England bowler Ollie Robinson believes his side will “stick one on” Australia and “comfortably” win this summer’s Ashes series.
England were thrashed 4-0 in Australia last winter in Robinson’s first experience of the series, with the heavy defeat prompting a wide-reaching review of the English game.
However, the side have since been transformed under the leadership of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, winning 10 of their first 11 matches under the new captain and head coach.
A strong Australian side will travel north with optimism they can win a first Ashes series on English soil since 2001.
But Robinson is confident that a rejuvenated England can win back the urn.
“I think the cricket we’re playing at the moment makes it such an exciting time to play them,” Robinson, who had previously suggested Australia would get a “good hiding”, said at Hove ahead of the start of Sussex’s county summer. “We’ve been dominating teams in all conditions for 12 months now.
“In England we dominated, in Pakistan we dominated and in New Zealand we played most of the cricket for those nine days and lost on the last day because we probably weren’t quite there. But I think the way we’re playing cricket at the moment we feel like we can really stick one on them and win the series comfortably.”
Robinson featured in four Tests on his first tour of Australia after making his debut during the previous home English summer, with the skilful seamer suprisingly backed to lead England’s attack in the opening encounter in Brisbane ahead of senior colleagues James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
While his returns were good, with the 29-year-old able to consistently trouble the home batters, Robinson’s fitness was heavily scrutinised.
Then-England bowling coach Jon Lewis – a close mentor for the bowler – saying that he would “need to be a fitter bowler” to consistently thrive at Test level.
Robinson hopes to have the chance to put things right this summer.
“There’s definitely a desire there still, a hunger to put it right,” Robinson explained. “I felt when I got back from that trip I didn’t leave it all out there and I’d let myself down and the side down a little bit.
“So it’s definitely something I want to put right and there’s a few fellas in that position as well. So there’s a lot of hungry boys this summer to beat the Aussies again.”
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