaving the match in a draw and England with a 2-0 lead in the series with two Tests left to play.

While they may have wished to hold on to the Ashes in a different manner, Ramprakash feels that England's achievements were thoroughly deserved.

"England have fully deserved it," Ramprakash told talkSPORT. "It's a testament to the manager Andy Flower, the backroom staff and the players. The fact they've [retained] it within three games is pretty outstanding stuff.

"It's not necessarily in the manner they wanted with the rain coming down and Australia outplaying them in this particular match, but it was still an outstanding effort from the guys."

The fourth Test starts in Durham on Friday.