Former England captain Nasser Hussain believes that Australia are the "firm favourites" heading into the upcoming Ashes series. He pointed out England's dismal record Down Under, highlighting how difficult it is to win Tests on Australian soil. Notably, England haven't been able to record a Test win in Australia since 2011 and haven't won any of their last 15 matches.
Australia's domination at home
The last three Ashes series in Australia have all ended in the favour of the hosts by 5-0, 4-0 and 4-0 respectively. Hussain further remarked that The Ashes series generally defines England's captain and coaches.
“England say it won’t, but it will. This series usually defines England captains and coaches and this one will. You’ve got to add context. Australia are firm favourite. England have not won a single one of their last 15 Tests in Australia," Hussain said while speaking to The Athletic.
“That’s hard, cold facts. Fifteen Tests, drawn two, lost 13. It shows how hard it is to go to Australia and win. So if they win it down there for the first time since 2010-11 and before then, you have to go back to Mike Gatting in 1986-87, of course, it will define this team," he added.
Hussain predicts the upcoming series to be "special"
Hussain also feels that the upcoming Ashes series will be "special" as not only has the build-up for it been going for a very long time, but also because the England team has been planning for the assignment for years.
“This is going to be a special series because it does feel like the culmination for this regime. Not the end, but this is what they’ve built up to. They came in not long after an Ashes drubbing and the whole game plan for the last three and a half years has been about how to win in Australia," Hussain stated.
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Australia's squad for The Ashes: Steve Smith (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster.
England's squad for The Ashes: Ben Stokes (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Mark Wood.