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The war of words before the Ashes is escalating further, with ex-England bowler Broad stating that the English side will face "arguably the weakest Australian team since 2010" during their tour this winter.

David Warner's Confident Forecast Answered by Doubt

The former England bowler's claim was in response to David Warner – a long-time Ashes rival – predicting a clean sweep for the hosts. "Should the skipper [Pat Cummins] be absent, they could perhaps snatch a single victory," Warner said.

The Aussies remain undefeated in a Ashes match on home soil since England’s 3-1 victory in 2010-11. Their 5-0 win in the following series – following seven defeats in their previous nine Tests – was followed by 4-0 series victories in the 2017-18 and 2021-22 campaigns.

Team Doubt and Injury Concerns for Australia

However, the No 1-ranked Test side, who have lost only one of their past 13 bilateral series, enter the upcoming assignment with uncertainty over the makeup of their batting lineup and the fitness of Pat Cummins, who is doubtful to play in the opening match at Perth because of a back issue.

"It’s very, very difficult to win in Australia as an England side, or any side," Broad remarked on his podcast. "The Australians are strong favorites."

"The Aussies face the greatest expectations because they’re expected to win, they’re formidable in home conditions, but they’ve got question marks over their squad and question marks over their captain’s fitness. 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. And it’s the best England squad in over a decade. These factors point towards the fact that it’s going to be a thrilling contest."

Comparison to 2010-11 Tour

"Australia have been highly stable for a prolonged duration that you just knew who was going to open the batting, who would bat, which bowlers were available, and they lack that certainty now. It closely resembles a similar situation to the 2010-11 period when England went and won there. The reality is the Aussies typically need to underperform to be defeated at home and England have to be very good. England have a great chance of performing exceptionally and Australia have a decent chance of being bad."

Team Dilemma for the Visitors

A major issue for the English camp remains their choice at No 3, with Ollie Pope and Bethell vying for the role. Alastair Cook, whose 766 runs set up the visitors' series victory 15 years ago, believes it would be "strange" for Ben Stokes’ side to move away from Pope, who has been a consistent at first drop for the last three years.

"I would bat Pope at number three," said Cook. "In my view it’s a straightforward choice. You’ve got someone who’s been part of this buildup for three or four years. He has led the team, he’s played remarkable performances for England and he’s a hundred-maker. He knows how to make big scores in the domestic game. If they drop him now, I think that changes the whole dynamic of what they’ve built up over the last few years."

Although praising Bethell as "an incredibly talented player", Cook said: "It would be a big, big gamble [to pick him] because if that doesn’t work what is the fallback option, someone you’ve just got rid of? They’ve invested so much in people like Ollie Pope and [Zak] Crawley that it would be such a strange thing to make a switch at this stage."

Leadership Shift and Broadcast Team

Pope has been succeeded by Harry Brook as the team's deputy skipper but, as per Cook, that will "ease the burden on" the Surrey batsman.

"They’ve been proactive on that, considering in case of an injury to Stokes, they’ve got a guy in Harry Brook who has led the ODI team and it's evident that he seems to be a natural fit. This will take the pressure off. I believe it won't weaken his position. Certainly it will have disappointed him because anytime you get taken off a leadership thing it isn't perfect, but I doubt it undermines him."

Cook will be in Australia as part of TNT’s coverage of the series, and will be joined by former Ashes champions Steven Finn and Swann as in-studio analysts. 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 provide co-commentary from Australia. Rainford-Brent is also part of the broadcast team working off-site, with the on-ground coverage to be hosted by Becky Ives.