England have named Will Jacks in their team for the second Ashes Test in Brisbane, with the all-rounder replacing Mark Wood in the only change from the team that lost the series opener in Perth.
Wood had been expected to miss out after skipping England’s first training session in Brisbane due to an issue with his left knee, but the selection of Jacks could be seen as a surprising move.
The off-spinner, who will bat at No 8 in the order, has played only two Test matches, both coming on the 2022 tour of Pakistan in which he claimed a five-for on debut.
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Michael Atherton says England must bounce back in the Ashes second Test at the Gabba otherwise the series is ‘essentially over’.
Jacks’ selection means that England have resisted the urge to again select an all-pace attack like at Perth, with Josh Tongue and Matthew Potts overlooked.
England have resisted the urge to pick pace bowler Josh Tongue for the second Ashes Test
England’s two spare seamers featured in the Lions’ two-day match against a Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra, where Tongue went wicketless in 16 overs and Potts claimed 2-40 from the same allotment.
The selection of Jacks over front-line spinner Shoaib Bashir also strengthens the England batting order in response to their defeat inside two days in the first Test.
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Sky Sports’ Nasser Hussain says the England cricket team can learn from Tiger Woods in how to get over the line in key moments after their capitulation in the first Ashes Test against Australia.
England were bowled out for 164 in their second innings following a startling collapse of 6-39, having been 65-1 – with a lead of 105 – at lunch on the second day. Travis Head then smashed a 69-ball hundred to fire Australia to an eight-wicket victory in pursuit of 205 to win.
On day one in Perth, England had been skittled for 172 and then reduced Australia to 123-9 as the series opened with 19 wickets falling in a day.
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England’s all-time leading run-scorer Joe Root said he is confident of rediscovering his scoring touch and has questioned the need for a pink-ball Test in the Ashes.
England Test captain Ben Stokes said his side are desperate to avenge their “rubbish” first Test performance in Perth as they prepare for the day-night second Test in Brisbane, which starts on Thursday.
“They [England fans] want to see us win, we want to win, we’re absolutely desperate,” Stokes said. “They’re absolutely desperate. We’re all on the same wavelength.
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Michael Atherton and Nasser Hussain discuss what key differences there will be with the pink ball during the day-night second Ashes Test at The Gabba in Brisbane..
“We know that there’ll be a lot of disappointed fans in England after that first defeat. But it’s a five-game series, we’ve got four games to go. We’ve lost the first one – we’re absolutely desperate to come home with that goal from before we even started the series, which is to win the Ashes.”
England XI for second Test: 1) Zak Crawley, 2) Ben Duckett, 3) Ollie Pope, 4) Joe Root, 5) Harry Brook, 6) Ben Stokes (c), 7) Jamie Smith (wkt), 8) Will Jacks, 9) Gus Atkinson, 10) Brydon Carse, 11) Jofra Archer
Ashes series in Australia 2025-26
All times UK and Ireland
First Test (Perth – November 21-25): Australia beat England by eight wicketsSecond Test (day/night): Thursday December 4 – Monday December 8 (4.30am) – The Gabba, BrisbaneThird Test: Wednesday December 17 – Sunday December 21 (12am) – Adelaide OvalFourth Test: Thursday December 25 – Monday December 29 (11.30pm) – Melbourne Cricket GroundFifth Test: Sunday January 4 – Thursday January 8 (11.30pm) – Sydney Cricket Ground
