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The Australian selectors bowled a googly to fans when they announced the squad for the first two Ashes Tests.
The call-up that raised most eyebrows was that of Tim Paine, who played his last Test for Australia in 2010 and was never in contention for a spot before the Shield season began.
Alex Carey and Peter Nevill were the prime wicketkeeping candidates and would feel hard done by.
Meanwhile, Shaun Marsh beat both Glen Maxwell and Hilton Cartwright to the number six spot, while Cameroon Bancroft got a deserved call-up at the expense of Matt Renshaw.
Renshaw has had a brilliant start to his career and is one of the best young players in the world.
Regardless of the questions over some of these choices, Australia remains a strong team at home and look primed to wrest back the Ashes from England.
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The batting, led by Steven Smith, remains extremely strong and the form of Usman Khawaja and Bancroft at the top bodes well. David Warner too got some much-needed runs in recent games, while Marsh’s addition brings experience to the middle order – it will be interesting to see where he bats.
The biggest positive for the hosts though is the form of their bowling attack. Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, Patt Cummins and Nathan Lyon will all be a huge threat.
There has been banter between the two parties, with former players calling the opposition line-ups the weakest they have seen, however it’s the English with the obvious holes.
Their batting looks weak, with lots of inexperience. Alastair Cook, who is their most experienced batsman, does not have a great Ashes record and Joe Root hasn’t done much in Australia with the bat.
The bowling attack, without Ben Stokes, is likewise threadbare – James Anderson has struggled in Australia in the past and Stuart Broad hasn’t been in great form recently.
Australia have always been a tough team to beat at home and even with the shortcomings in their squad have enough firepower to get past this English side.
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