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The Ashes may offer a reason to cheer, but this contest will also see the Australian team celebrate more birthday parties than an arcade in the 90s. Recent addition Jake Weatherald celebrated his thirty-first birthday a day prior to the squad was named. Nathan Lyon celebrates 38 the day preceding the Test in Perth. Beau Webster reaches 32 just ahead of the Brisbane match, Usman Khawaja will be 39 on the second day in Adelaide, Josh Hazlewood turns 35 on the fifth day in Sydney, and Mitchell Starc will be 36 by the time January is over.

Older Team Fascination Grows

For two or three years there has been mounting curiosity with the age of this side and particularly the bowling unit. It is rare to have almost every player in a Test team being above thirty, aside from young mascot Cameron Green and occasional visitor Sam Konstas. But it wasn't necessarily true that greater age was a problem: a Test team boasting a four-man attack with over 1,500 wickets between them is hardly a disadvantage, and it makes sense that all of those bowlers are deep into their careers.

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Perhaps what really highlighted the talking point is that the backup bowlers over that time, Scott Boland and Michael Neser, are also deep into their thirties. Younger bowlers have floated into teams – Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson – before disappearing for years with injuries, meaning there has been no obvious replacement plan.

Transition Forced by Injuries

So far, that hasn't been an issue, as the Big Four plus Boland have continued backing up. Any side knows that having a group of same-generation players might mean a batch of simultaneous retirements, but so far change has remained theoretical: a train that would indeed be coming round the mountain when she comes, but one that had not become visible.

Now, abruptly, transition is here, forced upon this Aussie team in the space of a short period. The back injury to Pat Cummins was greeted with equanimity: he would likely only sit out the first Test, was the Cricket Australia assessment, and as the first bowling change behind Starc and Hazlewood, he could comfortably be covered for by Boland.

But now that Hazlewood has gone down with a hamstring injury, the team balance experiences a far greater change with two key bowlers missing rather than one. Cummins and Hazlewood as the two accurate right-arm bowlers give the stability and precision that allows Starc’s left-arm pace and swing to be used more as a weapon of attack. Missing both of them means a fundamental shift in the balance of the team. Boland handling the new ball is not unusual in his domestic career, but he has been so successful in Test matches entering the attack after seven or eight overs of early pressure. Now he’ll probably have to be the opening bowler.

Debutant Confronts Pressure

Behind him will come Brendan Doggett, who at 31 years old himself won’t be an overawed youth, but he might become an nervous thirty-one-year-old. A full stadium crowd, half of it English, for the opening Test of a eagerly awaited Ashes series will not make for an simple first match, no matter how many media stories describe him as relaxed. He could be brought onto the ground on a sun lounger and still be anxious.

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It's uncertain, it might all go swimmingly for this revamped bowling lineup. It might not work out. What is striking is how quickly Australia have transitioned from the surety of Starc, Lyon, Cummins, Hazlewood to the uncertainty of Starc, Lyon, and others. It's unclear what further injuries the first Test may bring. It's unknown whether Cummins will be good to go for the Brisbane Test, and able to continue after Brisbane, given how tricky stress injuries can be. Who knows how long Hazlewood might be out, with a history of going down early in series and a history of initially small injuries becoming longer layoffs.

Future Unclear

The back half of the series may see the main four bowlers back together and all going well. Or it might see transition beginning much sooner than the long-term aim of 2027 in England. Not through Neser, who is seemingly next in line and could be a excellent day-night Brisbane choice, but after that with options uncertain. Sean Abbott was in the original team, though he’s now also injured and has never played a Test match. Richardson has just had his crash-test-dummy arm repaired, and this format is not the place for gradually starting one’s work. Beyond them lies the true uncertainty, and amid it all a chance for the visiting team. You can sense that train approaching, coming around the bend, and the English team hasn't seen the success since they can't recall when.