Birmingham: The highly-successful ultra-attacking approach adopted by England ever since Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum took over as captain and head coach in 2022 faces its toughest examination when the much-anticipated Ashes against recently-crowned World Test Championship winners Australia kickstarts at Edgbaston from Friday.
During the next six weeks that promise excitement, thrill and tension in equal measure, England, who have won 11 of 13 matches under Stokes and McCullum, will be put to a relentless Test at home to see if they can retain their style of play which has given them immense success, having not lost a series yet.
One can anticipate that the five-game series will be closer than it was in 2021/22 when Australia thrashed England 4-0 in their home. In England's batting line-up, they have the zeal and belligerence of Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root and captain Stokes himself. The timely return of Jonny Bairstow further boosts the explosive batting line-up.
But England have potential issues in the bowling line-up. All-rounder Moeen Ali has also come out of Test retirement and is confirmed to play as England's frontline spinner after Jack Leach was ruled out due to a lower back stress fracture. With Ali straightaway playing a Test match after two long years, there are doubts over how he will fare, especially with him averaging 65 with the ball against Australia in Tests.
There will be doubts over the fitness of James Anderson and Ollie Robinson, who will be playing Ashes after missing the Test against Ireland due to groin and ankle niggles, while Stokes' ability to bowl due to a nagging left knee issue is also under cloud.
Australia are also mulling their bowling options, with Scott Boland's five wickets in the 2023 World Test Championship Final giving him an edge over an injury-prone Josh Hazlewood, as Mitchell Starc, captain Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon give a settled look.
With the bat, Australia boasts of top three Test batters in Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, and Travis Head, though their opening pair of David Warner and Usman Khawaja needs to step up as well.
In the current cricketing era where franchise T20 leagues are mushrooming faster than the speed of light, the Ashes has always ensured that cricket fans get their share of excitement and fast-paced action from Test cricket. This time around, public imagination will be captured yet again when England's exhilarating approach will face off against the dominant mindset of Australians.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (VC), Mitchell Starc, David Warner
England playing eleven: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jonny Bairstow (wk), Moeen Ali, Ollie Robinson, Stuart Broad, James Anderson.—IANS
