Visitors have their strongest Ashes squad in years but face an Australian team brimming with experience
Age 32 Caps 71 Captain/right-arm fast/right-hand bat
While technically not in the squad for the first Test while recovering from a back injury, Cummins remains captain in the full-time sense, and will still go to Perth with the coaching staff. Leadership aside, he recently passed 300 wickets while averaging 22.10: only Glenn McGrath, Curtly Ambrose, Malcolm Marshall and Kagiso Rabada have taken more for less. Pace and movement create his ability to remove set batters. England will hope he stays sore.
Age 36 Caps 119 Vice-captain/right‑hand bat/right-arm leg-spin
Etched into English minds for his run-hunger from 2015 to 2019, when his series tallies topped 500, then 600, then 700, Smith’s returns have been modest in his past two Ashes, averaging in the 30s. The machine got back into gear last season against India, meaning so much depends on whether England can jam it up again. The alternative could be death by a thousand tucks, or by his recent more expansive off-side play. Smith will also captain when Cummins cannot.
