England have played two Tests since the last Ashes series but already in India signs are emerging of the team that will challenge Australia at the end of 2025.
Principal among those is Ben Stokes who is said to be more committed to his role as England Test captain now than ever before, lifted by his recovery from knee surgery. He already appears extraordinarily fit and agile again.
Stokes only had his operation in November, which was more serious than let on at the time. In the aftermath it was unclear whether he would be fit enough to start this series, let alone think about Australia, but just eight weeks later is in good condition, as shown by two outstanding pieces of fielding: his diving run-out of Ravindra Jadeja in the first Test and his galloping and swooping catch in the deep of Shreyas Iyer in Vizag.
Before his surgery, the next Ashes tour felt a long way off for Stokes who has put his body through immense physical strain during his career, but barring any breakdown, his rigorous rehabilitation regime, which has included using his own strength and conditioning coach alongside the ECB’s staff, as well as giving up alcohol and cutting down on golf, is working.
Now he looks primed to lead England in Australia in 18 months’ time for the denouement of his project with Brendon McCullum. “He is stripping fit. He is putting in the work and he is moving so well,” said McCullum. “It is hard to believe it has only been eight weeks since he had an operation but such is the level of dedication he has put back in. He is desperate to lead this team and he wants to take this team to whatever level he can take it so he will do whatever he can to push himself. We are really happy with where he is at.”
Stokes himself judged his catch in the second Test as a moment when it became clear to him he was over the knee surgery. “When I was at extra cover I felt I was able to move a lot better, throwing the ball in off balance, so for me, before the surgery that is something I found very hard and didn’t have much confidence doing,” he said.
“I don’t think I would have been able to take that catch before this surgery but the way I was able to move, the freedom that I felt, picking the ball up off balance. I can’t remember the last time I had grass burns because I never dived because I was worried about my knee. I feel very good about my knee. Worked very hard to get to where I am now. Definitely ahead of schedule from when I went under the knife.”
But it is not just Stokes’s fitness that has crystalised matters. Ollie Pope has stepped into the leadership group on this tour and has been far more visibly involved in decision making than last summer when he was first appointed vice-captain. Stokes called him into the meeting with McCullum the day before the Test when they inspected the pitch and decided selection. Runs help of course and he needs to maintain the form he started the series with in Hyderabad over the longer term but the prospect of Pope going to Australia as vice-captain four years on from when he was humbled by their quicks, is now guaranteed.
Crawley is becoming a consistent Test opener
Zak Crawley has matured into a Test opener over the past six months, justifying the patience of Stokes and McCullum as well as living up to the promise spotted by many top-class ex-professionals who picked him out of the wreckage of the last Ashes tour as a prospect for the future.
Ricky Ponting said he showed the “mettle, he showed the fight, he showed the intent” of a genuine batting talent when he scored 77 in Sydney giving a glimpse of Bazball aggression before McCullum came along. Crawley has backed up his Ashes with two fifties in Vizag and is averaging 53 at strike rate of 85 since the start of last summer.
His defence and judgement of what to play has improved over that time and is the difference from the Crawley of 2022. A big hundred feels close in India, if he can capitalise on his starts. Suddenly he has become a wicket the opposition genuinely views as vital.
Rehan Ahmed is emerging as a possible first-choice spinner for England, and that is a major bonus with the Ashes in mind because touring finger spinners are rarely successful in Australia. In 2010-11, when England won 3-1, Graeme Swann still averaged a touch under 40. Ahmed’s wrist spin and his batting offer more of an all-round package than Jack Leach in Australia, if he continues his development.
Even James Anderson cannot be ruled out of another Ashes tour now. It seems incredible but his resurgence in the second Test after a poor summer proved his belief that he was just down on fitness and form against Australia rather than past it and ready for retirement. The Test specialists have a very well-managed diary now. After this tour, Anderson will not play again for England until July. There is a six-month break at the end of December until the 2025 summer too. Surely Anderson will not be on the next Ashes tour aged 43, but it is impossible to write off any aspect of this team right now.
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