The Australian bowling unit is far superior to England’s in the home conditions: Geoffrey Boycott
Former England captain Geoffrey Boycott thinks England's lack of penetration in their bowling attack will cost them the Ashes this winter. Although England have selected the strongest squad available to them, Geoffrey Boycott feels they can't match Australia's full-strength bowling unit.
The experienced duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad are part of the 17-man squad while the other seamers in the side are Craig Overton, Chris Woakes and Ollie Robinson.
Mark Wood is the only express pace bowler, with Jofra Archer's elbow injury ruling him out of the series. The visitors will also be without all-rounder Ben Stokes.
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Geoffrey Boycott feels Australia's full-strength bowling department will out bowl the visitors as James Anderson and Stuart Broad have poor numbers Down Under. Boycott highlighted that Anderson might not be able to fill the wicket-taking role in Australia. Boycott wrote in his column for the Telegraph:
"If players on both sides stay fit, then you have to admit the Australian bowling unit is far superior to England’s in Australian conditions. James Anderson and Stuart Broad have been brilliant in English conditions but it is much tougher in Australia and neither of them have exceptional records Down Under. They have enjoyed odd good moments. Anderson’s best chance is the day-night Test in Adelaide, where he was nearly a match-winner on the last tour."
The biggest positive for our bowlers is Australia are not great at batting either: Geoffrey Boycott
Boycott also observed that Australia depends too much on Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and David Warner for runs. The 81-year-old mainly went on to praise Labuschagne for his compact technique and continued:
"The biggest positive for our bowling unit is Australia are not great at batting either. They have three good players: Warner, Steve Smith and new boy Marnus Labuschagne. Don’t underestimate him. He is a very good player with a very good technique."
Labuschagne and Smith form the backbone of Australia's batting line-up and scored heaps of runs in the 2019 Ashes. Smith, who feasted on England's bowling attack in the 2017-18 leg, will fancy doing the same when the two sides meet again. Meanwhile, Labuschagne has been Australia's best batter in the last two home summers.