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The historic Ashes series may offer a reason to cheer, but this contest will also witness the Australian team host a greater number of birthdays than an arcade in the nineties. Recent addition Jake Weatherald had his thirty-first birthday a day before the squad was named. Nathan Lyon turns 38 the day before 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 becomes 35 on the final day in Sydney, and Mitchell Starc will be 36 by the time January is over.

Older Team Fascination Grows

For a couple of years there has been mounting curiosity with the average age of this team and particularly the bowling unit. It is unusual to have almost every player in a Test side being above thirty, aside from young mascot Cameron Green and custody-weekend visitor Sam Konstas. But it wasn't necessarily true that older age was a problem: a Test squad boasting a four-man attack with 1,568 wickets between them is scarcely a disadvantage, and it makes sense that all of those bowlers are deep into their professional lives.

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Perhaps what most amplified the discussion is that the reserve players over that time, Scott Boland and Michael Neser, are also well into their thirties. Younger bowlers have briefly joined squads – Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson – before disappearing for years with injuries, meaning there has been no obvious replacement plan.

Change 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 batch of same-generation players might mean a group of simultaneous retirements, but so far change has remained hypothetical: a process that would indeed be arriving the mountain when she comes, but one that hadn’t yet become visible.

Now, suddenly, change is upon them, imposed on this Aussie team in the span of a short period. The back injury to Pat Cummins was greeted with equanimity: he would probably only sit out the opening match, 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 gone down with a hamstring strain, the balance experiences a much more significant change with two key bowlers missing rather than one. Cummins and Hazlewood as the two tight-line right-armers give the balance and control 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 balance of the side. 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 to eight overs of initial onslaught. Now he’ll likely have to be the man up front.

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 overawed 31-year-old. A full stadium crowd, partly English, for the first Test of a deliriously anticipated Ashes series will not make for an easy debut, no matter how many newspaper profiles describe him as laid-back. He could be brought onto the field on a sun lounger and still be nervous.

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Who knows, it might all go smoothly for this new attack. It might not. What is notable is how quickly Australia have transitioned from the certainty of Starc, Lyon, Cummins, Hazlewood to the uncertainty of Starc, Lyon, and others. It's unclear what further injuries the opening match may cause. Who knows whether Cummins will be good to go for Brisbane, and able to continue after Brisbane, given how complicated stress injuries can be. Who knows how long Hazlewood might be out, with a track record of going down early in tournaments and a history of minor injuries turning into extended absences.

Outlook Unclear

The back half of the series may see the main four bowlers back together and all going well. Or it might see transition setting in much earlier than the stretch goal of 2027 in the UK. Not through Neser, who is apparently the next option and could be a excellent pink-ball Brisbane option, but beyond that with options uncertain. Sean Abbott was in the original team, 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 not the place for gradually starting one’s work. Beyond them lies the real unknown, and amid it all a chance for the opposing side. You can hear that train approaching, coming around the bend, and the English team hasn't seen the sunshine since they don’t know when.