4 days ago
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The time for talking is nearly over. The phoney war is all but done and now for the Ashes action.
After all the hype and hoopla will it be yet another annihilation for England Down Under or can they become the first touring team since Andrew Strauss' 2010-11 heroes to win the urn in Australia?
The Aussies have been waiting for years to see whether the Bazballers can 'do it against our boys', especially in overseas conditions and in the cauldrons of the MCG, Gabba and beyond.
With combined XIs floating around and this being one of the closest-matched series - especially Down Under - in recent memory, who really has the better weapons heading into this all-out assault?
Here, our cricket correspondent and Wisden Editor LAWRENCE BOOTH runs through each squad and sees how they measure up...
Ben Stokes is hoping to be just the second England captain in the last four decades to win the Ashes Down Under
Steve Smith will lead the Aussies as long as Pat Cummins is sidelined, and has a mammoth 12 Ashes centuries to his name
TOP ORDER
England 6.5/10
Mock Zak Crawley all you like, but his partnership with Ben Duckett has been central to the Bazball philosophy.
Only three English opening pairs have combined for more Test runs at a higher average than their 2,511 at 46 (Jack Hobbs and Herbert Sutcliffe, Len Hutton and Cyril Washbrook, Andrew Strauss and Marcus Trescothick), and they will not be fazed by lively pitches. If anything, it will only encourage them to play their strokes.
Ollie Pope appears to have beaten Jacob Bethell to the No3 spot after warming up with 100 and 90 against England Lions at Lilac Hill, but his Ashes record of 157 runs at 15 will not scare Australia.
Australia 6/10
The hosts’ top three is not yet set in stone, though it could include a debutant in Jake Weatherald, and a fading 38-year-old in Usman Khawaja.
The openers look vulnerable, but if Marnus Labuschagne, who began the Australian season with five hundreds in eight innings, rediscovers the form that had him at the top of the world rankings as recently as 2023, England’s seamers will have work to do.
It’s also possible that Labuschagne moves up to open in place of Weatherald, which would then leave all-rounder Cameron Green at No3, where he averages 23 from eight Test innings. That is the scenario England would prefer.
Zak Crawley gets his eye in during England's warm-up match against the Lions at Lilac Hill
Australia's Marnus Labuschagne is in ominous form, beginning the domestic season Down Under with five hundreds in eight innings
MIDDLE ORDER
England 8/10
Both England’s Yorkshiremen have a point to prove.
Joe Root, in case you hadn’t noticed, has not scored a Test hundred in Australia, while Harry Brook – who averaged 40 in the 2023 Ashes with a best of 85 – is yet to score a hundred against them full stop, and will be tested by the short ball, especially given the bigger boundaries that will be harder to hook his way clear of.
And yet it is these two, each averaging over 50, who look England’s best bet for a match-winning total.
Australia 8.5/10
Only Don Bradman has more Ashes hundreds than Steve Smith’s 12, and he looked a class apart recently while his New South Wales were skittled twice on a tricky SCG surface by Victoria.
At 36, this may be his last series against England, whose task will be to ignore his antics and keep the ball away from his pads.
Travis Head, meanwhile, is Australia’s lone Bazballer, a player capable of destroying opponents in a session. His 148-ball 152 in the first Test at Brisbane set the tone for England’s 4–0 defeat four years ago.
Harry Brook – who averaged 40 in the 2023 Ashes with a best of 85 – is yet to score a hundred against the Aussies
Travis Head's 148-ball 152 in the first Test at Brisbane set the tone for England’s 4–0 defeat four years ago
ALL-ROUNDERS
England 8/10
Ben Stokes injured his shoulder against India in July just as he was approaching the peak of his powers. In that fourth Test at Old Trafford, he followed first-innings figures of five for 72 with a superb 141, and looked England’s best bowler throughout the summer.
Australia already know what he can do, and still shiver at the memory of Headingley 2019. If he can carry on where he left off against India, Stokes can be the player of the series.
Australia 7/10
Try as they might, Australia don’t really do fully fledged all-rounders, not convincingly. This is generally because they haven’t needed to: six batsmen and four bowlers have tended to do the job.
But they are hoping the towering Green can get through a few overs, which in turn will affect both where he bats and whether fellow all-rounder Beau Webster gets a game. Four half-centuries from nine innings at No6 suggest England should not underrate him.
Australia still shiver at the memory of Headingley 2019 and the heroics of Stokes
The Aussies will be hoping their all-rounder Cameron Green can get through a few overs but he is coming back from injury
WICKETKEEPERS
England 7/10
Jamie Smith’s power and potential are not in question. His Test strike rate is 75 – once considered decent in ODIs – and he has hit 26 sixes in his brief career. An average of 49 is good going for a No7.
But he has to prove he can last the course. Against India, he fell away badly after a brilliant double of 184 not out and 88 at Edgbaston, and looked exhausted by the end. Australia will be even more unforgiving, on both sides of the stumps.
Australia 7.5/10
While the Barmy Army will continue to harangue Alex Carey at every opportunity because of his stumping of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s two years ago, Australia’s wicketkeeper has quietly got on with the business of scoring useful runs down the order. He counter-attacks well, and bats adeptly with the tail.
Jamie Smith shows off his footwork against India in the summer but the England wicketkeeper's series fell away after a brilliant start
Alex Carey (arms aloft) will be harangued by England fans at every opportunity because of his stumping of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s two years ago
SPINNERS
England 5.5/10
Concerns that Shoaib Bashir resembles a lamb to the slaughter were not allayed by his match figures during England’s game against the Lions: 24–0–151–2.
Australia has rarely been a place for visiting finger-spinners, let alone a 22-year-old with a first-class bowling average of nearly 49. It’s why Will Jacks may come into contention, with Root also available for some part-time off-breaks.
Australia 7.5/10
Two more wickets and Nathan Lyon, who turns 38 on Thursday, will overtake Glenn McGrath and move into sixth place on Test cricket’s all-time list, with 564. And while the spicier pitches produced by Australian groundsmen reduced his importance last winter, he remains a potential match-winner if any of these Tests go the distance.
There are concerns over whether Shoaib Bashir, first-class bowling average of nearly 49, can hack it in Australia
Nathan Lyon needs two more wickets to overtake Glenn McGrath and move into sixth place on Test cricket’s all-time list, with 564
SEAMERS
England 7.5/10
Assuming Mark Wood really is available for selection, England have got what they wanted: a battery of their quickest bowlers, all raring to go.
Wood’s last four Ashes Tests have brought him 23 wickets at under 19, while Jofra Archer will be lining up Australia’s left-handers.
England's speed king Jofra Archer will be lining up Australia’s left-handers
Brendan Doggett, who is set for his Test debut, takes his first-class wickets at 26
Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue will keep the speed gun busy, which may leave Gus Atkinson to be the line-and-length merchant at 84mph. Promising, on paper.
Australia 7.5/10
The Australians lose half a point because Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, their two best bowlers, will miss the first Test at Perth.
But Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland remain a formidable duo, especially on home turf, and Brendan Doggett, set for his Test debut, takes his first-class wickets at 26. Jhye Richardson and Michael Neser are useful back-ups, too.
OVERALL TOTALS
England 42.5
Australia 44
