England have been trailblazers and record-breakers in the last 13 months but history is against them as they look to get a faltering Ashes campaign back on track at Headingley.
Defeats at Edgbaston and Lord’s have left England drinking in the last chance saloon and their hopes of regaining the urn will be over at the earliest opportunity if they come off second best in Leeds.
Only Australia, on one occasion in the 1930s, have overturned a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 but this England side under captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum have often inverted accepted wisdom.
Tensions between the two teams are fraught after the controversial stumping of Jonny Bairstow at the home of cricket, even if both Stokes and Pat Cummins insisted a line has been drawn under the incident.
The hosts have rung the changes as fast bowlers Mark Wood and Chris Woakes and off-spinning all-rounder Moeen Ali are included for the injured Ollie Pope, with James Anderson and Josh Tongue rotated out. Cummins has delayed naming his XI but confirmed Todd Murphy will come in for the injured Nathan Lyon.
England’s ‘Bazballers’ out to emulate Bradman’s babes
England have been in this position before after two Tests and not once have they managed to upset the odds and claim a series victory over their arch rivals. There is a precedent as Australia have done it on one occasion in 1936-37, when they were captained by Don Bradman, whose blade dramatically reversed the fortunes of the sides. While England prevailed by thumping margins at Brisbane and Sydney, Bradman’s 270 at Melbourne, 212 at Adelaide and 169 back at Melbourne saw Australia snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Bradman’s 270 was rated by Wisden as the best Test innings of all time in 2001.
England have enjoyed themselves in Yorkshire over recent years, putting in some convincing displays against a variety of opposition. While Stokes’ heroics in 2019 will live longest in the memory, last summer’s outstanding chase against New Zealand and innings victories over India and Pakistan are not to be sniffed at. The West Indies were the last away team to win there, six years ago.
View from the dressing room
The England skipper had a lighthearted response to the Western Australian’s front page mock-up of him wearing a nappy and sucking a dummy under the headline ‘Cry Babies’.
Smith brings up another ton
Steve Smith will bring up his latest landmark this week as he becomes the 14th Australian to reach 100 Test caps. His first few appearances was as a cherubic leg-spinner and he was dubbed the next Shane Warne. But it soon became clear Smith was closer as an heir apparent to the great Bradman. Smith has had a special career, amassing 9,113 runs at 59.56 – only Bradman and Herbert Sutcliffe have a better average among batters with more than 50 Test innings. Smith’s 110 at Lord’s was his 12th Ashes hundred and only Bradman, with 19, has more. England will be praying they can keep him quiet this week.
Headingley hostility
If Australia were taken aback by the vitriol they attracted at Lord’s, where even the usually serene environment of the Long Room took a turn, then they can expect the volume to be turned up again in Leeds. It would be no surprise if the touring side had to draw straws to find out who takes up fielding duty in front of the Western Terrace, a notoriously raucous stand that will be eager to make its collective voice heard. Measures are being taken to ensure things do not cross a line, but England will hope the partisan atmosphere serves them well.
England bring the fire
A heaving schedule meant England always planned to rotate their bowling attack although there is some surprise it has taken until now to unleash Wood – who will be the fastest bowler on show at Headingley. Capable of bowling rockets at 96mph, Wood has had one or two niggles precluding his involvement but is firing on all cylinders and will be England’s major point of difference. The Durham quick routinely troubled Australia’s batters in the 2021-22 series Down Under and it is hoped he will have a similar impact this week. Harry Brook shuffles to three to replace Pope, with Bairstow also up two places to five, while Moeen and Woakes add ballast to the lower order at seven and eight respectively.
Turning the tide: Windies captain Powell cautiously optimistic about comeback in T20 series against England
Though facing an uphill task in their five-match T20 series against England, West Indies captain Rovman Powell is cautiously optimistic that they can produce a comeback to not only overturn a challenging 2-0 deficit but to go all the way in the series.
Powell’s sentiments served as a rallying cry of sorts as they stare down a must-win situation in the third encounter at the Darren Sammy Cricket Ground in St Lucia on Thursday to keep the series alive.
Still, Powell expressed confidence that the Caribbean setting, coupled with a few strategic changes, will bolster their fightback.
“St. Lucia is always a good place for us. It provides an opportunity for us to play good cricket, and the wicket is generally a good one, probably the best one in the Caribbean,” Powell said in a pre-game interview.
“The people of St Lucia always come out to support us, which is also good, and so we're looking forward to the next three games. Hopefully they can come out and support us, and we can deliver some good cricket,” he added.
After two tough matches in Barbados, which England won by eight wickets and seven wickets, respectively, Powell emphasized the significance of a renewed focus while also pointing to the need for every player to take personal accountability heading into the crucial contest.
“I think it’s a case of each guy reflecting on how things have gone so far from an individual perspective to see if we as individuals are bringing enough to the table, and then we try our best to try to put it together as a team. We have areas that definitely need work, but the guys are in good spirits. We had a good training session today, so we’re hoping to hit the ground running,” Powell explained.
St Lucia is not only familiar territory but also presents a new beginning, especially with the return of key pacer Alzarri Joseph from a two-match suspension.
Powell believes Joseph’s presence will fortify a bowling attack that has struggled in the opening games, as England easily chased down 182 and 158 in both games.
“If you should look at our bowling department, we really needed him in those games. So, it's important for him to come and hit the straps and hit the ground running. As a bowling group, we have areas where we need to control the power play because the middle overs generally take care of themselves, and he will come to bowl some of those overs in the backend,” he shared.
Despite the uphill battle, Powell cited the Caribbean side’s recent successes over the past 18 months as a reminder of their potential.
“It's a little uncomfortable being 2-0 to be honest; it's a position that we haven't found ourselves in in a long time, but it's an opportunity for us to show what we are made of as a T20 team,” Powell declared.
“England is a team that we have played quite often these days, and we have had good results against them. It's just unfortunate that Barbados wasn't good for us in terms of T20 cricket, but St Lucia provides a new opportunity for us to come out and play some good cricket,” the Jamaican reasoned.
Finally, Powell reiterated the importance of a victory on Thursday, not only to stay in the series but also to set the stage for an exhilarating weekend of cricket. The final two encounters are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
“It's a case of us getting back into the series; we just need a win, and once we get the win tomorrow, we can go from there. The guys are upbeat; even though we are 2-0 down, they are in a good frame of mind and ready to play good cricket,” the captain ended.
'England comes before anything' – Kane unhappy with Three Lions withdrawals
Harry Kane has questioned the number of players withdrawing from the latest England squad, insisting the national team "comes before anything".
England face Greece and the Republic of Ireland in their final two matches in Nations League Group B2 this week, also their last two games under interim head coach Lee Carsley before Thomas Tuchel takes over in January.
Eight players have withdrawn from Carsley's squad – Trent Alexander-Arnold, Cole Palmer, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Aaron Ramsdale and Levi Colwill.
In an interview with ITV Sport on Wednesday, Three Lions skipper Kane appeared to question the commitment of those dropping out.
"I think England comes before anything. England comes before club," Kane said.
"England is the most important thing you play as a professional footballer and Gareth [Southgate] was hot on that and he wasn't afraid to make decisions if, you know, that started to drift from certain players.
"It's a shame this week obviously. I think it's a tough period of the season, maybe that's been taken advantage of a little bit.
"I don't really like it if I'm totally honest. I think England comes before anything, any club situation."
England likely need to beat Greece – who claimed a 2-1 victory at Wembley Stadium last month – to have any chance of winning automatic promotion back to League A.
Should the Three Lions finish second, they will face a third-placed finisher from League A – potentially Poland, Belgium, Hungary or Serbia – in a promotion play-off tie in March.
Tilak's unbeaten ton helps India take lead against South Africa
Tilak Varma smashed an unbeaten 107 as India went 2-1 up in their T20I series against South Africa, claiming a nail-biting victory in Wednesday's third match in Centurion.
Following their surprise defeat in Sunday's second match, the tourists bounced back to earn their 10th win in their last 12 outings in the format, putting them on the brink of a series triumph.
Tilak was the star of the show as he produced comfortably the best score of his T20I career, surpassing a knock of 55 versus Bangladesh last year in some style, while only facing 56 balls.
He hit eight fours and seven maximums to set South Africa a target of 220 for victory, with Abhishek Sharma scoring 50 from 25 deliveries in support before Keshav Maharaj broke their partnership in the ninth over.
Despite six of India's batsmen scoring 18 runs or fewer and four – Sanju Samson (0), Suryakumar Yadav (1), Rinku Singh (8) and Axar Patel (1) – being limited to single figures, the damage had largely been done already.
South Africa were then dropped to 84-4 within their first 10 overs as Varun Chakravarthy claimed the crucial wickets of Reeza Hendricks (12) and Aiden Markram (29).
Heinrich Klaasen's incredible 54 off 17 balls dragged South Africa back into contention, and they required 18 runs from four deliveries in a grandstand finish, but Arshdeep Singh trapped the hosts' dangerman lbw to secure India's victory.
Having fallen short of their target by just 11 runs, the Proteas must now win Friday's fourth match to salvage a 2-2 draw from the series.
Data Debrief: Big-hitting India on the brink
Tilak recorded a strike rate of 191.07 while Abhishek was at 200.00 as their early partnership powered India towards victory.
India have now hit over 200 sixes in T20I matches this calendar year, only previously surpassing that figure in the format in one previous year – recording 289 in 2022.
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