London [UK], September 25 (ANI): Ahead of the Ashes tour to Australia, England’s star batter Joe Root said that his side could hit the Aussies with “something slightly different” and banked on express pacers Jofra Archer and Mark Wood to “blow away” the opponents when the series opener starts at Perth on November 21.
Ben Stokes will be leading a 16-man strong Ashes squad, with Harry Brook as his vice-captain in place of Ollie Pope. England is blessed with plenty of pace options, including Archer, Wood, skipper Stokes, alongside a newer crop of pacers, Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Brydon Carse.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Root said, “It is a big series like that against a side that have got a great record at home, especially against us previously. But I think it is the first time we can hit them with something slightly different.”
Root said that England is going with a “different team, a different mentality and a different way of playing” under skipper Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum, who have championed their attacking and result-oriented ‘Bazball’ school of cricket.
“We have played some good cricket of late. Hopefully that stands us in good stead, and we can put across some really good performances and hopefully create some history,” he added.
With six great pace options, powered by Stokes, Archer and Wood, England have their most hostile bowling attack in years, despite the retirement of legends James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
Root feels that his side can hit Australia with “some real pace” and have “more than just one option” for it.
“It means that we are going there with a slightly different approach and a different way of attacking than we have previously, which I think is exciting. You have seen what they [Archer and Wood] can do at international cricket and the performances that they put out when they are fit and they are firing and at their best.”
“They can blow teams away, and they can really blow games wide open. Clearly, they are a big threat for us and can offer something different that we haven’t had on previous tours,” he concluded.
England squad for The Ashes series against Australia: 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. (ANI)
