The Ashes: England’s pace attack evolution under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum

The move towards an attack more suited for Australian conditions began following the appointments of Key, Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes in the spring of 2022.

Their first move was to bring back James Anderson and Stuart Broad, aged 39 and 35 at the time, after they had been dropped for England’s previous Test series in the Caribbean.

For all their many qualities, neither was known for their express pace and, three-and-a-half years on, England’s two leading wicket-takers have both retired from international cricket.

It means a seam attack shorn of 1,308 Test wickets, with the shoulder injury that prompted Chris Woakes’ international retirement taking away another 192.

As such, Stokes’ men are down under with their least experienced bowling unit since that famous triumph in 2010-11.

Stokes is the most experienced with 115 Test caps, Mark Wood has been playing Tests for 10 years but injuries have limited him to just 37 matches and, similarly, six years on from his dazzling debut at Lord’s, Jofra Archer has featured in only 15 Tests.

Yet it is Wood, who last played a Test in August 2024, and Archer, just two Test appearances since 2021, who will be tasked with spearheading the England attack.

Gus Atkinson has perhaps been the biggest find of the post-Broad and Anderson era, with the Surrey quick taking 63 wickets at 22.01 in his first 13 Tests.

Burly South African-born seamer Brydon Carse has also impressed, particularly away from home, while Josh Tongue has shown a handy knack for taking wickets, albeit not always with the control to match.

Durham’s Matthew Potts is also back in the mix almost a year after his last Test.

Like Archer, this will be a first taste of an away Ashes series for that quartet. But England know all too well that experience alone does not win Tests in Australia.

They’re hoping pace and potency does.