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The war of words before the Ashes is escalating further, with ex-England bowler Stuart Broad declaring that England will confront "arguably the weakest Australian team since 2010" on tour this season.

Warner's Confident Forecast Met With Doubt

Broad's assertion was in response to Warner – an Ashes foe of Broad’s – forecasting a clean sweep for the home side. "If the captain [Pat Cummins] doesn’t play, they might win one game," Warner commented.

Australia have not lost a men’s Ashes match at home since England’s series win in 2010-11. Their 5-0 win in the following series – following seven losses in their previous nine Tests – came before 4-0 Ashes triumphs in the 2017-18 and 2021-22 campaigns.

Team Doubt and Injury Worries for Australia

Yet, the No 1-ranked Test team, who have lost only one of their past 13 bilateral series, approach the forthcoming contest with questions over the makeup of their batting lineup and the health of Cummins, who is unlikely to feature in the first Test at the Perth stadium because of a back injury.

"It’s very, very difficult to triumph on Australian soil as an England side, or any side," Broad remarked during his podcast. "The Australians are strong favorites."

"The Aussies face the greatest expectations because they’re anticipated to prevail, they’re formidable in home conditions, but they’ve got question marks over their team and concerns over their skipper's condition. You wouldn’t be outlandish in believing – this isn't merely a view, it’s a fact – it’s probably the weakest Aussie lineup since 2010. Meanwhile, it's the strongest English team in over a decade. So those things match up to the fact that it’s going to be a brilliant contest."

Comparison to 2010-11 Series

"The Australians have remained highly stable for a long period of time that it was clear who was going to open the innings, who was going to bat, what bowlers there were, and they don’t have that. It closely resembles a comparable scenario to 2010-11 when England went and won there. The reality is the Aussies typically need to underperform to lose in Australia and England must excel. England have a great chance of being very good and Australia have a decent chance of being bad."

Team Dilemma for the Visitors

A major issue for England remains their selection at No 3, with Pope and Jacob Bethell contesting the spot. Alastair Cook, whose prolific scoring paved the way for the tourists’ series win over a decade past, thinks it would be "unusual" for Stokes' team to abandon Ollie Pope, who has been a regular at first drop for the past three seasons.

"I would bat Ollie Pope at number three," said Cook. "I think it’s quite an easy choice. You’ve got someone who’s been part of this buildup for several years. He has led the team, he’s played remarkable performances for England and he scores centuries. He understands how to score hundreds in first-class cricket. If they drop him now, I believe that alters the entire balance of the foundation they've established over the recent years."

Although praising Jacob Bethell as "a hugely gifted cricketer", Cook said: "It would represent a major risk [to pick him] because if that doesn’t work where do you move back to, a player you recently discarded? They have committed heavily in players such as Pope and [Zak] Crawley that it would seem such a strange thing to change it now."

Leadership Change and Commentary Crew

Pope has been replaced by Harry Brook as England’s vice-captain but, according to Cook, that will "ease the burden on" the Surrey right-hander.

"They’ve been proactive on that, considering if there is an injury to Ben Stokes, they have a player in Brook who has led the ODI team and it's evident that he appears well suited to it. That will just relieve Pope. I believe it won't weaken his position. I’m sure it will have hurt him because whenever you're removed from a leadership thing it isn't perfect, but I don’t think it diminishes his standing."

Cook will be in the host nation as part of the broadcast team of the series, and will be joined by former Ashes champions Steven Finn and Swann as on-the-ground pundits. The channel will offer a dedicated commentary stream but will operate a hybrid model, with commentators Alastair Eykyn and Rob Hatch to work off-site in the UK, while the trio provide co-commentary from Australia. Ebony Rainford-Brent is also part of the broadcast team working off-site, with the on-ground coverage to be hosted by Becky Ives.