Last Updated on 2 months ago by Charbel Coorey

The Ashes are on our doorstep, with many salivating matchups in store. Jofra Archer against Steve Smith. Mark Wood against Marnus Labuschagne, who averages just 16 against the quick bowler. Mitchell Starc leading the attack against Ben Stokes and co. Scott Boland against the nation he decimated on debut four years ago.

Plus, crucially, how will Australia cope without Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood for the first Test? Can England take advantage?

These questions will be answered courtesy not only of the headline matchups, but a few others that can help decide the course of a match. Here is a look at five.

More obsure matchups to look forward to in the 2025/26 Ashes

Cameron Green vs. Joe Root

Cameron Green got the nod over Beau Webster for the all-rounder spot. Green’s pace is one of the key factors in his selection, plus the bounce he can generate.

It will be fascinating to see if Australia look to Green to target Joe Root early. The all-rounder dismissed England’s premier batsman twice in similar fashion in the 2021/22 Ashes, catching the outside edge in the channel.

Green has bowled 119 deliveries to Root in Tests in Australia. England’s number four has scored 49 runs at an average of 24.5 and strike rate of 41.2.

Nathan Lyon vs. Ollie Pope

Nathan Lyon was on the periphery for a large part of the Australia-India Test series last year. There have even been calls to leave him out of the XI altogether and play an additional pace bowler.

However, don’t sleep on Lyon and the impact he can have. He was the best bowler in the 2023 Ashes until he suffered a serious calf injury at Lord’s, taking regular wickets as England looked to target him.

Lyon against the England batters promises to be a terrific contest. The offspinner has forged a very successful career courtesy of his overspin and drop on Australian surfaces. If England take him on, they need to pick their deliveries well and be strategic as to where they place the ball on grounds with larger boundaries compared those in the UK.

One such battle to watch out for is Lyon against Ollie Pope. England’s number three has a tendency to play spin with very low hands and pushes hard out in front of his body; a dangerous proposition with the bounce Lyon generates.

Ben Stokes vs Steve Smith

Steve Smith has scored 330 Test runs at an average of 82.5 against Ben Stokes. However, Stokes’ bowling has gone up a level in 2025, generating movement both ways at good pace.

The England captain was England’s best and most consistent bowler in the 2-2 series draw against India. Should Smith negotiate Archer and Wood in particular, he will also have to contend with Stokes who has the ability to angle the ball in and then take it away both in the air and off the pitch.

This could potentially trouble Smith who has made truckloads of runs against the delivery angling into him.

Brydon Carse vs Travis Head

Archer and Wood, understandably, are England’s most spoken-of bowlers. However, Brydon Carse’s ability to hit the deck hard makes him a dangerous proposition for Australia.

Expect England to bowl tight lines to Travis Head. With Carse able to extract bounce off the surface, it is a battle that Australia’s number five needs to be aware of.

In ODIs, Carse has dismissed Head thrice in 35 balls for 55 runs. Granted, it’s a different format, but the helter-skelter nature of the matchup can easily spill over into Tests as well.

Scott Boland vs Harry Brook

The likes of Michael Atherton have been quick to discount Scott Boland after the pace bowler struggled in the 2023 Ashes.

“Boland has a fine record, but holds no fear for a batting line-up that took him for almost five runs an over in the drawn series in 2023, when he took just two wickets in two matches,” wrote Atherton in his October piece for The Times.

One player who will look to take on Boland (and pretty much everyone else) is Harry Brook. England’s number five is crucial, and if he gets going, there is every chance that Ben Stokes’ team regain the coveted urn.

But, the Boland-Brook battle promises to be a cracker given the pace bowler’s ability to bowl the nip-backer in Australian conditions. It is a delivery Brook has had issues with in the past. In his stance, Brook’s head is lined up outside the offstump at the point of delivery, making it tricky to adjust to incoming deliveries.

Whether he can overcome that in this series will be fascinating to see.