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The pre-Ashes verbal sparring is escalating further, with former England paceman Broad declaring that England will face "arguably the weakest Aussie squad in over a decade" on tour this season.

Warner's Bold Prediction Met With Doubt

The former England bowler's claim came as a reply to David Warner – a long-time Ashes rival – forecasting a clean sweep for the home side. "Should the skipper [Pat Cummins] be absent, they could perhaps snatch a single victory," Warner commented.

Australia have not lost a men’s Ashes match at home since England’s 3-1 victory in 2010-11. The subsequent 5-0 whitewash three years later – on the back of seven losses in their previous nine Tests – was followed by 4-0 Ashes triumphs in the 2017-18 and 2021-22 campaigns.

Squad Doubt and Fitness Worries for the Hosts

Yet, the top-ranked Test team, who have suffered just a single defeat of their past 13 bilateral series, approach the forthcoming contest with questions over the makeup of their batting lineup and the fitness of Cummins, who is doubtful to play in the first Test at the Perth stadium because of a back injury.

"It's extremely challenging to triumph on Australian soil as an English team, or any side," said Broad on his podcast. "The Australians are massive favourites."

"Australia are under the most pressure because they’re anticipated to prevail, they’re formidable in home conditions, but they’ve got doubts over their team and question marks over their skipper's condition. It's not unreasonable in thinking – it’s actually not an opinion, it’s a fact – it’s probably the worst Australian team since the 2010 era. Meanwhile, it's the strongest England squad since 2010. So those things match up to the fact that it’s going to be a brilliant Ashes series."

Parallel to Historic Series

"The Australians have remained so consistent for a long period of time that you just knew who was going to open the batting, who would bat, which bowlers were available, and they don’t have that. It closely resembles a comparable scenario to the 2010-11 period when England went and won there. The reality is the Aussies typically need to underperform to lose in Australia and England have to be very good. The English have a solid opportunity of performing exceptionally and Australia have a decent chance of being bad."

Selection Dilemma for the Visitors

A major issue for England remains their choice at No 3, with Pope and Bethell contesting the spot. Cook, whose prolific scoring set up the tourists’ series win over a decade past, thinks it would be "unusual" for Ben Stokes’ side to move away from Pope, who has been a regular at number three for the last three years.

"I'd select Ollie Pope at three," said Cook. "I think it’s a straightforward choice. They have a player who has been part of this buildup for several years. He’s captained the side, he’s played remarkable performances for the national side and he scores centuries. He understands how to make big scores in the domestic game. If you get rid of him now, I believe that alters the entire balance of the foundation they've established over the last few years."

While hailing Jacob Bethell as "a hugely gifted cricketer", Cook said: "It would be a big, big gamble [to pick him] because if that doesn’t work what is the fallback option, a player you recently discarded? They’ve invested so much in people like Ollie Pope and [Crawley that it would seem highly odd to make a switch at this stage."

Captaincy Shift and Broadcast Team

Pope has been replaced by Brook as England’s vice-captain but, as per Cook, that will "ease the burden on" the Surrey right-hander.

"They’ve been proactive on that, considering if there is an injury to Ben Stokes, they’ve got a guy in Harry Brook who has led the ODI team and it's evident that he appears well suited to it. This will take the pressure off. I believe it won't undermine him. Certainly it will have hurt him because anytime you get taken off a leadership role it isn't perfect, but I don’t think it undermines him."

Cook will be in the host nation as part of the broadcast team of the series, and will be joined by former Ashes champions Finn and Swann as on-the-ground pundits. The network will offer a dedicated commentary stream but will use a mixed approach, with play-by-play announcers Eykyn and Hatch based remotely in the UK, while the trio deliver expert analysis from on location. Ebony Rainford-Brent is also part of the commentary team operating remotely, with the on-ground coverage to be presented by Ives.