David Warner fell just before lunch as Australia reached 73 for two on the opening day of the World Test Championship final against India.

Warner, who has announced his plans to retire in January, battled through a tricky new-ball spell at the Kia Oval and had started to find his groove as he moved to 43.

There were flashes of the left-hander at his domineering best, not least when he piled into Umesh Yadav with four boundaries in an over, but his hopes of making a significant score came to a timid end.

All-rounder Shardul Thakur, selected ahead of the world’s number one ranked bowler Ravichandran Ashwin as India opted against a second spinner, was the man to make the breakthrough.

There was a touch of good fortune as Thakur dug one in short and down the leg-side, with Warner getting in an awkward position on the pull and brushing a glove through to the wicketkeeper.

Srikar Bharat made good ground, hurling himself to his left and snapping up the catch, to draw a rousing ovation from a crowd dominated by Indian supporters.

They had the started the day in good voice, skipper Rohit Sharma winning the toss and throwing the new ball to Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj.

The pace pair made life hard for the Australian openers, with Warner looking vulnerable as Shami worked him over from around the wicket. It was Usman Khawaja who was first to fall, banking a 10-ball duck and nicking Siraj to Bharat.

There was an early scare for new man Marnus Labuschagne, who dramatically dropped the bat in pain when Yadav rapped him on the left thumb with a sharp, lifting delivery.

England fans would be forgiven for having the Ashes on their minds as Labuschagne received treatment and popped a couple of painkillers, but he resumed his innings and even wore another blow to the hand to reach the interval on 26 not out.

Australia’s Scott Boland has been given the nod to take on India in this week’s World Test Championship, edging out Michael Neser.

Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the showpiece at the Kia Oval with a side injury, leaving Boland and Neser fighting for the final spot in Australia’s pace attack.

Boland held the edge having been named in the initial squad, but Neser’s strong form with Glamorgan in the LV= County Championship made him an intriguing option in English conditions.

Captain Pat Cummins did not leave the pair waiting to find out, though, confirming Boland’s selection on Tuesday morning.

The 34-year-old made a stunning introduction to international cricket during the 2021-22 Ashes series, taking six for seven in the Boxing Day Test the MCG to seal the series. He has already taken 28 wickets in seven Tests and averages a remarkable 13.42.

“Someone like Scotty, it’s just a really simple game-plan – you hit your good areas and you stay there all day and hopefully the ball will do the work for you,” Cummins told Australian reporters.

“He’s had a few bowls over here now and has looked good. But he looks good whenever he bowls. Scott is a seam bowler on a good length, but he just offers something slightly different to Joshy Hazlewood, and Starcy (Mitchell Starc). Being a left-hander is bit different.

“In the past here in England, because the ball does talk a little more, I’ve seen players get too caught up in trying to take wickets every ball because you’ve suddenly got the ball swinging and seaming.”

Australia are expected to revert to their preferred team balance after shifting the make-up of their XI in their most recent series in India.

That means five specialist batters, Cameron Green as all-rounder, Alex Carey behind the stumps, three fast bowlers and first-choice spinner Nathan Lyon.

Josh Tongue loved being part of England’s “chilled” environment but is not getting ahead of himself despite an Ashes call-up.

The Worcestershire seamer was a late addition to England’s Test squad for their four-day match with Ireland and ended up debuting at Lord’s with James Anderson and Ollie Robinson rested.

Tongue impressed throughout, hitting 91mph in an enforcer role on day one before he claimed five wickets in the second innings to put his name on the honours board.

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Saturday saw the 25-year-old selected in England’s 16-man group for the first two Tests against Australia and while he relished his time under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, he is eager to stay level-headed.

“I’m really proud. It’s a special moment for myself,” Togue reflected after his five for 66 helped England to a 10-wicket victory inside three days.

“Obviously I didn’t get any wickets in the first innings, so it was a bit of pressure took off me. I just enjoyed the moment.

“I just used my extra pace and bounce (in the aggressor role), I’m happy to do whatever the skipper needs.

“Being around this group, it’s a very exciting time to be an England cricketer and obviously supporter as well.

“I knew this environment would improve myself and my game.

“It’s not daunting. Everyone is very welcoming, Brendon is really nice. It’s very chilled, there is no pressure on you at all, (you) just go out and do the business and enjoy yourself.

“I (have) tried to stay as present as I can much as I can, try to impress and if I get that Ashes call it’s a bonus. I’m looking forward to being in the squad for the first two.”

Tongue has enjoyed quite the comeback during the past year after a previous 15-month absence from the game with a nerve problem in his shoulder saw him contemplate retirement.

After 11 County Championship wickets this season, including Australia’s Steve Smith in a game against Sussex, he received his Test bow and in the process helped his dad’s friend Tim Piper win £50,000 on a bet placed that Tongue would play red-ball cricket for England.

Stuart Broad, Ollie Pope and Joe Root have all spoken glowingly about how Tongue fitted seamlessly into the England set-up and his captain was impressed with the point of difference he proved to their bowling attack.

But Tongue will not join the majority of the group in Scotland this week for golf on their days off and will instead head back to Worcestershire, who will hope to convince the seamer to sign a new deal given his current terms expire at the end of this season.

He added: “I’m going to go back to Worcester, spend time with the family and get to Edgbaston (for June 12).

“Worcestershire do get me to do that (enforcer role) as well. I’m probably the only out-and-out fast bowler at Worcestershire so having me there is crucial, especially when it gets a bit flat and there isn’t much happening out there.

“I have been there since I was six years old, going through the age groups. I know that I have done them proud and I’m sure, hopefully, there’s more to come.

“I haven’t thought about (my future) at all yet. I just want to enjoy my cricket, because of my injury I just want to be out on the park.”

Australia pace bowler Josh Hazlewood will miss the World Test Championship final against India at the Kia Oval – little more than a week before the Ashes begins.

Hazlewood has been managing an Achilles issue as well as a side injury that flared up during the recent Indian Premier League, but Cricket Australia insists the 32-year-old will be fit for the start of this summer’s showdown with England at Edgbaston on June 16.

“Josh was very, very close to being given the green light but we are cognisant that our upcoming schedule means this is not a one-off Test match for us,” Australia chair of selectors George Bailey told cricket.com.au.

“This will give Josh an ideal preparation leading into Edgbaston. With six Test matches in a little over seven weeks we will need all of our fast bowling assets.”

Hazlewood has played just four Tests in the past three years due to a series of injuries but shared a stint of new-ball bowling with five-day skipper Pat Cummins during the team’s preparation in England.

He returned early from his recent spell in the IPL due to a side issue, having been ruled out of the preceding Test campaign in India with a recurrence of the Achilles problem he sustained in the final five-day match of the Australia summer.

Speaking on Saturday about the close proximity of the India decider, which starts on Wednesday, and the first Ashes Test, Hazlewood said: “It’s probably one or the other for me at this stage.

“Just being over here for the last week and bowling in England, it does feel a lot easier on the body compared to Australia or India where it can be hot, the wickets are really hard and you’ve got to bend your back to get something out of them.

“In England it feels like you can just take that couple of per cent off, bowl a bit within yourself and the wicket does enough for you.”

Michael Neser has joined the official 15-man Australia party, but Scott Boland is likely to partner Cummins and Mitchell Starc at the Oval.

Neser, who has been training with the Australia squad alongside another reserve quick bowler Sean Abbott, has been playing for Glamorgan in the LV= County Championship and taken 19 wickets at 25.63.

Australia coach Andrew McDonald said the tight turnaround between the WTC final and the five-Test Ashes series has to be taken into account in managing their fast bowlers.

McDonald said: “Definitely consideration for (the schedule) – we don’t want to go too far ahead.

“We’ve got the WTC final to play, which we are excited about, but on the back of that we have to quickly turn our attention to England and the Ashes.

“There are short turnarounds there. That’s nothing we’re not used to.

“So, there’ll always be considerations around management. I’d say there’d be some moving parts amongst the quicks.”

England started this eagerly-anticipated Ashes summer with a 10-wicket victory over Ireland in three days at Lord’s.

Ollie Pope’s 205 and a second Test century for Ben Duckett saw England declare on 524 for four and despite a spirited third-day display with the bat by Ireland, they were all out for 362 to set an easy target of 11 following their below-par 172 on day one.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at how much we learned from this one-off Test.

Josh gets Tongues wagging

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Josh Tongue passed his Ashes audition with five for 66 in Ireland’s second innings to put his name on the honours board and leave an impression on his captain. Ben Stokes revealed ahead of the four-day fixture that Tongue was selected due to his extra pace and he hit 91mph during an impressive first spell. Tongue, who came close to retiring from cricket during a 15-month absence from the game due to a nerve problem in his shoulder, eased between an enforcer role and pitching it up as England’s third seamer. With 11 County Championship wickets to his name, including a certain Steve Smith, he is now a genuine option for the Ashes after being included in the squad for the first two Tests.

Duckett set for a bucket full?

An England bucket hat featured regularly throughout this Test but fittingly it was Duckett who plugged the new must-buy item of the summer on England’s official Twitter account. Duckett wore the hat after his masterful 182 that saw him set a new record for the quickest Test 150 at Lord’s, beating Don Bradman’s effort in the 1930 Ashes series. Since his December recall, Duckett has scored 50 or more six times in six Tests. He cut, drove and flicked off his pads for boundaries all around the wicket to back up the 177 he hit for Nottinghamshire at Lord’s in April. After finally being given the chance to play his natural red-ball game in international cricket, the 28-year-old looks set for a key Ashes role.

Has Bazball peaked?

England rattled along at six runs an over on their way to 524 before they declared after tea on day two. Duckett and Pope scored 174 in the morning, but that was bettered in the afternoon with 178 runs plundered before captain Stokes ended the run-fest after 82.4 overs. If Harry Brook, Jonny Bairstow and the England skipper himself had batted for a significant amount of time, who knows what records could have fallen? While it was another excellent batting display for England, the asterisk on it will be Ireland’s one-paced attack. There is no doubt England’s achievement of scoring 500 on day one in Rawalpindi was a better feat and Pat Cummins and co will not provide so many freebies come June 16 at Edgbaston.

Under-cooked? That’s old skool!

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Stokes acknowledged after England’s 10-wicket victory that he knew when he declared after tea on day two that he would face questions over failing to let Brook, Bairstow and himself get time in the middle before the Ashes opener. It felt justified, especially for someone like Yorkshire batter Brook who enjoyed a phenomenal winter and even hit a maiden century in the Indian Premier League in April, only to be dropped after a string of ducks. But Stokes does not prescribe to that opinion and laughed off the “old skool” view his players need “game practice” given the volume of cricket they play. Maybe a fair point!

Prestige a Little lost

Josh Little’s name dominated the build-up from an Ireland perspective after the seamer was “rested” ahead of his nation’s 50-over World Cup qualification tournament later this month following his IPL exploits. Among a catalogue of reasons behind the decision, Cricket Ireland’s Richard Holdsworth worryingly admitted the Lord’s Test was a “special occasion but not a pinnacle event.” The rewards for Ireland qualifying for the World Cup are great but Little’s absence hurt a bowling attack lacking variation. With his stock high in franchise circles, Little may never play Test cricket.

Stuart Broad edged closer to adding his name to the Lord’s honours board but all-rounder Curtis Campher held up England’s charge in the afternoon session to guide Ireland to 162 for seven at tea.

Broad ripped through the Ireland top order during the first hour of the one-off Test with three wickets to reduce the tourists to 64 for four despite Paul Stirling’s entertaining knock of 30

When opener James McCollum edged behind soon after lunch to depart for 36 to give Broad a fourth scalp, Ireland were wobbling on 98 for five but Campher held firm.

Jack Leach grabbed his second scalp and Matthew Potts claimed a first Test wicket since August, but Campher’s unbeaten 32 saw Ireland make it through a second session.

England’s journey to Lord’s from their Kensington hotel had been delayed by five minutes due to Just Stop Oil protesters and enhanced security measures were put in place by the MCC to thwart any potential disruptions during the four-day Test.

With overcast conditions and a green wicket at the Home of Cricket, it was no surprise when Ben Stokes put Ireland into bat after he won the toss and Broad quickly set about trying to get his name on the honours board again.

In the absence of rested duo James Anderson and Ollie Robinson, the Nottinghamshire seamer produced a fine opening spell of three for 14 from five overs.

It did take Broad until the third over to make the breakthrough but Peter Moor, fresh from a century in the warm-up fixture at Essex last weekend, was pinned in front lbw for 10.

Broad’s next over produced even more drama with Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie out for a five-ball duck after he edged to second slip where Zak Crawley took an excellent low catch diving to his left.

Harry Tector followed his skipper back to the pavilion two balls later when he inexplicably flicked straight to Potts at leg slip but Broad was denied a hat-trick opportunity when an lbw decision against Stirling was overturned on review after ball-tracker showed it was missing leg stump.

It enabled Stirling to lead a mini-recovery for Ireland but his enterprising 30 was ended when his attempted sweep flicked off his glove and gave Jonny Bairstow a simple catch behind the stumps to help Leach get off the mark this summer.

Stirling had put on 45 for the fourth wicket with opener McCollum, who made it to lunch unbeaten on 29 but his pursuit of a maiden Test fifty ended early into the afternoon session.

Again it was the third over of Broad’s spell that did the trick, with McCollum squared up and only able to edge to Joe Root at first slip to depart for a hard-fought 36 off 108 deliveries.

Warm applause greeted Ireland’s hundred via a single from Lorcan Tucker, but the wicketkeeper became Leach’s second victim when he was hit on his front pad and a review adjudged the delivery to be clipping off-stump.

Campher and Andy McBrine tried to shift the momentum and take the attack to England, but Potts had the last laugh when the latter edged behind an 88.9mph delivery to Bairstow.

Debutant Josh Tongue continued to admirably back up the England attack and hit 91mph at one stage, but Campher survived his sharp bouncer and a concussion check to reach tea unbeaten.

England’s Test summer failed to get off to the best start after the team bus was delayed by five minutes on its way to Lord’s by Just Stop Oil protesters.

Jonny Bairstow posted a photo on his Instagram story on Thursday morning, which showed Just Stop Oil protesters and police officers in front of their team coach in the middle of a road in Kensington by England’s hotel.

Bairstow’s caption read: “If we’re a bit late, it’s not our fault.”

However, there was no delay to proceedings on the opening day of the one-off Test against Ireland with the four-day contest getting under way at 11am as planned.

Just Stop Oil protesters were able to disrupt the Gallagher Premiership final at Twickenham between Saracens and Sale last weekend.

Two men wearing Just Stop Oil T-shirts invaded the pitch midway through the first half and threw orange paint powder onto the field before being removed by security staff.

A similar incident occurred at the Crucible during the World Snooker Championship in April.

Robert Milkins’ match against Joe Perry was interrupted when a man wearing a Just Stop Oil T-shirt jumped on to table one and tipped orange powder over the cloth.

Amid the threat of potential protests this week at Lord’s, the MCC said it has enhanced its security measures in some areas for this match.

“We look forward to welcoming players and spectators to the first international Test match of the summer at Lord’s. Their safety and security is the highest priority for MCC,” an MCC spokesperson told the PA news agency.

“We have a number of ground regulations that help us achieve that; including not entering the playing area or demonstrating.

“Whilst protests would disrupt the game, we have a number of security measures in place, some visible, some less so to deter this. In some areas we have enhanced those existing provisions ahead of this summer’s schedule.”

England captain Ben Stokes has no concerns over his ability to bowl in this summer’s Ashes.

Stokes’ long-standing left knee issue caused him problems during February’s tour of New Zealand and his recent time at the Indian Premier League proved fruitless.

All-rounder Stokes played only twice for Chennai Super Kings and sent down just one over for 18 runs during his IPL stint but ahead of this week’s one-off Test with Ireland at Lord’s, the 31-year-old is confident he can have an impact when the Ashes begins on June 16.

He said: “Yeah, look the knee is in much better place than it was in Wellington.

“I’ve been over in India for the IPL and these last eight or nine weeks I know I have got myself in a position where I can’t say I regret anything.

“I have got myself into a place where I feel like in a 2019, 2020 space in terms of my own body and fitness. I have definitely given myself the best opportunity (to bowl this summer).

“We know what it is (the problem) and now it is about managing it.”

England head coach Brendon McCullum is confident James Anderson and Ollie Robinson will be fit for the first Ashes Test but has confirmed they will play no part against Ireland this week.

The five-match series against Australia begins on June 16 but England have fitness concerns over a number of their bowlers.

Robinson suffered an ankle issue for Sussex earlier this month and Anderson strained his groin while on Lancashire duty while injury-hit pair Jofra Archer and Olly Stone have experienced elbow and hamstring problems respectively already this summer.

England begin their eagerly anticipated summer with a four-day Test against Ireland at Lord’s on Thursday and while two of their key bowlers will miss out, they should be fine for the Ashes opener at Edgbaston.

“Yeah we’ve got a couple of niggles so we’re just monitoring those at the moment. I guess every team that goes into a series has got a couple of little things that you need to work through, but pretty confident we’ll have a good squad to be able to pick from,” McCullum insisted.

On Robinson and Anderson, he added: “For the first Ashes Test, I think they should be fit.

“They won’t be fit for this one against Ireland. We’ll just have to monitor it over this next sort of while, but we’ve got some great options right throughout the squad.

“When I first took over this job, people said there wasn’t much depth in English cricket and I disagree with that completely.

“I think there is an immense amount of depth and we’ve got plenty of good options throughout the squad.”

Wasim Khan, the International Cricket Council general manager, accepts the landscape of the sport has changed as he urged countries and franchise leagues to find a way to “coexist”.

Jason Roy last week became the first England player to cancel his national contract, an incremental deal worth between £60,000 and £70,000 per year, to pursue an opportunity in Major League Cricket in the United States, where he has reportedly been offered around £300,000 for two seasons.

There has been speculation about the Indian Premier League offering annual contracts while the relevance of bilateral cricket keeps cropping up as internationals are crammed into an already busy programme.

Khan admitted there is no putting the genie back in the bottle as the proliferation of domestic T20 competitions continues but he feels international cricket can live alongside these leagues.

“Obviously the way the schedule is structured now and the emergence of these leagues, there has to be a way for us to coexist,” said Khan, the former chief executive of Leicestershire and Pakistan.

“Nothing is going to be removed so we are going to have to coexist moving forward.”

The growing unease about the possibility of elite talent putting club before country in future hangs over cricket ahead of the final of the World Test Championship happening next week at the Kia Oval.

Khan, who expects “full crowds” for at least the first four days of the contest between India and Australia, thinks the format still holds some relevance and revealed the 12 full member nations have elected to keep hold of the World Test Championship for the next eight-year cycle.

“The members have signed up for the next eight years,” said Khan. “We’ve heard some of the top stars from around the world continually talking about the importance of Test cricket.

“We know that the emergence of these leagues does put pressure on the schedule but we’re confident that at least for the next eight years that continual context will be provided for red-ball cricket.

“It’s important we continue to find an opportunity to coexist, to ensure our schedules moving forward provides something for everybody.”

Ricky Ponting suggested earlier this month the ICC has a role to play in making sure players from smaller nations are well-remunerated in Test cricket so they do not go down the franchise route.

Khan confirmed the former Australia captain’s assertion the issue had been brought up in a Cricket Committee meeting but was taken no further.

“It was perhaps a misquote,” said Khan. “It was raised initially within the ICC Cricket Committee as a discussion point but there was certainly nothing taken forward around payments to players.”

Khan, though, believes it is up to the boards of individual countries how much they pay players, pointing out all full member nations will receive a substantial increase on previous earnings during the new rights cycle from 2024-27.

“The distributions the members will be receiving in the next cycle will be greater than what they received previously,” added Khan. “The payments they pay players is purely down to the members.

“If there are player associations there, they will certainly be negotiating with those, but where there’s not, it’s down to the boards – and particularly with the key players within those boards – to decide what the payment structure looks like moving forward.”

James Anderson is in bullish mood ahead of the Ashes, insisting England can hit a level “nobody in the world can cope with”.

As the elder statesman of English cricket Anderson tends to steer clear of pre-series mind games – leaving the needling to fellow seamers Stuart Broad and Ollie Robinson – but as he prepares to play in his ninth series against Australia, he cannot hide his optimism for the summer ahead.

A minor groin strain means Anderson looks set to sit out the first home Test of the year, against Ireland at Lord’s, leaving him to focus on the Ashes opener at Edgbaston on June 16.

Anderson has lifted the urn on four separate occasions, in 2009, 2010/11, 2013 and 2015, but has had some difficult experiences in recent years with injury and an underperforming team. In his last 10 outings against the old enemy he has lost eight and drawn two.

His long-time bowling partner Broad recently declared England’s 4-0 defeat Down Under in 2021/22 as ‘void’ due to the hangover of Covid-19 restrictions and, although Anderson makes light of that assessment, he strongly believes the current side are a completely different proposition.

“I get his point with the Covid stuff but, for me, I’ve voided the last three away series. I’ve lost four out of five, I think. That’s his coping strategy,” he said with a smile.

“I’m aware of what has happened, but I’ve played long enough to be able to park everything that’s gone before, good and bad, and focus on what’s about to come.

“I’m just excited about the way we’ve been playing. It’s about entertaining people and trying to enjoy ourselves while we do it. If you look at our team, if we play to the best of our ability with that mindset, I don’t think anyone can cope with us. If we do what we’ve been doing and play as well as we possibly can, I think nobody in the world can cope with it.”

Anderson’s confidence is built on firm foundations rather than blind optimism. Since head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes took over last summer, England have won 10 of their 12 Test matches, playing a brand of daring, innovative cricket that has ripped up several chapters of the old rule book.

Stokes’ utter commitment to the ethos, as a batting unit and a bowling group, is the driving force behind the reinvention of a team previously associated with conservative methods.

And Anderson, who has served under a host of England captains including the likes of Nasser Hussain, Michael Vaughan and Sir Andrew Strauss, has the highest possible praise for the all-rounder.

Speaking at the launch of Radox’s partnership with England cricket, he was asked if Stokes was the best of the lot. He took a long pause before answering: “Yeah. It is hard to say over a short period of time, but he’s had an amazing start.

“He’s a born leader. I think he is completely different from any captain I’ve ever played with before and I’ve really enjoyed it. The way he trains, whether it’s the gym or whether it’s catching or batting or bowling, he is the ultimate professional.”

“For me, it’s the finer details, not just on the field where his tactical nous has been spot on, but also his emotional intelligence off the field and how he talks to everyone in the group.”

Anderson admits with a grin to having “old man muscles” but, providing his current niggle does not get any worse, he is a shoo-in to take the new ball for the series opener in Birmingham. Yet with five Tests crammed into a window of less than seven weeks, he realises rotation is likely to be an important feature among the seam attacks on both sides.

“I think playing all five is a little bit optimistic, and not just for myself,” he said.

“If you said to any of the bowlers (they’ll play) three out of five, I think that’s probably more realistic, more sensible. If it’s four then great, but you’ve got to take it game by game.”

:: Jimmy Anderson was speaking at a partnership launch announcing Radox as an Official Partner of England Cricket.

James Anderson is set to be named in England’s first Test squad of the summer despite the groin injury that forced him out of action for Lancashire last week.

Alarm bells started ringing when the country’s record wicket-taker sat out the last three days of the LV= Insurance County Championship clash against Somerset, with the England and Wales Cricket Board confirming over the weekend that the seamer had a “mild strain to his right groin”.

England are due to to announce their group for the Test against Ireland on Tuesday morning and, although they will take no risks with Anderson’s fitness when it comes to team selection, the 40-year-old is expected to be included.

Anderson will continue to be assessed but a decision on his participation in the Lord’s curtain-raiser, which acts as England’s only competitive Ashes warm-up and and runs from June 1-4, will not be made until closer to the time.

Zak Crawley will also be hoping he retains the faith of a selection panel convened by director of cricket Rob Key. Former England all-rounder Luke Wright was involved for the first time, joining captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum.

Crawley’s place has been frequently scrutinised and a batting average of 27.60 across 33 Tests makes him vulnerable, but he has been given a long leash due to his high ceiling and ability to set a free-flowing tempo at the top of the order. An early season knock of 170 for Kent was testament to his up-side, but his lack of consistency comes through in his average of 38.88 in nine innings.

Stokes himself has been touted as a potential replacement at opener, a high-risk move that would represent a profound change of role for the skipper. There are lingering concerns over his preferred job as an all-rounder too though.

After his longstanding left knee injury flared up during February’s tour of New Zealand, Stokes spoke of his frustration at being unable to deliver as the side’s fourth seamer and his desperation to be back at full capacity in time for the Ashes.

But his time with Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League has proved trying, playing just twice for the franchise and sending down a solitary over at the cost of 18 runs. The 31-year-old subsequently picked up a toe problem and a further unspecified “setback” before being kept on the sidelines once available.

CSK have preferred another English all-rounder, Moeen Ali, due to his contribution as an off-spinner, but head coach Stephen Fleming has shed further light on the matter.

Speaking after his side’s defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday, the New Zealander suggested Stokes’ seamers were not currently an option and that he was instead being viewed as a specialist batter ahead of the final group-stage match.

“Ben’s ability to bowl overs at the moment is still a bit of a challenge, but he’s there as that batting cover,” said Fleming.

“But with Moeen bowling well in good conditions – we go to Delhi [next] which has been turning – we think the balance of the side has been right. We’re second on the table, so it’s not our style to chop and change just because we’ve had a loss where things didn’t go our way.”

Jonny Bairstow will make his return to the England set-up, almost 10 months on from breaking his leg in three places during a freak accident at a golf course. Bairstow was England’s star performer in 2022, at one stage smashing four centuries in five innings to give the new regime a thrilling, winning start.

Stokes and McCullum had both previously suggested that he would walk back into the side when fit, but there remains speculation over his role. With Harry Brook excelling since stepping into his fellow Yorkshireman’s boots at number five, he could be vying with Ben Foakes for the wicketkeeping gloves.

England would be reluctant to dispense with a man they deem to be the best pure gloveman in the world, and a steadying influence at number seven, and will be tempted to defer the final decision by taking both Foakes and Bairstow to Lord’s.

With Jofra Archer’s ongoing elbow complaint and Olly Stone’s hamstring problem taking them out of the equation, England’s pace unit should look familiar with Stuart Broad, Ollie Robinson and Mark Wood to the fore.

Durham quick Matthew Potts has taken 24 wickets at 22.50 in Division Two to push his name back into centre stage after failing to feature over the winter, while Chris Woakes could also get the call 14 months on from his last Test appearance.

The Warwickshire man missed the entire 2022 home season through injury and has yet to play since Stokes and McCullum took the reins, but he boasts a fine record in English conditions and would strengthen the lower-order batting.

Stuart Broad hopes Australia try to fight fire with fire by trying to adopt England's aggressive approach in the Ashes.

England have enjoyed a significant upturn in fortunes since Brendon McCullum was appointed Test head coach and Ben Stokes replaced Joe Root as captain.

An attacking philosophy enabled them to secure an unprecedented 3-0 away series whitewash of Pakistan after they beat New Zealand and South Africa on home soil, as well as India in a rearranged Test.

They also drew 1-1 in New Zealand, losing a thrilling second Test by one run after making the Black Caps follow-on.

Seamer Broad believes Australia could come unstuck if they try to score at a rapid rate in the battle for the urn.

He told the Daily Mail: "'It's going to be a slight clash of styles and I'm fascinated to see how their bowling attack will defend against us.

"And it will be interesting to see how their batters stay calm because we play so aggressively now. Will they be able stick to their game plans and bubbles when we're playing this style? That will be a test for them.

"I think it would be great for us if Australia try to take us on at our own game. If we can get them playing in a slightly different style they could make mistakes and that would be brilliant for us.

"Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja are all guys who like to bat time and accumulate so if we can nibble away at them and just get them thinking 'why are we not scoring quicker? Why are we not moving the game forward?'

"We leave Jack Leach's mid-on and mid-off in all the time and Stokesey basically says 'you're not having them back. Let them keep hitting you'.

"And he's probably got more caught mid-offs now than lbs, so it's playing on minds. I'd love Smith to dance down the track and sky one to mid-off early doors. That would be classic."

England were hammered 4-0 in the last Ashes series in Australia, but Broad has written that off as "void".

"Nothing was harsher than the last Ashes series," he said. "But in my mind I don't class that as a real Ashes. The definition of Ashes cricket is elite sport with lots of passion and players at the top of their game.

"Nothing about that series was high level performance because of the Covid restrictions. The training facilities, the travel, not being able to socialise. I've written it off as a void series."

Mark Wood has backed fellow England fast bowler Jofra Archer to be fit and ready for a role in this summer’s Ashes.

The pace pair have struggled with serious injury problems over the course of their careers – perhaps unsurprising given their shared ability to hit extreme speeds in excess of 95mph – but are hopeful of taking on Australia in the coming months.

Archer last played Test cricket more than two years ago, spending much of the intervening period battling with a longstanding elbow complaint, and reacted angrily to reports this week that he had recently been forced to undergo a minor procedure on the joint.

He took to Twitter to rebuke revelations that came at a “worrying and troubling time for a player” but he was cleared to play his second IPL game of the season on Saturday and remains in England’s thoughts for their hotly-anticipated series against Australia, which begins in June.

Wood, who is also in India with Lucknow Super Giants, is also hoping to be involved after being ruled out of the whole of last summer’s international programme and expects Archer to be ready too.

“I feel for Jofra actually and I can sympathise with him quite a bit there,” the Durham quick told Sky Sports News.

“You feel like you’re just getting back and then you have a little setback and things happen. The curve’s never in a straight line is it? You know that on the way back you’re going to have bumps along the way. But he’s a champion player and I’m sure he’ll come back and be a champion again.

“I think, reading between the lines, it sounds like it’s not a massive setback that he’s going to have. He has overcome bigger things and I’m sure that he will be ready for the Ashes.

“England aren’t going to be silly with things. They’re going to know they want him for that series and they’re going to be looking ahead. He’ll get great treatment there in Mumbai and England will look after him so that, come the Ashes, he will be mentally and physically ready.”

Wood was one of the few visiting players who enhanced his reputation during England’s humbling 4-0 defeat Down Under in 2021-22 and is sure it will be a much closer contest this time around.

“I think Australia are a world-class team and I think it will be a great series,” he said.

“This (England) team is capable of achieving great things and I wouldn’t want to put any marker on it and say we can’t do anything, or set the bar at any sort of level, because I think this team can really achieve great things.”

Joe Root is plotting to make "unbelievable memories" with England this year ahead of The Ashes and their Cricket World Cup title defence.

The former Test captain has eschewed red-ball cricket with Yorkshire in order to play a debut season in the white-ball Indian Premier League.

In a Rajasthan Royals side packed with talent such as fellow England man Jos Buttler and India's Ravichandran Ashwin, though, he is yet to play a game.

Root is unconcerned, however, seeing his time in the IPL as key to broadening his all-round game before two major contests later this year.

"When I was England captain, I didn't feel it was fair on the rest of the team for me to go and play, given what the [Test captaincy] role needed and what it deserved," he told Sky Sports News.

"Now I feel like there are more opportunities to do that without the responsibility, and I'm just trying to look to keep developing as a player. I love county cricket and I think it is so important for the English game.

"[But] looking ahead to the rest of the year, the chance to play white ball cricket out in India, ahead of a World Cup for England in these conditions as well, I think will benefit me hugely.

"You look at 2019 and how incredible that was with a World Cup and [The] Ashes. There are so many opportunities for players to do wonderful things and create unbelievable memories.

"They are the things that you play for, to be a part of some special memories and cool experiences and they certainly all lay ahead for us."

England will face Australia for the first time since Root stepped down from the captaincy, with successor Ben Stokes overseeing a dramatic turnaround in fortunes.

They will then return to India for the latest edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup, which they famously won in a dramatic Super Over finale against New Zealand in 2019.