Ashes Approaching

A Series of Rivalry, Redemption and Resurgence

F. A. Loxton

CRICKET’S MOST ICONIC RIVALRY IS SET TO IGNITE ONCE AGAIN, WITH ENGLAND HOSTING AUSTRALIA FOR THE SERIES IN JUST OVER TWO WEEKS. Holding a unique place in the cricketing landscape and capturing the imaginations of fans worldwide, the series is set to be highly competitive, with Australia and England sitting in second and third on the ICC test rankings and England with the crucial huge home advantage.

After a hugely dominant 4-0 victory in the 2021-2022 summer, which saw Australia retain the Ashes at home, this year, the series is expected to be all the more closer for a multitude of reasons. Firstly, with Cummins’ men struggling with both the bat and ball in India, going down in a four-match series 2-1, questions around the team’s ability to play away from Australia were sparked. In particular, David Warner’s form saw him be dropped from the side, and although his experience would be vital in an Ashes campaign, his record of zero test centuries in England makes him an unlikely opener to be selected. 

Providing promise for Australia has been Usman Khawaja and the improving Cameron Green, who both scored centuries in the fourth test against India, although their score was surpassed to make the final match against India a draw. Additionally, a notable difference will be Steve Smith, who has played County Cricket in England in the leadup to the series to adapt to the English pitches. Some say his performance will be the determining factor, as we all know what happened in the last Ashes series in England, averaging 110 and scoring a total of 774 runs.

Another huge factor that has seen England favoured to win the series has been both Brendon McCullum’s appointment as head coach and Ben Stokes as captain, with a surge in confidence from their results in the past twelve months. And most confidently, English seamer Ollie Robinson has declared England can win the 2023 Ashes “comfortably,” as well as 77 percent of BBC respondents voting that England would win. This comes with Australia having not won a test series in England since 2001, with the 2019 series ending in a draw which saw Australia retain the urn.

Additionally, Jimmy Peirson was called up to join the Australian Ashes squad, putting him in line to replace Alex Carey should the first-choice keeper suffer any injuries. This sees the Queensland keeper move a step close to a test debut in the fiercely competitive Australian test team.

Despite these shifts in power dynamics within the men’s test cricket scene, Pat Cummins has said, “we left something behind in 2019,” and is as eager as ever to claim the series is what is the greatest rivalry in cricket. Ultimately, the 2023 Ashes are expected to be an evenly-matched contest, and there’s no doubt the series will be a thrilling contest with such a rich history and tradition.