Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood has sounded an early warning ahead of the Ashes later this year, praising England’s batting line-up as one of the finest to tour Australia in recent times. With Joe Root and Harry Brook occupying the top two spots in the ICC Men’s Test Batting Rankings, Hazlewood admitted the arch-rivals will pose a stern challenge when the series begins in November.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Speaking at an event to promote Play Cricket Week, Hazlewood singled out England’s talisman Joe Root as the biggest threat. “Joe’s probably in the form of his life as well. They’re an unbelievable batting line, to be honest. The top seven have done really well… so it’s a challenge,” he said.
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Root, who averages 35.68 in 14 Tests in Australia, is still searching for his first century Down Under. Hazlewood acknowledged the Englishman’s hunger to break that drought. “When Root first came out, it was a little bit of a different attack. It was probably (Mitchell) Johnson, (Ryan) Harris and (Peter) Siddle. Gaz (Nathan Lyon) has been around a long time now… but Joe’s in incredible touch.”Hazlewood also spoke highly of Harry Brook, who has quickly risen to No.2 in the Test rankings. “I think a fresh face like Harry Brook might find it easier. There’s no baggage behind him and he can just come out and play with freedom as he does. He’ll be a tough challenge.”England’s batting depth has been a major talking point in the build-up to the Ashes. Root’s recent exploits, including becoming the first batter to score 6000 runs in the ICC World Test Championship and surpassing Ricky Ponting in the all-time Test run charts, underline his stature.The Ashes begins on November 21 in Perth, with England chasing their first series win over Australia since 2015.
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