So, the Ashes series will go ahead. England will be sending their best squad to Australia in an attempt to regain the Ashes. Australian environs have not been so kind to England after the heroics of 2011. Infact, the England team were not only annihilated but they were demoralised. It is so strange that Joe Root will be leading a team to Australia one more time after the last debacle.
The 2013 Ashes series
This was the Mitchell Johnson series. No one, absolutely no one from the English side had any answer to the fury and ferocious pace unleashed by Johnson. If the top order weren’t able to negotiate Johnson what chance did the lower order had? None. Such was the dominance of Johnson. Kevin Pietersen offered a semblance of resistance but the rest just caved in. Couple of careers were finished. Jonathan Trott was so at sea against the Aussie bowlers that he did not even wait until the end of the series. He retired after the first test. Swann midway. The England batsmen did not know whether to save their heads or their toes. Johnson attacked both.
Backed up by captain Clarke, he was at his lethal best throughout the series. It is one thing to be able to bowl at great pace in a test but to bowl with the same pace and intensity right through 5 games, speaks volumes about Johnson’s fitness. England’s bowlers weren’t effective at all and the Australian batsmen made mincemeat of them. To be fair to England, even the best West Indian or South African sides would have struggled against the bowling of Mitchell Johnson in that series.
The 2017 Ashes series
Mitchell Johnson blew England away in 2013 and they weren’t able to negotiate Ryan Harris any better. Valid reasons ofcourse but what happened in 2017 was unfathomable. Here was an Australian team ripe for the taking. However, what transpired on the field was quite to the contrary. England lost 0-4. Australia weren’t that good a side in 2017 and it was really a shock that England weren’t competitive throughout the series.
The 2021 Ashes series
So much of the same England side that lost 0-4 in 2017 will return to Australia looking to make amends. The same bowlers who weren’t effective last time around will once again travel to Australia with the exception of Mark Wood. Compounding matters, they are all 4 years older. Australian wickets need bowlers who can hit the deck. England have only one. Mark Wood. His fitness is of concern though. In the absence of Archer, Stone and possibly Stokes, England will have to depend on Anderson, Broad and Woakes to put the Aussie batsmen under pressure. A task they did not manage last time around.
Nasser Hussain is not particularly pleased with the selection
“England have picked a very predictable Ashes squad, avoiding selecting any uncapped players and refusing to take any kind of risk. The two surprises for me were overlooking Saqib Mahmood and Matt Parkinson. Saqib would have given a different element to the attack in Australian conditions with his skiddy reverse swing, in the absence of the pace of Jofra Archer and Olly Stone.”
Saqib Mahmood who could have been the replacement for Archer has been left behind. The pressure on Joe Root will be much greater. He is the only England batsman who is in form and who is capable of handling the Aussie bowlers. Australian grounds, pitches and the crowd are unforgiving.
This tour will perhaps to be last for quite a few English players. Sibley, Bairstow, Crawley, Malan, Hameed, Buttler, Lawrence, all these players have got lot to prove. They have not had a decent series in a longtime. Buttler especially must justify his position in the team. Far too much has been invested on him but except for one game against Pakistan, he does not have much to showcase.
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