Ashes 2023 | England will claim the urn by beating Australia 3-2, expects Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain has made a wild prediction for the forthcoming Ashes, claiming England will defeat Australia by a scoreline of 3-2. The former English skipper pointed out how England’s Bazball approach has often taken the draw out of the equation, and playing at home will guide them to victory.
The much-anticipated Ashes is about to get underway, with England taking on Australia at Edgbaston on June 16 to begin proceedings. As usual, it will be a five-match series between two of the most dominant forces of the sport, and the series will go on till July 31. Fans are eagerly waiting for the sport’s grandest rivalry even more because England, highly lauded for its Bazball approach, have not won the Ashes since a 3-2 home series victory in 2015. Australia, on the other hand, had two thrashing 4-0 scorelines in 2017/18 and 2021/22, and drew the five-match series 2-2 when touring England in 2019.
Ahead of the series, former England skipper Nasser Hussain shared his thoughts on England’s preparations against Australia, who recently won the World Test Championship by beating India in the final. Hussain remarked that he is not expecting any draw in the series, given the Bazball, under the guidance of Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum, have taken the same out of the equation. Besides, considering Australia haven’t registered an outright series victory in England since 2001, Hussain believes chances for Stokes and his boys to snatch a victory this time are high.
“I can't see many draws simply because of the way England are playing, they're trying to take the draw out of the equation,” Hussain said to The ICC Review. “Australia in Australia, England have got hammered. Australia in England, Australia haven't won here, won an Ashes series since 2001, but they've always been close. I'm going to go 3-2 to England.”
Further, Hussain added England must not forget the basics of cricket in order to stay in the series till its end. The 55-year-old reckoned the Stokes-led side could emerge victorious only if they remain toe-to-toe against a dominant Australian force, who seemed an unbeatable side at The Oval while playing India last week.
“The battle doesn't start until that first ball goes down really. Predictions and banter, and to and fro chat… you may talk the talk, but make sure you go out there and walk the walk is basically the principle in Ashes battle,” Hussain concluded.