England have made all the early running in terms of reasons not to back them for glory in the Ashes. Indeed, their preparation, thus far, has been close to chaotic.
They picked a confused and weak squad, which analysts said was the weakest batting line-up to ever be assembled for an Ashes tour Down Under, and then talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes was withdrawn following allegations of assault outside a Bristol nightclub. Since then, the English have been making excuses left, right and centre.
Not surprisingly, Australia are warm order to win the five-match series. They are now no better than 1.5 with William Hill. But not to be outdone, the Aussies have made a bid of their own to remind punters that they are hardly world beaters.
All the brouhaha about England’s problems overshadowed Australia’s, chiefly that they don’t know who they should bat at Nos 6 and 7. If you wanted to, you could make a lame joke about the Aussies being at sixes and sevens. But they are making it themselves.
One of the selectors, Mark Waugh was asked about filling each position. To say Australia are unsure is an understatement. He listed three or four names for each position.
Then David Warner, the Australian the English fans love to hate because get this, he once punched current England captain Joe Root in a bar, said that the series was going to be a “war”. And that Australia “hate England”. His comments were quickly seized upon as examples of hyperbole gone mad and a reminder that Australia are an outfit whose aggression can push them over the line.
But more significantly, Australia have twin injury scares at the moment. Their captain, Steve Smith, is nursing a shoulder injury while pacer Josh Hazlewood has been forced to miss out a domestic game which was part of his preparation. Hazlewood is suffering from a side strain, a notoriously tricky injury to heal.
Hazlewood’s niggle is a reminder of how vulnerable Australia are if just one of their three fast bowlers breaks down. Hazlewood, as the leader of the attack, is key but so is Mitchell Starc, the expressman, and Pat Cummins, the tyro.
They are not blessed with much in reserve. Which team is? And Australia will be wary of how they rushed back fast bowlers in their home series against South Africa. Both Starc and Cummins have poor injury records and even if they start the series fresh, it would be amazing if both completed all outings.
What does this mean? Well, it puts huge pressure on getting those No 6 and 7 positions right. If a bowler goes down they might have to tear up plans. If they don’t, they might gamble on an all-out batter. Which adds to the workload of those injury-prone pacers. Catch 22.
England are 4 across the board. Don’t be surprised to see that shorten as it dawns on folks that Australia are not great shakes, either.
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