England v Australia - Men - Ashes 2022 & 2023

Saturday 19th November - Venue: Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - Australia won the toss and decided to bat.

Australia 280-8, Smith 94, Labuschagne 58, Marsh 50, Rashid 3-57

England 208-8 (38.5 overs) Billings 71, Vince 60, Zampa 4-45, Starc 4-47
FOW - 0-1, 0-2, 34-3, 156-4, 168-5, 169-6, 169-7, 189-8, 197-9, 208-10

Australia win by 72 runs

Steve Smith made a high-class 94 as Australia beat England by 72 runs in the second one-day international to secure a series win with a game to spare.

The former captain shared stands of 101 and 90 with Marnus Labuschagne and Mitchell Marsh, who each made half-centuries, as the hosts posted 280-8 in Sydney.

That looked a very long way off for England when Starc removed Jason Roy and Dawid Malan in the first over of the chase to leave them 0-2.

It got worse for the tourists, who chose to rest captain Jos Buttler, when Josh Hazlewood - skippering Australia for the first time with Pat Cummins also rested - bowled Phil Salt.

A 122-run partnership between James Vince and Sam Billings brought England back into contention before four wickets in three overs, including three for just one run, put the home side firmly in control.

Starc ended with figures of 4-47 and Adam Zampa took 4-45 as England were eventually bowled out for 208 in 38.4 overs and Australia take an unassailable 2-0 lead into Tuesday's third and final ODI at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

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Steve Smith

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England 142 all out - Zampa 4-31 - (My hat is safe)

Australia win by 221 runs (DLS Method)

Travis Head and David Warner both hit centuries as Australia consigned England to their heaviest one-day international defeat in terms of runs in Melbourne.

The openers combined for the highest-ever ODI stand at the MCG (269) to help the hosts to 355-5, their largest ODI total against England, in an innings shortened to 48 overs due to rain.

Head blitzed a brilliant 152 from 130 balls and Warner made 106 from 102 deliveries as England were punished for a lacklustre bowling effort in their final game before returning home.

Set a Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) adjusted 364 to win, England never threatened to get close and were bowled out for 142 with Australia securing a 3-0 series sweep in comprehensive manner.

Adam Zampa took 4-31 as England were dismissed in 31.4 overs.

For both sides, attention now switches to red-ball cricket with Australia hosting West Indies in a two-Test series starting next Wednesday while England begin their three-match tour of Pakistan a day later.


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Agree, a lot of the players must have a bit of "Burn-out" after such a cluttered timetable this year and they still have 3 test matches to play before Christmas.

Jofra Archer: Ben Stokes wants England bowler 'fit and ready' for Ashes next summer

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Ben Stokes says he wants Jofra Archer to be "fit and ready" for the Ashes against Australia next summer.

Archer, 27, made his comeback after 16 months out for England Lions in this week's tour match against England.

With the match in Abu Dhabi heading for a draw, Friday's final day was cancelled in favour of a net session.

"It's great to see him back running with the ball in his hand. He's one of the superstars of the international game," Stokes told Sky Sports.

Archer has not played for England since March 2021 because of two rounds of elbow surgery and then a stress fracture of the back.

"He's just really excited to be back," added Test captain Stokes. "He's obviously had a long time off with injury and, as exciting as it is, we've got to be careful not to rush him back as we don't want to see Jofra Archer on the sidelines for this amount of [time] again.

"Hopefully we can have Jofra fit and ready, especially for the Ashes. That's something that we're looking at."

Archer agrees the Ashes, which start in June, is a target but is ready to be patient with his recovery so the injury does not reoccur.

"I'd rather take these last few months very seriously, more serious than probably all of the rehab, because once this phase goes right then it can set me up for the next three to four years injury-free," said Archer, who bowled nine overs on the opening day of the tour match and hit an unbeaten 20 when the Lions batted.

"I'm more than prepared to do some extra bowling and stuff in and around some other cricket, just to put my name in the hat [for the Ashes]."

Brendon McCullum believes his style of attacking cricket will win the Ashes and is therefore firm in his support for Zak Crawley to open the batting, despite his run of poor form.

Crawley averaged just 29.3 across five Tests in Pakistan and New Zealand but his job is to attack the new ball and while England are winning they will wait for him to come off again.

“Zak is one of those players who is going to be inconsistent because of the role he is asked to perform," McCullum said. "Our team is set up at the top of the order for Zak to play like that.

"The Australians, from my conversations with Ricky Ponting, respect him for the instinct and power he has at the top of the order and how destructive he can be."

What's the recent history of The Ashes?

After losing the first Ashes of the 21st Century 4-1 on Steve Waugh's last tour here, England won back the Ashes in memorable style in 2005, regained them in 2009, both times by margins of 2-1, retained them 3-0 in 2013, won them back by 3-2 in 2015 and rallied to square the series 2-2 four years ago even though they were unable to prevent the holders preserving their possession of the urn.

In the 1980s and 1990s England's home Ashes series were elongated to encompass six Tests but since the conclusion of Australia's 1997 tour they have been wisely reduced to five and that remains the format this time around.

There is one significant and controversial difference, however. Because of the 50-over World Cup in October which England will begin as defending champions, and the desire of the England and Wales Cricket Board to give its Hundred competition an August showcase, the marquee Test series will take part before high summer and only the final Test will be held after the state schools break up for the long holiday.

From The Ashes: David Gower on 'nightmare' 1989 series..By Stephan Shemilt, Chief cricket writer.

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When David Gower was asked to be interviewed about the 1989 Ashes, he replied: "of all my Ashes series, you want to talk about the worst one?"

A four-time winner - twice down under - Gower has played more Tests for England against Australia, 42, than all but Colin Cowdrey.

An elegant left-hander with a cover drive that could make a statue swoon, only the great Jack Hobbs made more runs for England against the Aussies than Gower's 3,269.

As captain in 1985, Gower led England to a 3-1 series win while making 732 runs in the process. He did so with an added bonus on offer.

"I was sponsored by Wiggins Teape, the stationary people," Gower tells BBC Sport. "Their MD happened to be an admirer of fine wines and spirits. I was a port lover.

"He said 'for every hundred you get in this series, I will give you a bottle of pre-War port'. I had three to be presented at the end of the summer - and it turned out to be three bottles from before the First World War. They are still in my cellar."

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Little did Gower, or anyone, know that 1985 was to be the last time England won a home Ashes series for 20 years, a desolate run that began when he was put back in charge for what turned out to be the calamitous 1989 contest.

"Whereas 1985 was a summer when things went very smoothly, in 1989 it started badly and it never got any better," says Gower.

"There were so many things that went on, on and off the field. It was nothing short of a nightmare."

England lost 4-0 and might have been beaten in all six Tests had it not rained. Australia started as huge underdogs, but a team containing rising stars Steve Waugh, Mark Taylor and Ian Healy were given a hard-nosed edge by captain Allan Border.

Australia used only 12 different players. England famously used 29.

"I look back on this with some sort of shame," says Gower. "The revolving doors that helped the team dissolve into nothing were whirring around ferociously."

Thumped by 210 runs in the first Test at Headingley, England arrived at Lord's looking to draw level.

After three days, England had given up a first-innings deficit of 242 and were 58-3 in their second innings, with Gower unbeaten at the close. This was the era of a Sunday rest day, and captain Gower was required to speak to the press on Saturday night.

Grilled by journalists - including his former England team-mate Phil Edmonds - on topics like the ends which he had decided to bowl his bowlers, Gower got up and left midway through the press conference.

Dressed in a grey blazer and clutching a can of beer, Gower announced "that's it boys, I'm off", left Lord's in a waiting cab and went to a theatre production of Anything Goes, where he was the guest of Sir Tim Rice.

"If anything went, I went," he says. "That theatre night became part of the poor history of that series.

"There aren't many England captains that have decided enough is enough, that the writers can make up their own headlines and I won't be helping them with them anymore.

"There was a lot of emotion within. If ever I was going to snap, it would probably have been then. Under those circumstances, a press conference was probably the wrong place to be. As far I was concerned, there was no point in staying."

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Gower spent the rest day at the exclusive Hurlingham Club doing interviews to make amends. He returned to Lord's on Monday and completed a century, but the Test was still lost by six wickets.

Even the return of the previously injured Ian Botham could not inspire England in a rain-affected drawn third Test at Edgbaston. By the time they got to Old Trafford for the fourth, the Ashes were slipping away and Gower's summer was about to get even worse.

"By the Saturday night at Manchester, the sub-plots were becoming major plots," says Gower.

It was revealed that 16 English players had signed up for a rebel tour of South Africa - banned from international sport because of Apartheid.

Not only that, but Gower had been captured by the TV cameras of News at 10 making the V sign behind his back to a heckler in the crowd.

"Ted Dexter, the chairman of selectors, phoned me and said we had problem and that I needed to speak to the press to apologise," says Gower.

"I said 'no, we do not. I have nothing to apologise for'. With everything else that was going on, I told Ted he could do whatever he wanted to do.

"It made me very angry that something as insignificant as that made it on to News at 10 and became yet another cudgel with which to beat me over the head with."

More was to come on the final morning of the match as Gower checked out of the Mottram Hall Hotel with the Ashes about to be sealed by the Australians.

"Halfway through the team dinner the night before the game, we had run out of the wine chosen by Micky Stewart, the team manager," he recalls.

"When we were asked if we would like more wine, I had a look at the list, which was outstanding. I looked at the Cheval Blanc, I can't remember which year, and asked slightly disingenuously if I could go for it at £180 a bottle.

"I got the nod of approval, so we ordered a couple of bottles, thinking 'if nothing else, at least the wine has been excellent'.

"The final morning of the game, when we're leaving the hotel, Micky had to look at the bill. He thought it was a bit expensive and spotted the details of the two bottles of Cheval Blanc.

"On top of everything else, he comes to me and says 'captain, do you think you could arrange for a bit of a whip round because the wine bill was a bit too much'.

"I will not repeat what I said to Micky."

The beaten captain drove away from Manchester feeling "low". Incredibly, Gower's next game was only four days later for his county Leicestershire - against the touring Australians.

He invited Border and David Boon to his house during the game. In a version of Sabrage - the act of opening a bottle of champagne with a sabre sword - Gower used an axe and nicked Border's face with a piece of flying glass.

Gower was sacked as captain at the end of the series and did not tour the West Indies the following winter. He did, however, return to the England team in time for the 1990-91 tour of Australia, which produced his most infamous Ashes moment.

England were 2-0 down, but Gower was in good form. He had top-scored in both innings of the first Test and made hundreds in each of the next two.

Still, he struggled with the strict regime of captain Graham Gooch, perhaps inspired by Gooch's close relationship with Border.

After three Tests, England were playing a tour game in Carrara on the Gold Coast. Just across the road, Tiger Moth aeroplanes were taking off on scenic tours of the beaches. Gower could not resist.

"I'd got out before lunch on day three and my mischievous side crept in. I was talking to Allan Lamb and said 'AJ, I might take one of those planes up, it looks like fun'. John Morris overheard the conversation and asked if he could come to - one of the worst sentences he spoke in his life," says Gower.

"We put the flying cap and goggles on. The pilot was called Bruce, who agreed to do a low-level run along the line of the pitch. The camera guys had long lenses and realised it must have been me."

When Gower got back to the hotel that night, he found he had been summoned to see team manager Stewart the following morning.

"I did apologise if I'd upset anyone, I just thought it was harmless fun," said Gower. "Things like professionalism, dedication and motivation were discussed.

"We had an hour-long decision where I pointed out I'd made the top score in Brisbane twice, a hundred in Melbourne and a hundred in Sydney. Why don't you ask the other 15 about their motivation?

"They were far too upset for their own good. At one stage it was rumoured they wanted to send us home, which would have been a complete over-reaction. The tour contract stated the maximum penalty was a £1,000 fine, which I paid on the spot."

After the Tiger Moth fuss, Gower's good form deserted him. He played the final two Tests of the series, but only played three more afterwards, against Pakistan in the summer of 1992.

He never made another Test hundred and retired after he was left out of the squad to tour India in the winter of 1992-93. When he called time on his career, Gower was England's leading run-scorer in Test cricket with 8,231.

"An Englishman or Australian with any ability at cricket would love to be involved in just the one Ashes Test," says Gower.

"Over that period of 15 years or so, it was a collection of extraordinary events that helped shape my life. It's something indelible in my heart and mind.

"Some of the best things that have happened to me happened in the course of playing cricket against Australia."

Ben Stokes says he will play full part in Ashes unless he 'can't walk'..By Stephan Shemilt, Chief cricket writer at Lord's.

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Captain Ben Stokes says the only way he will not take a full part in England's Ashes summer is if he "can't walk".

The 31-year-old had a cortisone injection in a persistent knee injury in March, before playing only two games for Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League.

Stokes will lead England in the one-off Test against Ireland on Thursday.

"I've given myself the best possible chance to play a big role, especially with the ball," he told BBC Sport.

Stokes did not bowl in England's last Test, a defeat by New Zealand in Wellington in February.

His time with Chennai was disrupted by a foot injury, after which he was left out of the side, but the all-rounder said he used his time in India to improve his chances of playing a full part with the ball for England.

"The knee is in a much better place than what it was in Wellington," he said.

"I've worked incredibly hard with the medical team in Chennai, who were liaising with the England guys.

"I've got myself into a place where I feel like I'm back at a 2019, 2020 space in terms of my body.

"I know I won't look back on this summer and regret any decisions that I had in the build-up period, because I've worked my nuts off.

"Unless I can't walk, I'll be on the field."

"This Ashes is about the journey that we've been on and will continue to be on. It's not going to be the end of me as a captain, me as a player or this team and the way we're trying to progress the game."

Stokes also dismissed any suggestion that England's aggressive method will have to be tempered against the high-quality Australian attack.

"That's the English mentality of turning something negative straight away," he said.

"Every team we've played against, it's been said 'it will be a big challenge to play against that team in this way'.

"This is the way we have found ourselves playing our best cricket. Every team we come up against is a challenge, but I find myself answering the same question against different opposition."

This will be Ireland's second Test at Lord's - in 2019 they bowled England out for 85 before themselves succumbing for only 38 in a 143-run loss.

Since then they have played only three Tests - all this year. They are still looking for their first ever Test win after six successive defeats.

Left-arm pace bowler Josh Little is not part of the Ireland squad after playing in the IPL final for Gujarat Titans on Monday. Little is being rested with the qualifying tournament for the 50-over World Cup beginning on 18 June in Zimbabwe.

"Our focus is to put in our best possible performance," said Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie.

"As a Test team, this is a pinnacle event for us. We're not sure when our next Test is, so we have to enjoy this.

"I have to support what's best for Josh. Of course I want him in my team, he's a brilliant bowler. I understand he has to rest up and focus on getting ready for the World Cup qualifier."

The Ashes: England spinner Jack Leach ruled out of Australia series..

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England spinner Jack Leach has been ruled out of the Ashes series against Australia with a stress fracture in his back.

The 31-year-old developed symptoms during the Test victory against Ireland at Lord's on Saturday, with a scan confirming the injury.

Leach has played in all 13 of England's Tests since Ben Stokes took over as captain, taking 45 wickets.

A replacement in the squad will be confirmed in due course.

As well as a significant dent in England's hopes, it is also a cruel personal blow for Leach who has overcome a series of health and injury issues in his England career.

Leach has Crohn's disease, a condition that causes inflammation of the digestive system, and in 2019 contracted gastroenteritis, which developed into sepsis, while on tour with England in New Zealand.

He also had to be substituted out of a Test last summer with a concussion.

Eighteen-year-old Rehan Ahmed was the last spinner other than Leach to play a Test for England, when both he and Leach featured in the third Test against Pakistan in December.

Leg-spinner Ahmed took 5-48 on debut.

Surrey's off-spinning all-rounder Will Jacks played the first two Tests of the same series and took 6-161 in his first appearance.

The men's Ashes begins on Friday 16th June at Edgbaston.


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Moeen Ali considering England approach to replace Jack Leach for Ashes..By Stephan Shemilt, Chief cricket writer.

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Moeen won the Indian Premier League last month with Chennai Super Kings

Moeen Ali is considering an approach from England to come out of Test retirement to play in the Ashes as a replacement for the injured Jack Leach.

BBC Sport understands Moeen, 35, was called by captain Ben Stokes after fellow spinner Leach was ruled out.

Moeen, 35, played 64 Tests before retiring prior to the last Ashes series in Australia in 2021.

If he decides to accept England's call, he would join the squad for the first Test at Edgbaston on 16 June.

Left-armer Leach, 31, was ruled out of the five-Test series on Sunday after a scan revealed a stress fracture in his back.

It is a significant blow to England. Leach is the only bowler to have played in all 13 Tests since captain Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum took charge last summer.

He looked set to play a significant role in the attack with doubts lingering over all-rounder Stokes' fitness to bowl.

Without him, England were left with a dearth of options. Leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed played one Test in the winter, but is just 18 years old, while Surrey's Will Jacks has two caps, but batting is a stronger suit than his off-spin. Leg-spinner Matt Parkinson cannot get in Lancashire's team and Liam Dawson has been out of Test cricket for six years.

Moeen, though, would be an ideal replacement - there is argument to suggest he is still the premier spinner in England, even is he has not played a red-ball game since his last Test in September 2021.

He has taken 195 Test wickets - only two England spinners have taken more - and his five hundreds would bring runs to the lower-order.

The Warwickshire man has previously rowed back from making a Test return. Last summer he said he was "unretired", only to opt against a place on the tour of Pakistan in December.

Moeen remains part of the England limited-overs set-up and was in the team that won the T20 World Cup in November.

Even if Moeen does decide to join the squad, one option for England in the first Test could be to field an all-pace attack, supplemented by Joe Root's part-time off-spin.

However, England have not won an Ashes Test without a frontline spinner in their side since 2001.


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