ENG Playing XI vs AUS: Joe Root eyes big changes, Jonny Bairstow, Zak Crawley among potential entrants as England eye Boxing Day fightback – England need to find quick and robust as they head to the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) for the Boxing Day Test of the Ashes. The visitors have lost both their matches so far and any less than a win will see the Aussies retain the urn. Joe Root and Chris Silverwood will hope that the team can turn the tide around and changes are in order with the team desperate to bounce back. Follow Insidesport.in for all AUS vs ENG LIVE Updates.
ENG Playing XI vs AUS: Joe Root eyes big changes, Jonny Bairstow, Zak Crawley among potential entrants as England eye Boxing Day fightback
England were completely outplayed in the first two Tests of the ongoing Ashes series Down Under. The visitors have struggled to score runs, failing to score past 300 in each of their four innings, while Australia breached the 400-run mark in each of their first innings. England were bowled out for less than 200 twice, and Root will look to beef up his batting in a bid to add more runs to the scorecard.
Barring Root and Dawid Malan, the rest of the batting order has just crumbled, with Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler showing glimpses of their resilience, but not enough to rescue England. Openers Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed have both struggled, but the former could keep his place, with Zak Crawley replacing Hameed. Ollie Pope’s struggles meant that Jonny Bairstow could be brought in, while Dan Lawrence also remains an option for the visitors.
Having dropped Jack Leach for the Pink Ball Test in Adelaide, the left-arm spinner should return to the XI for the Ashes Boxing Day Test. Mark Wood should also get back into the XI, while Chris Woakes and one of James Anderson or Stuart Broad likely to miss out. Ollie Robinson has done well in patches which should be enough for him to keep his place.
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ENG Playing XI vs AUS: Joe Root eyes big changes, Jonny Bairstow, Zak Crawley among potential entrants as England eye Boxing Day fightback
While the fresh faces will add some much-needed firepower, the onus will again be on Joe Root and Ben Stokes to lead their side. Root has continued his good form Down Under but has failed to convert his 50s into hundreds, and the same can be said for Dawid Malan who has impressed. Buttler put up a strong vigil in Adelaide and England will hope that he and Stokes can rise to the occasion as they look to wrestle themselves back into contention in the Ashes.
Predicted XI: Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Stuart Broad, Jack Leach.
