Bazball faces the ultimate test as England see their golden Ashes opportunity

WWhen Rob Key appointed Brendon McCullum as England head coach in 2022, his quote in the official press release told supporters to “buckle up and get ready for the ride”. With this popular Ashes series starting just days after kick-off in sun-drenched Perth, the mix of fear and excitement among them has probably never been greater.

The difference is that roller coasters tend to stay on track, while tours of Australia through England tend to go off. No one knows exactly which way this will go, other than the broad agreement that Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood missing the first Test (at least) presents Ben Stokes and his tourists with a golden opportunity.

Not that many locals tip England. Former Australian spinner Steve O’Keefe is an outlier, thinking the home side will be “dusted” by a 3-2 scoreline – an “unthinkable decision”, according to one headline. According to ABC’s veteran commentator Jim Maxwell, “A lot of Aussies are getting tired of English teams showing up here.”

If he is honest, Stokes will know deep down that his men should probably be defending the Ashes rather than taking on the tougher challenge of winning them back. Not because of the biblical rain in Manchester two years ago – as significant as that was – but the almost performatively loose way in which they started that drawn series. They only became serious when they were 2-0 down and were incensed by Jonny Bairstow’s whining at Lord’s.

One wonders what Australia’s view of England would have been if they had been so sharp from the start, or if they had closed out the chase against India in August for a 3-1 series win. As it is, with a recent record against their fellow “Big Three” nations of 15 Tests, five wins, eight defeats and zero series wins, the verdict here seems to be from a side lacking in substance and a little too pleased with themselves.

This is the tour to change that perception; to compete in a way that earns Australia’s respect. The combination of Perth’s resilience and a day-nighter in Brisbane makes for a tough start that could easily put England on a familiar course. But one thing that can be said with a reasonable degree of certainty is that this is a different side in terms of vision and approach.

The origin of this lay in the 4-0 defeat four years ago. A dismal journey, England were mentally dragged down by pandemic restrictions off the field and, with a Heath Robinson batting line-up and a largely fast-medium attack, destroyed on it. Ashley Giles, then director of England men’s cricket, insisted that mass redundancies would solve little because the domestic game would “set future leaders up to fail”.

But while they are yet to score a decisive victory in the series – despite wins in Pakistan and New Zealand – Stokes and McCullum have largely undermined that prediction so far. A win/loss ratio of 25 to 14 since then (shaved until 10:12 when Stokes was on the park) represents a significant increase from the last run of one win in 17 that led to Chris Silverwood being ousted as head coach and Joe Root stepping down as captain.

That view of the shortcomings of the provincial game can be shared to a certain extent, with qualities now predominant in selection. But the broader diagnosis of Giles’ replacement, Key, differed. There was, he believed, no shortage of talent, but rather a collective build-up of negativity that was stifling the players. With an instinctive, aggressive new captain in Stokes, he wanted a head coach who would breathe positivity through the squad at gunpoint. That’s why McCullum.

The first year of the project consisted mainly of three elements: expanding the minds of England’s batsmen to discover the true limits of what was possible; support them with a longer rope; and wringing the last drops of magic out of Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson. Stokes, who had taken time out a year earlier for mental health reasons, also brought new ideas to the field.

The shift in gear was palpable, with England racing along at a pioneering pace of 4.76 runs per over, winning four consecutive chases of over 250 runs and winning 10 of the first 12 under the new regime. The fast bowlers had less time to put their feet up, but a much wider canvas on which to paint 20 wickets, evidenced by a remarkable victory in Rawalpindi in late 2022 – the start of a historic 3-0 sweep – on a pitch sleepier than Princess Aurora.

There were signs, however, that it might have gone to their heads, a one-point defeat in New Zealand that winter, only the fourth time a side had lost after forcing the follow-on. Until they came into action midway through the Ashes the following summer, they tried too hard to show how relaxed they were: they prepared with a golf trip to Scotland, declared on the opening day at Edgbaston and threw away wickets at Lord’s despite Nathan Lyon’s injury. Stokes shying away from overdue knee surgery last winter was another misstep.

While not exactly unprecedented, the 4-1 defeat in India in early 2024 produced the first signs of a team now looking to upgrade. The Bairstow versus Ben Foakes debate ended for good, with both men dropped in favor of the emerging talent of Jamie Smith, while the bowling attack was felt to be in need of an overhaul.

Ollie Robinson was seen as too soft – great numbers trumped by fitness issues – while Jack Leach made way for Shoaib Bashir. The most controversial call was to tell Anderson to retire. Not that the numbers in his final year, 19 wickets at 43, or his age, about to turn 42, should have made it so. McCullum simply longed for more pace and younger legs, while Bashir’s overspin and bounce was considered more likely in Australia (a belief that may begin to wobble as the starting line approaches).

Results have been up and down since then, with West Indies and Sri Lanka comfortably dealt with at home, before a 2-1 defeat in Pakistan – their second series loss – and a 2-1 win in New Zealand. The 2-2 draw with India this year was the draw that got away, with them coming within 73 runs after bowling out 374 at the Oval, three wickets behind, but a collapse against a swinging older ball meant they lost by six.

But there are promising signs: the emergence of Gus Atkinson and Brydon Carse, and the return of Jofra Archer from injury. Ben Duckett has become the leading opener in Test cricket – or at least partner Yashasvi Jaiswal in a fantasy World XI. Smith has looked at the way they were born, while Root and Harry Brook were alien. Stokes’ return as a true all-rounder is perhaps the biggest plus of all.

As well as poking fun at some of their more outlandish comments, or that needlessly petulant ending to the Old Trafford Test in July, critics point to their need for flat pitches. This has some merit, not least their difficulties on spinning tracks. As Duckett recently admitted, they’re trying to become more nuanced. But it also ignores victories on tough surfaces such as Headingley in 2023 or Wellington last winter, when Brook hit a spellbinding century on a greentop with 15 wickets falling on the first day.

There are no guarantees in a tough country like Australia, but for the first time since victory in 2010-11, England have arrived with a clearly defined identity, some real fast bowlers and optimism, not fatalism. Time, as Key would put it, to buckle up again.