Will England’s relaxed Ashes build-up come back to bite them?

3 months ago 22

Opinion

November 8, 2025 — 7.00pm

The English have finally disembarked on the great southern shore, but are they ready to take on the old enemy in the rigours of Test match cricket?

The route has been circuitous. The idea of a white ball frolic across the ditch might, prima facie, seem like the least appropriate preparation for a clash of the titans scheduled across 47 days of which 20 are scheduled playing days and nights. Head coach Brendon McCullum and Co have made a few bob in New Zealand, smacked a few sixes and lost all three matches, but what the heck.

Firstly, let’s examine the value of the 50 over matches played at Mount Maunganui, Hamilton and Wellington, all won by New Zealand.

In game one, six of the top seven make single figures, but hallelujah as Harry Brook hits 135 out of 223. Quick Brydon Carse gets 3-45 off 10. Test regulars Mark Wood and Jofra Archer don’t play.

In game two, the top order contributes very little. Seam bowling all-rounder Jamie Overton top scores at No.8 with 42 from a total of 175. Archer gets in his 10 overs quota taking a useful 3-23 as England lose in 34 overs.

By the third match, Overton again top scores with 68 from a total of 222. New Zealand win by two wickets with Overton the best contributor again with the ball, taking 2-32. Archer goes for 53 off his 10. Carse takes 1-60 off his full quota. Wood doesn’t play.

Harry Brook and Jofra Archer in New Zealand last month.

The first goal of any team once they step on the field is to win, not just get “some work in”. Win fast, win slow, win medium paced or win ugly, win with replacement players, but just get one more run than the opposition.

In the post-match review it really doesn’t matter who did what, who was flawless, who made mistakes, who followed the match plan, etc. “Winning is not everything, it’s the only thing,” according to UCLA football coach Red Sanders.

OK that’s a bit of a sidestep from three one-dayers in the land of the long white cloud, but no matter what England are trying to do in preparing for the Ashes, winning is always going to be more useful than getting beaten while not getting time at the crease.

The bowlers had limited time on their feet and weren’t particularly successful. Ten overs per bowler would equate to about halfway through the first day of a Test. The workloads aren’t piling up to five-day cricket resilience, but the contemporary methods of wrapping bowlers in cotton wool, resting at the first signs of fatigue or soreness and allowing for training sessions to harden bodies rather than trust fitness built in the match crucible is not limited to just England. The medical team must be in a continuous state of breath-holding when Archer and Wood turn at the top of their run.

Jofra Archer arriving with the England team in Perth.

So, workloads low, skills blunt, winning feeling zilch leaving NZ. The next phase of operation “Regain the Ashes” is a three-day centre wicket excursion to Lilac Hill, delightful home of the Midland-Guildford Cricket Club and venue for the former tour opening match versus an Invitational XI of local WA players, a few invited Test hopefuls and an ex-legend like Dennis Lillee.

But this time the England Second XI Lions are the opposition. I’m not sure what format McCullum and captain Ben Stokes will prefer but I can guarantee the level of competition will be modest. If Ben Duckett nicks off first ball will they let him stay at the crease or chunter off for a net session? Will they make players retire after a 50 or let them play long Test match-style innings? Will Bazball be proscribed if too many balls disappear into the Swan River?

It is so hard to chisel genuine competitive instinct into these style of matches, and to add to the algorithm, the pitch at Caversham plays a lot lower and slower than the Harvey River Clay at Optus Stadium, venue of the first Test.

Perth has been through a cooler, wetter than normal start to spring so that may mirror some temperate Kiwi weather, whereas normally the tourists could be met with a dusty, eyeball-searing easterly dragging some 40 plus degrees of hot air across the WACA. The third week of the month is forecast to be quite moderate.

The medical team must be in a continuous state of breath-holding when Archer and Wood turn at the top of their run.

Most of that is the downside stuff. The upside is that in many previous tours going back over 40 years England have played pre-Test tour matches against the states and strong invitational XIs and they still haven’t been able to claim the urn. The summer of 1986/7 was the exception that proves the rule after a calamitous run of underwhelming performances in those early outings.

The broad cry from home and visiting pundits has been critical of England’s lack of rigorous preparation, but maybe there is method in the madness. In this era of 50- and 20-over cricket dominating screens and playing schedules, try to use those plentiful body- and mind-friendly games for a softer advantage. I can see a silhouette of logic when applying white ball prep to the batting.

England may feel they are best when attacking with the bat at all costs, and they have some seriously good limited-overs batsmen, but the corollary is much more difficult to flip to the bowling – where explosive pace still requires a platform of resilience and repeatability if it is to dominate long enough to win a series over five Tests on hard, unforgiving surfaces.

Have England put most of their winning eggs in the first Test basket? Their preparation looks focused on the short term. If they can best Australia in Perth the equation changes dramatically in their favour. The proof of this preparation pudding is about to be tasted, the cricket produced promises to be fascinating.