EdgBastion

Birmingham, July 31

England have not lost to Australia at the Edgbaston ground here in 18 years, but to preserve that record as the Ashes gets underway here tomorrow, the hosts will need their middle-order to fire amid uncertainty over their top three.

England must also overcome the absence of exciting pace bowler Jofra Archer, who has been omitted from the team due to a side strain. Fellow paceman Olly Stone also misses out as does Sam Curran from the original 14-man squad. Record Test wicket-taker James Anderson returns after recovering from a calf strain and will lead the attack with usual strike partner Stuart Broad. All-rounder Ben Stokes is back to bolster the batting and bowling units after being rested for the Ireland match while Moeen Ali is the specialist spinner.

Roy at top

Having tried a number of different opening partnerships in recent years, Jason Roy, one of England’s stars in white-ball cricket at the World Cup, has been fast-tracked into the Test side. He will almost certainly open the batting alongside Rory Burns, who averages less than 23 runs from his seven Tests. Yet the uncertainty in the top order has been compounded in the days leading up to the first Test, with Joe Denly, England’s regular No. 3 , having been pushed down to number four to make way for captain Joe Root.

Denly has enjoyed limited success, averaging 24.16 from six innings, and England coach Trevor Bayliss and Root have decided to shake things up. “He (Root) rang me the other day and told me he wanted to bat three and for me to go in at four,” Denly said on Tuesday. “I think Rooty just wanted to get involved in the game, get up there and get out in the middle.” 

Root averages 48 from 60 innings at No. 4 — compared with 40 from 40 innings at No. 3 — but the captain’s experience could be vital to bolster the largely untested trio of Roy, Burns and Denly, and set England up for their quality to come.

Strong middle

“It will come down to which team bats the best,” former England assistant coach Paul Farbrace said. “England’s middle-order is so strong, and I expect them to get the majority of the hosts’ runs.” The experienced Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali could bat in any order and it would not make much difference.

It would not be the first time England’s strength in depth has come through, with Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen making match-winning Ashes contributions in 2005, while Ian Botham’s famous 149 not out to beat Australia in 1981 came when batting at No. 7.

Tampering Three

Australia are likely to pit Cameron Bancroft, David Warner and Steve Smith together for the first time since they were banned for their roles in the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town last year, with Usman Khawaja batting at four. Further down the order, though, there is less firepower, and less certainty as to who will come in.

“Whoever wins the Ashes, it is the contributions of batsmen five and six that will make all the difference,” former Australia all rounder Brad Hogg said. “There are some headaches for Australia in that middle order.” 

The contributions lower down the order in what looks likely to be overcast, bowler-friendly conditions at Edgbaston here could sway a tight first Test of a close-run Ashes series. — Reuters

Main man

When Australia last faced England, in Australia in 2017-18, Steve Smith was the skipper. Since then, Smith (in pic) has been stripped of the captaincy and he is preparing for his first Test outing since being banned over last year’s ball-tampering incident. Smith subjected to some rough treatment from the English crowds during the World Cup, will feel he has something to prove. Averaging an eye-catching 61.37 in 64 Tests, with 23 centuries, Smith is still the main man for Australia and he scored a total of 687 runs when the teams last met, hitting three centuries in five Tests.

No Archer

Jofra Archer will miss the first Test due to a side strain. Barbados-born Archer, who made a huge impact in England’s triumphant World Cup campaign, taking 20 wickets, is yet to play a Test. “Jofra is coming back from a serious injury,” England skipper Joe Root said. “We looked at the conditions and went with what we thought was best to take 20 wickets here.”

England@Edgbaston

4 Wins for England in Tests in a row at the ground since 2015, including one Ashes Test victory

11 Consecutive wins for England at Edgbaston since 2014, in all three formats

2001 The last time Australia beat England at Edgbaston in a Test match. England last lost an ODI to Australia at the venue back in 1993

0 Australia have not won any match in any format against any team at Edgbaston since 2001