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The historic Ashes series may offer a reason to cheer, but this series will also witness the Australian team host a greater number of birthdays than an arcade in the 90s. Recent addition Jake Weatherald celebrated his 31st a day before the squad was named. Nathan Lyon celebrates 38 the day preceding the Test in Perth. Beau Webster turns 32 just ahead of Brisbane, Usman Khawaja will be 39 on the second day in Adelaide, Josh Hazlewood turns 35 on the final day in Sydney, and Mitchell Starc will be 36 before January is over.

Older Squad Fascination Builds

For two or three years there has been growing curiosity with the average age of this side and especially the bowling attack. It is rare to have almost every player in a Test side being above thirty, aside from novelty-sized mascot Cameron Green and occasional visitor Sam Konstas. But it didn’t logically follow that greater age was a problem: a Test squad featuring a four-man attack with 1,568 wickets between them is scarcely a weakness, and it stands to reason that all of those bowlers are deep into their professional lives.

I've never felt this sure at the start of an Ashes tour | a former player

Perhaps what most amplified the discussion is that the reserve players over that time, Scott Boland and Michael Neser, are also deep into their 30s. Younger bowlers have floated into teams – Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson – before disappearing for years with injury, meaning there has been no obvious replacement plan.

Transition Imposed by Setbacks

So far, that hasn't been an issue, as the core four plus Boland have kept on performing. Any side knows that having a group of similarly-aged players might mean a group of similarly-timed retirements, but so far change has remained hypothetical: a train that would indeed be coming round the mountain when she comes, but one that had not steamed into view.

Now, suddenly, transition is here, forced upon this Aussie team in the span of a short period. The spinal issue to Pat Cummins was greeted with equanimity: he would likely only sit out the first Test, was the team management assessment, and as the first bowling change behind Starc and Hazlewood, he could comfortably be replaced by Boland.

But now that Hazlewood has been sidelined with a hamstring strain, the balance experiences a much more significant shift with two players absent rather than one. Cummins and Hazlewood as the two tight-line right-armers give the stability and precision that enables Starc’s left-arm speed and movement to be used more as a attacking option. Losing both of them means a major adjustment in the composition of the team. Boland handling the new ball is nothing new in his first-class career, but he has been so effective in Test matches coming on after seven to eight overs of initial onslaught. Now he’ll likely have to be the opening bowler.

Debutant Faces Expectations

Behind him will come Brendan Doggett, who at thirty-one years of age himself isn't an overawed youth, but he might become an nervous thirty-one-year-old. A packed stadium, partly English, for the opening Test of a eagerly awaited Ashes series will not make for an simple first match, no matter how many newspaper profiles describe him as laid-back. He could be brought onto the ground on a sun lounger and still be nervous.

Sign up to The Spin

Who knows, it might all go swimmingly for this revamped bowling lineup. It might not work out. What is striking is how quickly Australia have moved from the surety of Starc, Lyon, Cummins, Hazlewood to the unknown of Starc, Lyon, mumble mumble. It's unclear what further injuries the opening match may bring. Who knows whether Cummins will be fit for Brisbane, and able to continue after Brisbane, given how complicated stress injuries can be. Who knows how long Hazlewood might be sidelined, with a track record of going down early in tournaments and a pattern of initially small injuries becoming longer layoffs.

Outlook Unclear

The latter part of the series may see the primary four bowlers back together and all going well. Or it might see transition setting in much sooner than the stretch goal of 2027 in the UK. Not through Neser, who is apparently the next option and could be a excellent day-night Brisbane option, but beyond that with choices unclear. Sean Abbott was in the initial squad, though he’s now also injured and has not yet played a Test match. Richardson has just had his injury-prone arm put back on, and this format is no place for gradually starting one’s work. After them lies the real unknown, and throughout it opportunity for the opposing side. You can sense that change a-coming, coming around the corner, and the English team hasn't seen the success since they can't recall when.