Tourists have a clearly defined identity and optimism, but still need to compete in a manner that earns Australia’s respect
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hen Rob Key named Brendon McCullum as England’s head coach in 2022, his quote in the official press release told supporters to “buckle up and get ready for the ride”. Now, with this hot-ticket Ashes series a few days from setting off in sun‑drenched Perth, the mix of fear and excitement among them has arguably never been greater.
The difference being that rollercoasters tend to stay on the rails, whereas England tours of Australia often career off them. No one is quite certain which way this one will play out, other than a broad agreement that Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood missing the first Test (at least) presents Ben Stokes and his tourists a golden opportunity.
Not that many locals are tipping England. The former Australia spinner Steve O’Keefe is an outlier, fancying the hosts will get “dusted” by a 3-2 scoreline – an “unthinkable call”, as per one headline. According to Jim Maxwell, the ABC’s veteran commentator: “A lot of Aussies are getting sick of crap English teams turning up here.”
