Ashes 2025 Watch | Australia vs England, Series Preview: The Middle Order

Joe Root versus Steven Smith. Harry Brook versus Travis Head.

Two mouthwatering head-to-heads that will undoubtedly captivate fans from Test to Test.

Add to that a showdown involving two all-rounders, one grizzled and the other with a point to prove, the ‘engine rooms’ of the batting units are set to shape the teams’ fortunes out in the middle.

Capping it off will be a face-off between two soft-spoken, steely glovemen in a rich vein of form with the bat, both of whom are also adept at playing baby-sitter for the tailenders.

This week, Cricket Paper writer Mohan Harihar explores the middle orders of both Australia and England.

Australia, Root’s final assignment

Only Sachin Tendulkar (15,921) awaits Joe Root in the list of all-time Test run scorers, who now sits on 13,543 runs. 

But for someone who, by his own admission, remains detached from personal milestones (in the last few years at least), Root’s final boss is the old enemy on their home turf.

Since the start of 2021, Root has amassed 5,720 runs at an average of 56.63, with 22 of his 39 hundreds coming in this period, including in India, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean.

No batter in the 2020s has scored more Test runs than Root (6,184); the next best is Ollie Pope with 3,443 runs to his name. 

And not even Steven Smith, who is third on the list with 3,313 runs, has kept up with England’s number four.

However, among countries where Root has played four or more matches, Australia is the only arena in which he has yet to register a hundred. 

Averaging 35.68 from 14 Tests, with a best of 89 across nine 50s, Root’s returns Down Under are modest; perhaps these correlate with England’s ghastly scorelines over the last three tours. 

Aside from any technical deficiencies high-class bowlers with a keen eye are able to spot, Root’s past outings in Australia have been beset by off-field drama, captaincy conundrums and paper-thin support.

In 2013/2014, Root’s first, a generational England side, was on its last legs. 

Amidst controversy surrounding Kevin Pietersen and the mid-series bombshell retirement of Graeme Swann, England were caught in the crosshairs of a rampant home side and a moustachioed Mitchell Johnson out for blood.

Four years later and now captain, Root had a major setback to his plans when Ben Stokes was ruled out of the tour at the last hour following a physical altercation outside a nightclub in Bristol in September 2017. 

In 2021/2022, Root again led a ravaged team to Australia. At a time when Test series were drip-fed to the public and tours were riddled with health hazards on account of COVID-19, competing in Australia went from being improbable to near-impossible.

Little to no support came from the rest of a timid, confused and outclassed outfit that was all too familiar with losing.

The end of 2025 holds something unfamiliar for Root. Relieved of the captaincy and just ‘one of the boys’, he has the comfort of knowing he has allies for the cause. 

A prickly opening partnership in Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett. A temperamental but dangerous number three in Ollie Pope. The freakish talents of Yorkshire teammate, Harry Brook. The all-round flair of the captain. And the counterattacking prowess of young Jamie Smith.

After a long, long time, the cards may be in his favour. Can Root finally have that one blockbuster series in Australia?

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Harry Brook’s meteoric rise reaches its sternest test yet

When Kevin Pietersen burst onto the Test scene in 2005, fans fumbled to find suitable words to describe what they were seeing. 

Extravagant flamingo shots and baseball-esque swats down the ground against Glenn McGrath were not on people’s bingo cards, yet that audacity, bordering on arrogance, was the exact antidote England needed to nullify the might of the Aussies.

In Harry Brook, England may be witnessing the second coming of Pietersen, but with a few new nifty tricks up his sleeve.

Only 26, he already has 10 centuries in 50 innings. The last time a batter achieved such a run in the last 70 years was West Indies’ Sir Clyde Walcott in 1955.

Brook’s value to this England side comes from his ability to seize the initiative no matter the situation of the game.

If that means charging Jasprit Bumrah with England 30-3, so be it. If that means hooking Pat Cummins with the leg-side field set deep, so be it. 

And if that means lapping bowlers for six five minutes before the close of play, so be it.

A selection reflective of Stokes’ bold vision for his team, Brook embodies Bazball in its purest form, both in attitude and out in the middle. But in doing so, his excesses draw the ire of critics when it goes wrong.

His most probing examinations will come against two lines of attack in conditions he is not used to.

First is the nip-backer, something that has seen him come unstuck on occasion, and an angle of attack the likes of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Scott Boland clock in for from 9 to 5.  

The second is the sustained short-ball ploy on fast pitches and on bigger playing fields. 

In his short career, he has compulsively pulled balls from outside off-stump – bat path going from low to high – and offered simple catches to mid-wicket and square-leg. 

This was exploited with moderate success on flat pitches the last time Brook faced Cummins and company during the 2023 Ashes series, and again by Jasprit Bumrah in the recently concluded series against India. 

‘Happy hookers’ have tasted immense success on Australian soil before; Pietersen himself made it a point to become progressively more belligerent the quicker and shorter the ball.

Despite this little chink the armour, the irresistible upside to Brook’s intent and his red-hot form mean England have an ace in the hole for the first time since Pietersen.

Ben Stokes: leader, visionary, all-rounder

In December 2024, skipper Stokes admitted that he ‘spoke a little too much’ about Australia instead of focusing solely on the Tests in front of them (New Zealand and India).

The proof is in the pudding. Over the last three years, he has systematically remodelled the side to settle on an XI that will, hopefully, take to Australian pitches like ducks to water.

As a player, however, Stokes finds himself in a peculiar position.

No longer the consistent constructor of Test innings, his contributions with the bat in the Bazball era have been short, sharp and to the point.

They are less about substance, but rather actions of intent. A means by which to herald England’s rebirth in the red-ball game, and a call to action for his fellow Bazballers to fearlessly follow suit.

After his 155 at Lord’s during the 2023 Ashes series, his next century came only in the fourth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy, a month or so ago. 

England will need noteworthy contributions at number six to take advantage of a less-excitable Kookaburra ball once the shine has dulled.

Intriguingly, Stokes’ primary role in this side may end up being as a strike bowler. 

He now comfortably breaches the 85mph barrier, the unofficial threshold aspiring England bowlers must hit to be considered for selection in this team. 

Coupled with an always-at-you angle of release and movement through the air others routinely lack, the captain has the goods to be a genuine third or fourth seamer.  

Since June 2022, Stokes has, inch by inch, laid out his blueprint for success in Australia – one that does not have room for the likes of James Anderson. 

Additionally, he has championed a slew of fresh-faced recruits to make themselves believe they, too are worldbeaters just like their captain. 

It is not unreasonable to say that this three-year operation hinges on Stokes. Fans of the Three Lions will hope against hope their leader can remain fit for as long as the series is live.

Jamie Smith’s counterattacking strokeplay and handling of England’s tail, will be vital

One of only a few positions that have transmogrified in the Bazball era, much like the christening of a new ‘Doctor’ in ‘Doctor Who’, has been the wicketkeeper. 

First came Ben Foakes, who got a run in the side before being moved on for not fully fitting the mould. Then, Jonny Bairstow, whose relationship with the gloves has always been strained. 

Jamie Smith now takes up residence behind the stumps. A man of few words on the pitch, he has let his bat do the talking with quite some verve.

His 111 against Sri Lanka in 2024 was a sign that this kid had something about him, and his consistency against India in 2025 – his 184* at Edgbaston the highlight – showed he is here for the long haul.

Admittedly, he has only played in England and Pakistan, the latter of which proved to be a challenge against the turning ball. 

Facing up to the relentlessness of the Australian attack on bowler-friendly pitches will be his biggest test so far. 

Cummins and his cartel will have an eye on the fifth-stump line to Smith, an area in which he has flirted with the ball using a half-straight, half-cross-bat shot.

Importantly for the team, how Smith navigates batting with the tail – an indispensable skill when extending totals in low-scoring fixtures – will go a long way to the team setting sufficiently high totals to work with. 

Assuming England pick their first-choice team, the likes of Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood will find themselves partnering Smith. 

While they can bat better than most bowlers, Smith’s ability to balance power-hitting with tactful strike rotation will be under the microscope.

Steven Smith, back somewhere near his best, leads Australia’s charge with the bat

Between the 2019 Ashes series, where his batting had shades of Sir Donald Bradman, and the 2024/2025 Border-Gavaskar trophy, the real Steven Smith went missing.

Some felt they had finally cracked the seemingly uncrackable enigma, believing he was a leg-before candidate the entire time. Others simply postulated his eyes were fading with age. 

But in classic Smith fashion, much like a child playing make-believe, he has found a new character to play, and this one is back scoring big runs. 

Averaging 55.21 with four hundreds since the Brisbane Test against India last year, Smith’s return to something close to his best means Australia have confidence again in their middle order.

Most reassuringly, all of Smith’s runs in this time have come in challenging batting conditions, including away from home (Sri Lanka, the Caribbean and the World Test Championship final at Lord’s). 

Compared with England, who have grown accustomed to plundering big scores on flatter pitches, Smith will feel confident heading into The Ashes, where lively wickets will be the order of the day.

His partnerships with Travis Head will need to do the heavy lifting, given the lack of stability and clarity around Australia’s top three; together they average 57.96, with six century- and six 50-run partnerships. 

Smith adores batting against England, averaging 56.01 in all and 54.50 against them in Australia. 

If this is to be his last hurrah in an Ashes series, the man casually dubbed ‘the best since Bradman’ will put the blinders on to ensure he puts on one final record-breaking spectacle for the home fans.

Travis Head’s blitzkriegs are sporadic, but the high severity of his threat still looms

From the start of the 2021/2022 Ashes series to the end of the 2023 Ashes series, Head was near untouchable. 

His high-risk counterattacking offensives came off with alarming regularity, averaging 50.02 in this window. 

At times, Head appeared almost blasé about the perils of his approach, batting as though it was simply another grade game for Tea Tree Gully District Cricket Club on a Saturday afternoon.

Recently, something has stopped clicking, with his average now only 34.16.

Players of this flavour – Head, Rishabh Pant and Harry Brook – are by their very nature prone to falls from grace. 

But it is the thrill of the hunt that pushes them deeper into the cave, and it is the very thing that helps them so often walk out with the hidden treasure others were too afraid to retrieve. 

For Head, his inability to match his prior form will irritate him, but not destabilise him. And given he is a senior figure in a team looking for answers with the bat, his position is secure.

Innings like his 140 and 152 against India last winter, which come out of nowhere on pitches that simply do not allow such batting with gay abandon, are precisely why he is Australia’s game-changer in the middle order. 

England can ill afford to take Head lightly, even in his diminished state. Their best bet is to hit him hard with tight lines in at the body, a proposition Jofra Archer and Mark Wood will lick their lips at. 

Another facet of his game is the heightened impact of his contributions when in partnership with others. 

The whiplash of Australia’s number five is typically more pronounced when the opposition has a classical batter at the other end playing the ball ‘on its merit’.

Having a pillar of stability at the other end tends to free him up, something that can very quickly snowball if not contained. If he gets that stability from Khawaja, Smith, Green or Webster, Head may well rediscover his old consistency with the bat. 

Big Beau Webster enters the fray an Ashes novice, but much rests on his broad shoulders

In a team afflicted by confusion at the top of the order, a sense of safety has come from an unexpected character: Beau Webster.

Though callow in terms of Test-match know-how, 31-year-old Webster understands his game inside out.

He has been a familiar face in the Australian domestic scene for over a decade, churning out runs and skittling batters for Tasmania year in, year out.

An injury to Cameron Green in October 2024 meant the number six position provisionally – or so he thought – went to the next cab off the rank.

Averaging 40.62 from five Tests at number six, the ability to absorb pressure and adapt to different situations and surfaces – the Sydney Cricket Ground, Galle, Lord’s in the WTC final and the Caribbean – has made him undroppable.

His bowling is handy (eight wickets at 23.25) and is good enough to give the big boys a break should they need it, but it is certainly not the reason he is in the team.

Physical attributes often come in third to talent and hard work when discussing elite sportspeople, but Webster’s height (just shy of 2 metres) could throw a spanner in the works of any short-ball assaults England deploy.   

The series does not hinge on Webster, but he occupies a crucial position that bridges a topsy-turvy top five and the last line of defence, Alex Carey.

Should Green find bowling fitness during The Ashes, it may well mean Australia have two all-rounders to lean on; it would be remarkable if Webster, the batter, is excluded on account of a bowling-ready Green.

Alex Carey, the ‘Ashes villain’ of 2023, is a vital cog in the wheel 

Fans in England may forever associate Alex Carey with the stumping of Jonny Bairstow at Lord’s, but they really ought not to.

As a batter, he is no Adam Gilchrist, or even Rishabh Pant for that matter – nor does he claim to be.

The mild-mannered South Australian quietly goes about his work, much like any dutiful family man would for his company. 

Carey has averaged 38.73 since the last Ashes series, with match-defining knocks around the globe.

His fourth-innings 98*, which underpinned a three-wicket victory against New Zealand in Christchurch in 2024, was the first sign of the dog he has in him.

A pair of gritty 60s in the recent series against the West Indies was also a testament to this quality. 

And when the going is good, innings such as his recent 156 in Galle will come to pass. 

Carey’s greatest attribute with the bat has been his evolving relationship with Cummins, Starc, Lyon, Hazlewood and Boland, which has flourished in the last 18 months. 

Much credit should be given to the bowlers for sticking around, as Cummins did in Christchurch, but Carey’s capacity to marshal the tail must equally be hailed.

With the likes of Cummins, Starc and Lyon, all of whom have given England headaches with the blade in the past, this lower-order dynamic could, yet again, be a thorn in England’s side.

Behind the stumps, Carey is quiet as a church mouse, which is no bad thing. Neatly carrying out his duties as written in his job description, his glove work has been impeccable on the whole.

The bowling unit will be buoyed by his presence next to the slip cordon. 

By Mohan Harihar