Australia and England kick off the highly anticipated Ashes 2025-26 series; the two sides lock horns at the Perth Stadium for the first Test from November 21, and with the clash approaching, the Aussies will be without some of their best players.
It is worth noting that Australia will take the field in the first Test without the services of regular skipper Pat Cummins. The star pacer sustained a lumbar bone stress injury in his lower back, which will see him miss the first Test of the series, but there is hope within the Aussie camp that Cummins might make his return for the second Test.
In some good news for Australia, Cummins was captured bowling in the nets ahead of the clash in Perth, which further solidifies his chances to feature for the side in the second Test of the series.
What did skipper Steve Smith say at the toss?
The first Test of the series kicked off with England winning the toss and opting to bat first. Australia will be beginning the match by bowling first, and will hope some new names in their XI will come good in Perth.
“I would have had a bat as well. Hopefully it seams all over the place this morning. I think the cracks are going to open up as the match progresses. Those (Injuries to Cummins and Hazlewood) are big losses but it opens up new opportunities as well. Boland has been fantastic and Doggett has been excellent in the Shield,” Steve Smith said at the toss.
Australia XI: Jake Weatherald, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Brendan Doggett, Scott Boland
England XI: Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes(c), Jamie Smith(w), Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood
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