Andrew Hughes talks us through the Australian XI that is expected to feature in next year's Ashes where the batting line-up is as strong as ever but contains gaps in the bowling department that England can exploit, after the retirements of the "irreplaceables" McGrath and Warne.

You can keep your Stanford pro-celebrity, grab-a million tournament and the handbags and heave-ho of the IPL, because there's one cricket event that dwarfs the rest. I'm talking of course, about the tussle between the oldest brothers in the Test playing family over a little brown urn. Just nine months to go before KP and RP stroll onto the Cardiff turf to commence hostilities and as you would expect from the web's premier betting site, there'll be regular Ashes related briefings throughout that time.

But while all the focus has been on the new England regime, this week we're going to be looking at the men in yellow and green. Later this month, they travel to India before entertaining the South Africans. It will be fascinating to see how they get on, because make no mistake; this is a team in transition. The last eighteen months have seen some new faces appearing in the Australian line-up and some fresh weaknesses too. So what will team Australia look like next summer?

Rock solid in the middle

The engine room of the Australian dreadnought is their middle order. Only India can claim to match them from three to six. Slated for his leadership style in some quarters, Ponting has had an indifferent year but nothing is likely to motivate him more than a chance to lay the ghosts of 2005 and he remains a formidable presence at number three. Hussey rolls on like a run making machine and Michael Clarke, groomed for captaincy, is a stronger, more mature cricketer than England fans remember. I'd expect Symonds to be back at number six because his omission from the squad for India seems a purely diplomatic one. Missing a team meeting for a spot of fishing may be silly, but it's not a sacking offence, unless that is, you are about to tour a country where you are likely to be a magnet for hostility. In short, the batting line-up England will face next summer is just as strong as that which ground them into the dust in 2006-07.

Opening Up

You might think this is a weak point, with Langer retired and Hayden on his last legs. You'd be wrong. Hayden is bound to want one more crack at the Poms, even if he decides to pack in the one-day stuff this year. And though Phil 'the shuffler' Jaques is a less than solid proposition, waiting in the wings is Shaun Marsh, son of Geoff and a prodigious talent. If you were looking for reasons to oppose the Aussies here, you'd be wasting your time.

Attack of the Pacemen

Last time we met, Australia had four world-class bowlers. The retirements of Warne and McGrath have halved their quality quotient. Brett Lee has stepped up and is possibly the best and certainly the fastest bowler in the world right now and Stuart Clark is a reliable foil. But where are the back-ups? Buck-toothed Mitchell Johnson is wayward; Shaun Tait has issues, as the Americans say and the latest seamers to get a crack are left-armer Doug Bollinger and the unknown Peter Siddle. See off Lee and Clark and you're laughing.

In A Spin

The most glaring weakness of all is in the spin-bowling department. The plan was for the likes of MacGill and Hogg to fill in whilst Cullen Bailey and Daniel Cullen made their way. But the old guys retired, both kinds of Cullen disappeared without trace and suddenly the selectors were contemplating a bare cupboard. They've tried Beau Casson and Cameron White, without much success. Reaching deeper into the barrel, they've come up with old timer Bryce McGain and Jason Krejza, an off-spinner with a first class bowling average of forty-five. For the first time in twenty years, England will go into an Ashes series with the better spinner.

Conclusions?

An ante post bet is always a slippery fish and it has historically been a risky business to underestimate the Australians. If McBain and Siddle turn out to be world-beaters, then the [1.7] on offer currently about an Aussie series win next summer would seem like a bargain. But there are enough question marks about the Aussies right now to make the [3.0] about an England win look rather tempting.

Comments (2)

1. Jack Kelleher | 16 September 2008

   Regardless of the present bowling inconsistencies of the Aussie's i believe they will still overwhelm the English bowling attack with their batting.
   Our only hope is the preparation for the first test is near perfect and we are mentally strong. The first test result will be paramount in England achieving anything in the next Ashes series.
   Taking note from the success of our olympians this year we really need to realise that investment in the right people long before an event is key.
   Preparation is key!

2. Andrew Hughes | 17 September 2008

   Thanks for your comments Jack, always appreciated.

   As someone who has regularly underestimated the Aussies in the past, I am wary of doing so now and there is every chance that the new faces will settle in. But until they do, I would say their bowling attack is weaker than ours at the moment.

   But their batting does indeed look formidable. And good preparation will certainly be vital. It has been a recurring problem in cricket (and other sports) that we tend not to look too far ahead. Ideally, we would already have our Ashes team in place. I'm not sure we can really say that is the case.

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