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The war of words before the Ashes is escalating further, with ex-England bowler Stuart Broad stating that the English side will confront "probably the worst Australian team since 2010" on tour this season.

David Warner's Bold Prediction Answered by Doubt

Broad's assertion was in response to David Warner – a long-time Ashes rival – forecasting a 4-0 victory for the home side. "If the captain [Pat Cummins] doesn’t play, they might win one game," Warner said.

Australia have not lost a Ashes match at home after England's series win in 2010-11. Their 5-0 win in the following series – on the back of seven losses in their last nine matches – was followed by 4-0 Ashes triumphs in the 2017-18 and 2021-22 campaigns.

Squad Doubt and Injury Concerns for the Hosts

However, the top-ranked Test team, who have lost only one of their last thirteen series, approach the forthcoming contest with uncertainty over the composition of their top order and the health of Pat Cummins, who is unlikely to feature in the opening match at Perth because of a back injury.

"It's extremely challenging to win in Australia as an England side, or any side," said Broad on his podcast. "The Australians are massive favourites."

"The Aussies face the greatest expectations because they’re expected to win, they’re brilliant at home, but they’ve got question marks over their team and question marks over their captain’s fitness. You wouldn’t be outlandish in believing – this isn't merely a view, it's a reality – it’s probably the worst Australian team since the 2010 era. Meanwhile, it's the strongest English team in over a decade. These factors match up to the reality that it’s going to be a thrilling Ashes series."

Comparison to 2010-11 Series

"Australia have been so consistent for a long period of time that you just knew who was going to open the innings, who was going to bat, what bowlers there were, and they lack that certainty now. It closely resembles a similar situation to 2010-11 when England traveled and emerged victorious. The reality is Australia generally have to be bad to lose in Australia and England must excel. The English have a solid opportunity of performing exceptionally and the Australians face a real possibility of being bad."

Selection Decision for England

A key question for the English camp remains their selection at No 3, with Pope and Bethell vying for the role. Alastair Cook, whose 766 runs set up the visitors' series victory 15 years ago, believes it would be "unusual" for Stokes' team to move away from Pope, who has been a consistent at first drop for the last three years.

"I'd select Pope at number three," Cook stated. "I think it’s quite an easy decision. You’ve got someone who’s been involved in this preparation for three or four years. He has led the team, he’s played some extraordinary innings for the national side and he’s a hundred-maker. He knows how to make big scores in the domestic game. If they drop him now, I believe that changes the whole dynamic of the foundation they've established over the last few years."

While hailing Bethell as "an incredibly talented player", Cook added: "It would represent a big, big gamble [to pick him] because should it fail what is the fallback option, someone you’ve just got rid of? They’ve invested so much in people like Ollie Pope and [Crawley that it would be such a strange thing to make a switch at this stage."

Captaincy Change and Broadcast Team

Pope has been succeeded by Brook as England’s vice-captain but, as per Cook, that will "take the pressure off" the Surrey batsman.

"The management has acted decisively on that, thinking in case of an injury to Ben Stokes, they have a player in Harry Brook who has taken the [captaincy of the] one-day side and it's evident that he seems to be well suited to it. That will just take the pressure off. I don’t think weaken his position. I’m sure it will have hurt him because anytime you get taken off a leadership thing it wouldn’t be ideal, but I doubt it diminishes his standing."

Alastair Cook will be in Australia as part of TNT’s coverage of the Ashes, and will be accompanied by fellow Ashes winners Steven Finn and Swann as on-the-ground pundits. The channel will provide its own audio feed but will use a mixed approach, with play-by-play announcers Eykyn and Hatch based remotely in the United Kingdom, while the trio provide co-commentary from on location. Rainford-Brent is also part of the commentary team operating remotely, with the on-ground coverage to be presented by Ives.