Day one report: England humiliate AustraliaAnalysis: England deliver Australia's blackest daySocial media reaction to Australia collapseAs it happened: Aussies skittled for 60
Michael Clarke strived to remain stoic throughout his eight-minute press conference after what he conceded was one of the worst days of his career. That his team had, in the same period at the start of the day, lost their first three wickets illustrated just how dire Australia's hopes of winning their first away Ashes series since 2001 now are.
The captain said being bowled out within 19 overs, the shortest first innings of a Test in history, for 60 against England and then ending the day with a deficit of 214 at Trent Bridge rivalled the distress of being bowled out for 47 in Cape Town by South Africa in 2011. 
"It's up there," Clarke said in response to where it ranked among his worst days in cricket. "That's as tough as they come today."
Australia's chief destroyer was Stuart Broad. He stepped up to the role of England's lead paceman, in the absence of the injured Jimmy Anderson, with devastating effect. He claimed 8-15 at his home ground in a performance that capped "one of those days you dream of, really".
"I keep seeing the scoreboard pop up on the TV, or see it on the ground, and it doesn't look real to me . . . it's a bit of a freak day," Broad said.
"A 214 lead after day one is as powerful a performance as I've been involved in. To bowl a team out for 60 is obviously very special, but to then be 270-odd is an amazing achievement."
Clarke declined to comment on whether his Australia team had produced an "embarrassing" performance.
"I'll let you write your article. I'm not going to give you any words to use," he said.
"Nothing went right at all today, that's for sure. And the situation with the series, knowing like I said before the Test that it's our grand final [exacerbated that]. But also as captain you need to be as positive as you can be and understand that it's day one down in a Test match. There's still a lot or time left in this Test. We've just got to play out of our skins."
While Clarke was only one of two batsmen to reach double-figures - their top scorer was, humiliatingly, extras with 14 - he fell to the most overly aggressive shot, attempting to crunch a wide half-volley from Broad without moving his front foot near where the ball pitched. He defended his approach to Broad's first delivery, revealing he had been determined to thump it despite the score being 5-29, and then 6-29 after he edged it to his England counterpart Alastair Cook, who sent Australia in on winning the toss.
"I was thinking 'If he pitches it up I'm going to hit it as far as I can'. I watched guys around me get out trying to defend and I thought, like I've always said, the better the bowling the more aggressive you've got to be. You live by the sword, you die by the sword," he said.
"That's as tough batting conditions as I've faced in my career. But in saying that you still have to have the skill and the class to be able to put the ball in the right area, and then hang on to those chances when the ball hits the edge, so take nothing away from Stuart and England."
Chris Rogers appeared to be the only member of Australia's top six who fell to a delivery that would have hit the stumps. Nevertheless, Clarke defended the approach of the batsmen, in regards to choosing when to leave the ball as England did so comfortably later on.
"It's always a lot easier watching than it is playing," he said.
"The guys have worked extremely hard in the nets in conditions that have swung and seamed. Shot selection is a critical part of being a successful batsman, there's no doubt about it.
"It might look like a lot of the guys could have let those balls go but the class of Stuart Broad, he was bringing the ball back into the right hander where he normally takes it away so that makes you feel like you have to play a lot more.
"When you look at a replay on the big screen and you see where the three stumps are and you see where the batter gets out it looks like you don't have to play it. But that's the way it goes."
Broad reckoned the Trent Bridge pitch had "just offered the perfect amount [of movement]".
"It wasn't really swinging massively, wasn't seaming loads ... I think we got seven edges and only one play-and-miss," he said.
"We were brave enough to put six catchers in at one stage - and there were some amazing catches. (Ben) Stokes' [of Adam Voges] is one of the best ones I've been on a field for. It was behind him. He had no right to catch it.
"We asked Australia a lot of questions, and just made them play ... probably the all-round perfect bowling and fielding performance, then backed up with some outstanding batting."
Despite Broad's delight he said he and his teammates were not getting carried away with the performance, even though a win would guarantee they would regain the Ashes.
"We've been conscious all week not to talk about winning the Ashes - because I think that mentally takes you to quite a dangerous place - and Cookie said again at the end of the day's play 'Let's enjoy the next hour in the changing room; we've had a fantastic day, one of the best England have had in the Ashes ever - but let's reset for tomorrow,'" he said.