England are just over a month away from naming their first Test squad of the summer, and the race to be a part of the pace pack is as open as it’s been in the post Anderson-Broad era.
The attack of high pace and hostility that was crafted for the Ashes ended up being mostly decimated in Australia. Mark Wood was injured out of the series after sending down just 11 overs, and it looks unlikely that he’ll ever put on the whites again. Without him, the attack lacked experience and struggled for penetration, which was compounded when Jofra Archer was injured out of the final two Tests.
Wood apart, England’s Ashes pace group are young enough, and built up enough credit before the series, to still be in contention now. But England's desire to shake up the Test team has opened the door for those who didn’t make that tour.
Fit and first choice: Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson
Tongue came out of Australia with the most credit in the bank. He was one of the few bright spots for England during a demoralising two months, and finished the series with 18 wickets in three matches, the exasperating point being that he was only introduced when England were already two down. In the Melbourne Test, he became the first English bowler this century to take a five-wicket haul at the MCG. The stage is set for Tongue to now take a leadership role in the attack. He fits all the key metrics England like, at 6ft 4in with genuine pace, and the ability to use it cannily. He’s Steve Smith’s kryptonite, and his ability to rip through the tailenders is prized.
If Tongue manages to sustain a period of fitness and move on from the injuries which have dogged his career so far, he’ll be standing alongside Atkinson as the new-ball bowler and enforcer duo England will look to build their attack around. Atkinson was the major beneficiary of Anderson's retirement, upstaging his final Test in a breakout debut year in Test cricket. Nevertheless, he struggled in Australia and was dropped for the third Test before a hamstring injury ruled him out of the fifth. While there’s an argument Atkinson could have had more luck, his drop-off in pace was noticeable. However, his previous body of work is still enough to mark him out above the rest, with Australia his first bad series since debuting in 2024.
Absent and injured: Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse
England’s master plan to have Archer fit for the Ashes was crafted years out, and worked to decent effect. He provided the heat and bite with and without the ball in hand that England banked on him for and, even without the returns they might have wanted, he’s still their x-factor. Currently in the IPL, what the vision for Archer’s England career looks like beyond the Ashes is still unclear. Likely, it’s to find a balance between playing as much Test cricket as his body is able to, with a vision to win back the Ashes on home soil in 2027, while also fulfilling his lucrative white-ball commitments.
Brydon Carse's winter was tough. While he kept running in, and was the only bowler to make it through all five Tests, he was wayward and expensive. He came under particular heat when Mark Waugh described his pitch map during the Brisbane Test as “third-grade standard”. While he was the differential in England’s 2024/25 winter tours of Pakistan and New Zealand before a passable summer, Carse now seems in limbo. He was injured out of the IPL before it started, preventing him from re-staking his claim as the third prong of England's attack.
New-ball specialists: Sam Cook, Ollie Robinson, Matthew Potts, Matthew Fisher
England lacked new-ball bowlers capable of extracting what the Kookaburra had to offer early most of all in Australia. They discarded Sam Cook after one outing against Zimbabwe, despite his good record in Australia on multiple Lions tours. There’s also the continued absence of Ollie Robinson, and whether time and wickets are enough of a healer for that particular rift. Cook is second on the wicket-takers list for the Championship so far this season, and Robinson started his first year as Sussex captain with a five-for. Both could force their selection tension to a head with Archer at the IPL and a partner for Atkinson needed early on.
Then, there are the two Matthews, both of whom made it into England’s Australia group. Potts played one Test in the Ashes, one he would like to forget. He bowled 25 wicketless overs and conceded 141 runs. It’s not hard to feel a certain amount of sympathy for Potts, who’s always occupied a fairly ambiguous role for England. He opens the bowling for Durham but has only done so for England a handful of times. Since losing his place to Robinson in 2022, he has never had a prolonged run in the side, coming in exclusively as injury and workload cover. Potts has had a good start to the 2026 summer, and if he can recapture his 2022 form, could yet come again. Another rung down is Fisher, who came into the Ashes squad as cover late on but didn’t play. Nevertheless, since moving to Surrey at the start of last year, he’s steadily climbed back into England consideration.
The high-pace bolter: Sonny Baker
Baker was picked out as potential bolter for the Ashes squad last year, but ultimately his disappointing white-ball debuts stunted his rise. However, his early outings for Hampshire this season have shown a reversion to his linear progress 12 months ago. He took three wickets in one over against Yorkshire, and almost inspired a last-gasp victory over Somerset. It’s assumed that Baker will play Test cricket at some point, but with Carse out injured and Archer in the IPL, his path as a second enforcer might now be at its clearest.
Any other business: Rising stars
Henry Crocombe currently leads the wicket-taking standings in Division One. He dismissed Joe Root four runs short of a century in the former England captain’s first outing of the season, having taken nine in the match in the opening round of the summer. Alongside the likes of Nathan Gilchrist and George Hill, those three form a group on England’s radar for potential future Test honours, even if they’re not close to selection at the minute.
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