Ashes Preview: 1st Test
With less than a day to go before the first ball of the Ashes series, the excitement and thrill has never been so high. Leading up to tomorrow, there have been no shortages of controversy and surprises. From injury scares to wild selection debates, it is least to say that this series is going to be an absolute "cracker".
Considering that Australia is playing at home and have the larger crowd, it is fair to say that the Aussies start off as solid favourites. Whilst it has been too long since Australia have put in a good overseas performance, there will be plenty of pressure for the home side to get some wins on the board.
Australia's squad contains few surprises, in particular, the selection of wicketkeeper Tim Paine and the exclusion of a genuine allrounder. Whilst most of the attention has been on Australia and their issues, it is fair to say that the England team have gone fairly under the radar. Last tour match saw the likes of the opening batsman; Mark Stoneman and middle-order batsman; Dawid Malan both reaching their tons against the CA XI last week. Whilst the batsmen have shown that they are adapting to the Australian conditions, they are yet to experience Australia's hostile bowling line-up, with the likes of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazelwood. With Ben Stokes not currently playing, more pressure is going to be added on skipper; Joe Root and Alistair Cook to score runs in the top order. With Alistair Cook entering the twilight of his fantastic career, there is no doubt that he will certainly find it tough against what is a quality bowling attack produced by Australia. Moreover, the prize wicket for Australia is obviously their best player; Joe Root, his outstanding record is going to make the Aussies hungry for his wicket and hopefully have a go at attacking a very inexperienced middle order.
Australia's inform players going into tomorrow's game are going to be essential into getting early runs on the board and put a fairly vulnerable bowling attack produced by England under pressure. With the likes of Usman Khawaja and Camron Bancroft being the best performers so far leading up to the series, their top order runs will be crucial to building up a good innings score. I am uncertain about how Shaun Marsh is going to perform at number 6, considering that he is an established and very talented opening batsman. I believe the selectors see him at number 6 because he is likely to face the second new ball. However, I feel that Shaun Marsh will be under too much pressure if an Aussie batting collapse happens. Hence, I would've liked to have seen a specialist number 6 allrounder in the team who can bat with the tail and offer plenty with the ball.
Coming to toss tomorrow, Australia should look to bat first to put early runs on the board. With some luck and a top order that fires, England batsmen will be under enormous pressure especially against a ruthless bowling lineup. Whereas, England should look to bat first and with some luck, have enough of a lead in the 4th innings to defend a reasonable total. The ball is expected to move around a bit in the morning and bounce a bit, hence the openers will find it tough, however, after the first-hour batting should get much easier and runs are expected to flow.
I see this first test as being Australia's bowling against England's batting. My predictions for the first day is that Australia will win the toss and bat first and put up a monster total with the likes of Khawaja, Warner and Smith getting big scores. However, I do see that if England were to bat first, that Dawid Malan would be a shining light for England, as he is fairly unknown to the Australian team and his solid technique could do him a world of good. With the ball, I would see Josh Hazelwood getting some early wickets along with Pat Cummins and for England, Chris Woakes to star with the ball. The players from each team that I predict to take the field tomorrow morning would be:
Australia XI: David Warner (vc), Camron Bancroft, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscombe, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazelwood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird (12th man)
England XI: Alistair Cook, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Joe Root (c), Dawid Malan, Johnny Bairstow (wk), Moin Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Craig Overton, James Anderson, Mason Crane (12th man)
Overall, I do see Australia as favourites to win this game but other than that lets hope the rain stays away and a great game cricket is played.
Considering that Australia is playing at home and have the larger crowd, it is fair to say that the Aussies start off as solid favourites. Whilst it has been too long since Australia have put in a good overseas performance, there will be plenty of pressure for the home side to get some wins on the board.Australia's squad contains few surprises, in particular, the selection of wicketkeeper Tim Paine and the exclusion of a genuine allrounder. Whilst most of the attention has been on Australia and their issues, it is fair to say that the England team have gone fairly under the radar. Last tour match saw the likes of the opening batsman; Mark Stoneman and middle-order batsman; Dawid Malan both reaching their tons against the CA XI last week. Whilst the batsmen have shown that they are adapting to the Australian conditions, they are yet to experience Australia's hostile bowling line-up, with the likes of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazelwood. With Ben Stokes not currently playing, more pressure is going to be added on skipper; Joe Root and Alistair Cook to score runs in the top order. With Alistair Cook entering the twilight of his fantastic career, there is no doubt that he will certainly find it tough against what is a quality bowling attack produced by Australia. Moreover, the prize wicket for Australia is obviously their best player; Joe Root, his outstanding record is going to make the Aussies hungry for his wicket and hopefully have a go at attacking a very inexperienced middle order.
Australia's inform players going into tomorrow's game are going to be essential into getting early runs on the board and put a fairly vulnerable bowling attack produced by England under pressure. With the likes of Usman Khawaja and Camron Bancroft being the best performers so far leading up to the series, their top order runs will be crucial to building up a good innings score. I am uncertain about how Shaun Marsh is going to perform at number 6, considering that he is an established and very talented opening batsman. I believe the selectors see him at number 6 because he is likely to face the second new ball. However, I feel that Shaun Marsh will be under too much pressure if an Aussie batting collapse happens. Hence, I would've liked to have seen a specialist number 6 allrounder in the team who can bat with the tail and offer plenty with the ball.
Coming to toss tomorrow, Australia should look to bat first to put early runs on the board. With some luck and a top order that fires, England batsmen will be under enormous pressure especially against a ruthless bowling lineup. Whereas, England should look to bat first and with some luck, have enough of a lead in the 4th innings to defend a reasonable total. The ball is expected to move around a bit in the morning and bounce a bit, hence the openers will find it tough, however, after the first-hour batting should get much easier and runs are expected to flow.I see this first test as being Australia's bowling against England's batting. My predictions for the first day is that Australia will win the toss and bat first and put up a monster total with the likes of Khawaja, Warner and Smith getting big scores. However, I do see that if England were to bat first, that Dawid Malan would be a shining light for England, as he is fairly unknown to the Australian team and his solid technique could do him a world of good. With the ball, I would see Josh Hazelwood getting some early wickets along with Pat Cummins and for England, Chris Woakes to star with the ball. The players from each team that I predict to take the field tomorrow morning would be:
Australia XI: David Warner (vc), Camron Bancroft, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscombe, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazelwood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird (12th man)
England XI: Alistair Cook, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Joe Root (c), Dawid Malan, Johnny Bairstow (wk), Moin Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Craig Overton, James Anderson, Mason Crane (12th man)
Overall, I do see Australia as favourites to win this game but other than that lets hope the rain stays away and a great game cricket is played.
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