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LONDON: England suffered an agonizing six-run loss to India at the Oval on Monday as one of the most dramatic Test series of recent times ended in a 2-2 draw.
Their next major red-ball assignment is a five-match Ashes series away to arch-rivals Australia — where England have gone 15 Tests without a win — starting in November.
Here are some of the key issues that emerged from England’s rollercoaster contest with India and what they mean for their quest to regain the Ashes “Down Under.”
What England gain from having Ben Stokes in their side was never more evident than when their inspirational captain missed the fifth Test with a shoulder injury — a fresh worry following his history of hamstring trouble.
The 34-year-old all-rounder was the most threatening member of England’s attack against India, taking 17 wickets at 25 in 140 overs — the most he has bowled in a series.
Stokes also looked back to his best with the bat, scoring 141 in England’s mammoth total of 669 in the drawn fourth Test at Old Trafford. By contrast specialist opener Zak Crawley failed to reach three figures in nine innings.
And at the Oval, the sight of vice-captain Ollie Pope running off to the dressing room to receive what appeared to be tactical guidance from Stokes did not say much for England’s depth of leadership.
England limited-overs captain Harry Brook, also a mainstay of the Test team and a lively skipper in the Stokes mold, could yet prove a better fit as vice-captain against Australia.
England have long believed a battery of genuinely fast bowlers is essential if they are to win an Ashes series in Australia for the first time since 2010/11.
But fitness issues could blight their best-laid plans.
Jofra Archer made an encouraging return to Test cricket against India but played just two matches as England looked to manage the express paceman’s workload.
Mark Wood, another bowler with genuine pace, has not played Test cricket for nearly 12 months and had knee surgery earlier this year.
The inconsistent Josh Tongue’s return of 19 wickets at under 30 in the India series could well see him selected for Ashes duty, with Gus Atkinson’s five-wicket haul on his return to Test duty at the Oval doing his cause no harm.
England, and Stokes in particular, have shown huge faith in Shoaib Bashir, a 21-year-old off-spinner unable to hold down a regular place in a county side but who has now taken 68 wickets in 19 Tests at 39.
In the India series, Bashir’s 10 wickets came at an expensive average of 54.1, before a finger injury ruled him out of the last two Tests.
But Hampshire stalwart Liam Dawson failed to seize his chance in the drawn fourth Test, with Stokes appearing to tell the left-armer where he should be bowling on the Old Trafford pitch.
Leicestershire’s 20-year-old leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed, already England’s youngest Test cricketer, is another option.
England, however, didn’t bother with a specialist spinner at the Oval, deploying Joe Root and Jacob Bethell — clean bowled following a reckless charge down the pitch during a second-innings collapse — for a mere 11 overs combined.
But former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes England should stick with Bashir for the Ashes because of his similarity to outstanding Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
“Australia will have probably three or four left-handers in their line-up which will aid the right-arm off-spinner as well,” Ponting told Sky Sports. “And it’s the over-spin that you need in Australia.”