"We’ll see if that’s the way they’re going to play" - Mitchell Starc challenges England's 'Bazball' approach ahead of Ashes

Australia's tearaway speedster Mitchell Starc has raised doubts about whether England will maintain the aggressive intent regardless of the situation. However, the left-arm paceman reckons England's attacking gameplay makes it an exciting series.

England's change of approach has produced outstanding results in Test cricket in the last 18 months. It has allowed them to chase over 250 thrice in a row against New Zealand and achieve their highest successful run-chase in the format.

Ben Stokes and co. broke a plethora of batting records during their last year's visit to Pakistan and won 3-0.

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England scripted a memorable chase in Edgbaston to draw level against India 🙌

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While Starc credited England for maintaining the attacking intent, the 33-year-old revealed that their camp is not buying too much into it. As quoted by The Age, he remarked:

"If they are 5-50, are they still coming out and swinging? They’ve been able to maintain it for some time. Fair credit to them, it’s not just a one-off. It makes for an exciting Ashes contest. We’ll see if that’s the way they’re going to play, how it goes. From the guys I’ve spoken to this week, we’re not really buying too much into it.”

England skipper Ben Stokes has already requested the groundstaff of all five venues to allow their batters to score freely. The Aussie bowling attack will undoubtedly be an acid test for the new-look England.

"There's no reason our batting line-up can’t score the amount of runs they" - Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc further conceded that both teams must take 20 wickets to win Tests regardless of the nature of the pitch. Hence, he expects a fascinating contest on all fronts. He said:

"Have you ever seen a fast wicket in England? I don’t know if they can make them fast. They can certainly make them flat. I think it’s a bit of a smokescreen. There’s always a bit of chat around the Ashes. It’s still cricket and there are three stumps at either end. You still need to take 20 wickets to win a Test. They might score a bit quicker than we do, but there’s no reason our batting line-up can’t score the amount of runs they do. It’s going to be fascinating to be a part of. I think there’s a lot of people interested to see how it pans out."

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The New South Wales bowler has an excellent Test record against England, bagging 74 scalps in 18 matches at 27.46. He will also be critical in Australia's World Test Championship (WTC) final against India.