Australia’s Ashes 2023 campaign got off to a spectacular start in Edgbaston with a victory in the first of the five Test matches. The game was a complete thriller, and the visitors prevailed by two wickets in the final hour of Day 5.
Due to the cool and collected batting of captain Cummins and Nathan Lyon, Australia was able to maintain their composure and successfully chase down a target of 281.
The pair put on one of the greatest Ashes partnerships ever, scoring 55 runs together for the ninth wicket.
Even with the victory, there are still some problems that the Australians need to resolve before the second Test, which will be played at Lord’s and begin on June 28.
Despite their victory in Birmingham, the visitors have three worries.
1. David Warner’s form
A protracted rough patch has put David Warner under a lot of scrutiny recently. However, Australia has supported the southpaw to regain form in England under the leadership of captain Pat Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald.
However, he hasn’t been able to find his form in the two Tests he has so far played, including the World Test Championship final, which Australia won last week.
Warner has only managed to score 89 runs in four innings since coming to the UK, with two of those runs coming from single digits.
He made a few starts but squandered them. If it were a newcomer, there wouldn’t be as much cause for concern, but Warner has played a lot of games in England and needs to record a big score at Lord’s to prove himself.
2 Marnus Labuschagne’s form
As far as Test cricket is concerned, Marnus Labuschagne is among the best batters in the world. His 3474 Test runs, at an average of 55 points per game, provide the data necessary to support that claim.
An in-depth examination of his statistics, however, paints a very different picture. He has played in 22 Tests in Australia, averaging over 70, but his performance outside of Australia hasn’t been up to par.
His typical age is under 40 in England. The same is true of the UAE and Sri Lanka, while in India, he has just passed the 40-year mark. Aside from Australia, he only has one Test ton.
At Edgbaston, he poked at deliveries that were well outside the off-stump, which did not make for particularly inspiring dismissals. Also gone was his No.
After the game, the No. 1 Test ranking. In order to defeat England at Lord’s, Australia will be hoping that Labuschagne will develop into his own player.
3. The Lord’s Pitch
The Lord’s surface, one of the best in England, will benefit England’s aggressive brand of cricket. Therefore, if Australia wants to win the Lord’s Test, they will have to overcome this obstacle.
The Australian bowlers will need to strike a balance between caution and aggression; this might prove to be key. Given how inconsistent they all were at Edgbaston, they will need Cummins, Hazlewood, and Boland to bowl better than they did there.
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