*Official* Road to the 2025-26 Ashes

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

i mean cummins spent the first half of his career broken.

also suspect the english guys are more often than not just weaker. anderson and broad total freaks mind.

Tbf that was when he was very young, since he reached his mid 20s, his injury record has been fine

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

I’ll let out a large and frustrated sigh when the inevitable team sheet arrives with Crawley and Pope’s names on it. Sick to death of them.

Crawley I sort of get, he’s a foil for Duckett who hammered them at home 2 years ago (I know his tour last time in Australia wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible and he was young then), Pope will carry on making runs against weak attacks or on flat surfaces, but when the big challenges come, he’s always found wanting, he averages less than 16 against Australia (that’s less than Mark Wood BTW!)

 

[Molehill]

Crawley I sort of get, he’s a foil for Duckett who hammered them at home 2 years ago (I know his tour last time in Australia wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible and he was young then), Pope will carry on making runs against weak attacks or on flat surfaces, but when the big challenges come, he’s always found wanting, he averages less than 16 against Australia (that’s less than Mark Wood BTW!)

And yet, for all that we continue to be frustrated by them, who would you replace them with? I agree with you, I think Crawley is safer than Pope, especially as the Duckett combo actually has a pretty decent opening partnership record.

At least it's a settled batting line up (even if it has issues). Aus don't really know what top 3 they're going with yet.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Crawley
Duckett
Pope
Root
Brook
Stokes
Smith
Carse
Atkinson
Archer
Bashir

Wood and Archer play 5 tests between them

 

[Durham Fan]

And yet, for all that we continue to be frustrated by them, who would you replace them with? I agree with you, I think Crawley is safer than Pope, especially as the Duckett combo actually has a pretty decent opening partnership record.

At least it's a settled batting line up (even if it has issues). Aus don't really know what top 3 they're going with yet.

Honestly there are several opening batsmen in the CC I’d sooner see open than Crawley. Dom Sibley looks a completely different player these days to the one who was shot to bits in 2021.

Hopefully the Rew brothers continue their ascent at Somerset and they can come into the England team in the near future.

 

[kevinw]

Crawley
Duckett
Pope
Root
Brook
Stokes
Smith
Carse
Atkinson
Archer
Bashir

Wood and Archer play 5 tests between them

I'd be surprised if Atkinson and Carse played five tests each. England need to find some bowlers who can get through series in one piece.

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

And yet, for all that we continue to be frustrated by them, who would you replace them with? I agree with you, I think Crawley is safer than Pope, especially as the Duckett combo actually has a pretty decent opening partnership record.

At least it's a settled batting line up (even if it has issues). Aus don't really know what top 3 they're going with yet.

Of course, the time to do anything about it has long passed, personally I wouldn’t have had Bethell go to the IPL and I’d have had him playing against Zimbabwe and playing as many County Championship games as possible (given that Bethell stayed at the IPL, there was talk of Ben McKinney playing against Zimbabwe which at the time I would have liked, although he’s very much out of nick now). I also wouldn’t have promoted Dan Lawrence (a number 4 who has been on the fringes of the squad) to open against Sri Lanka last year, that now seems like a wasted opportunity. We spoke about some of the Lions players earlier in the Oval match thread, clearly all of those players are a way off, Pope will play, whether he’ll get the whole series if he has a poor run, I don’t know!

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

I'd be surprised if Atkinson and Carse played five tests each. England need to find some bowlers who can get through series in one piece.

I know one bowler who’s proved he can play 5 Tests, sadly his shoulder’s now ****ed!

 

[Molehill]

I know one bowler who’s proved he can play 5 Tests, sadly his shoulder’s now ****ed!

Yeah, and if he hadn’t played the 5th Test, England almost certainly win it.

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

Honestly there are several opening batsmen in the CC I’d sooner see open than Crawley. Dom Sibley looks a completely different player these days to the one who was shot to bits in 2021.

Hopefully the Rew brothers continue their ascent at Somerset and they can come into the England team in the near future.

How much experience of opening does Rew have? I see he normally comes in at 4 for Somerset but did open in the winter for the Lions in South Africa (where he didn’t distinguish himself tbf). We clearly won’t tread over old ground with the likes of Sibley and Hameed, which tbf I am fine with

 

[Gob]

And what's the likely Aussie line up? Does Lyon still get a game? Who are the top 3? Webster at 6?

There are a lot of questions to be resolved in both teams it seems, but suspect England will need at least 2 Aussie pacers to breakdown to have any chance.

Lyon is alright. He was omitted for the last day nighter in wi but can't see that happening again. Webster has performed in pretty much all the games he has played so far and he finds ways to score on difficult surfaces

It's almost certain that Konstas will not feature. Usman will start but he is not guaranteed the whole series so it'll depend on how he travels as well as how Aust would start. If Usman keeps failing but somehow Aus get 2 zip up, they'll give him the series but if they find themselves in trouble, they'll try alternatives

I think Marnus will open and Green will start at 3 but things will change based on performances from their onwards. Regardless of the top 3, very much like England, Australia's engine room is 4 and 5 with crucial runs coming from the lower order and tail

 

[Durham Fan]

How much experience of opening does Rew have? I see he normally comes in at 4 for Somerset but did open in the winter for the Lions in South Africa (where he didn’t distinguish himself tbf). We clearly won’t tread over old ground with the likes of Sibley and Hameed, which tbf I am fine with

I was advocating them as potential replacements for Pope.

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

I was advocating them as potential replacements for Pope.

Personally, given that 3s could face the second ball of the innings, I think it’s a requisite that your 3 should be comfortable opening, whereas 4s you’d expect them to come in a bit later. Wouldn’t be too upset to see any of those names instead of Pope, but the most likely mid to long term m replacement for him is Bethell

 

[LangleyburyCCPlayer]

Lyon is alright. He was omitted for the last day nighter in wi but can't see that happening again. Webster has performed in pretty much all the games he has played so far and he finds ways to score on difficult surfaces

It's almost certain that Konstas will not feature. Usman will start but he is not guaranteed the whole series so it'll depend on how he travels as well as how Aust would start. If Usman keeps failing but somehow Aus get 2 zip up, they'll give him the series but if they find themselves in trouble, they'll try alternatives

I think Marnus will open and Green will start at 3 but things will change based on performances from their onwards. Regardless of the top 3, very much like England, Australia's engine room is 4 and 5 with crucial runs coming from the lower order and tail

You may be right, but what better way to say ‘we back you’ than dropping you and then bringing you back straight away 2 Tests later! Green is a bit like Pope in that you needed someone to slot in at 3, he’s not done great, but that one 50 he got in the West Indies is probably enough to keep him there for now

 

[govinda indian fan]

Lyon is alright. He was omitted for the last day nighter in wi but can't see that happening again. Webster has performed in pretty much all the games he has played so far and he finds ways to score on difficult surfaces

It's almost certain that Konstas will not feature. Usman will start but he is not guaranteed the whole series so it'll depend on how he travels as well as how Aust would start. If Usman keeps failing but somehow Aus get 2 zip up, they'll give him the series but if they find themselves in trouble, they'll try alternatives

I think Marnus will open and Green will start at 3 but things will change based on performances from their onwards. Regardless of the top 3, very much like England, Australia's engine room is 4 and 5 with crucial runs coming from the lower order and tail

Konstas is still work in progress but marnus opening? Wouldn't it be better if shield openers are selected instead of stop gaps like mcsweeney and marnus

 

[Gob]

You may be right, but what better way to say ‘we back you’ than dropping you and then bringing you back straight away 2 Tests later! Green is a bit like Pope in that you needed someone to slot in at 3, he’s not done great, but that one 50 he got in the West Indies is probably enough to keep him there for now

Oh I don't think Green is a number 3 either but he progressively got better which is not difficult because he was averaging in the single digits for his first 2 games. Anyway he is a slow starter at almost everything and the runs he made in WI probably value a lot more given how notoriously difficult batting was

 

[Tom Flint]

Crawley
Duckett
Pope
Root
Brook
Stokes
Smith
Atkinson
Wood
Archer
Bashir.
Carse to replace whoever gets injured or rested first.

 

[social]

I know one bowler who’s proved he can play 5 Tests, sadly his shoulder’s now ****ed!

Not the worst news for England

 

[social]

Bashir is barely fc standard as a bowler and can’t bat or field

Shouldn’t be anywhere near the squad

 

[Ju7]

I'd be surprised if Atkinson and Carse played five tests each. England need to find some bowlers who can get through series in one piece.

Are there any?