England's primary focus for the last 18 months has been building a side capable of beating Australia on home turf, only to find the squad they landed on unable to keep the series alive past 11 days of play.
Despite their win in Melbourne, the 2025/26 Ashes series will go down as one of England's most disappointing in history. Ben Stokes' ethos as captain was forged in the 2021/22 Ashes series in Australia, where Covid restrictions and internal fractures left England players miserable, and that misery bleeding onto the pitch. In addition to instilling a relaxed atmosphere into his group of players, 18 months out from the 2025/26 series, Stokes and the rest of England's management set about building a squad which would give England their best chance of winning an Ashes series Down Under since 2011.
Despite trialling and discarding 14 players for various lengths of time in that period, when England's cards were laid on the table, they were still nowhere near good enough. Now, with the Ashes gone again and another rebuild looming, it's worth looking back at those players who didn't make the cut, and whether hindsight says that, maybe, one or two of them might have made a difference.
The oldies
Let's start with the grandee generation, those who have been on several previous Ashes tour and were quietly, or not so quietly, moved onto the sidelines to make room for new faces. The most prominent of those is obviously James Anderson. England's greatest-ever bowler was keen to continue playing into his fifth decade, but a meeting with Rob Key, Stokes and Brendon McCullum ahead of the 2024 summer proved to be his horse's head moment. The Anderson decision is hard to fall down on one side of. With Stuart Broad already retired and Anderson still demanding a place in the side, it was hard for Stokes to truly craft a bowling attack in the mould he wanted, fast and hostile to suit Australian pitches. Nevertheless, Anderson could have co-existed alongside the likes of Mark Wood, Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue, and given Gus Atkinson's struggles in Australia and that Brydon Carse was given the new ball at the MCG, Anderson's experience could have been highly valuable in Australia.
Chris Woakes, having played a shining role in the 2023 Ashes, was another discard. This is clearer cut. Woakes dislocated his shoulder at the end of the summer and faced an uphill rehab battle to make the Ashes. While his overseas numbers have improved, he averaged 51.83 with the ball in Australia, and took a wicket on average once for every 95 balls he bowled.
Perhaps the one which hindsight shows in the most wistful light is Jonny Bairstow. Bairstow was one of England's most successful batters in Australia since 2011, the only England player to score multiple hundreds Down Under in that time. His ability to stand-up in the biggest moments, enjoy the to and fro with the crowd that's part and parcel of Australian Ashes, and go toe-to-toe with Australia is appealing compared to England players who have shrunk in the face of the challenge – something no one could ever accuse Bairstow of.
Long-term trials
Now we have the players who were given long-term trials, the ones who looked like they would make the cut for Australia only to fade away. Ben Foakes' silver gloves haven't been seen in England colours since the 2024 India tour, when England decided they needed to combine the wicketkeeper role with a batter who more fitted their vision. While Jamie Smith is the player for the future, his errors behind the stumps and rushes of blood with the bat this series have drawn questions over his place.
The biggest aura of 'what-if' surrounds Ollie Robinson. His relationship with the England staff and dressing room has broken down so much as to eclipse his astounding Test numbers. Robinson's bowling almost certainly would have been an asset in Australia, if his fitness problems were resolved. He could have gone into the series as England's attack leader, instead, he was playing grade cricket far away from the action.
Then, there are the spinners. England have yet to play a specialist spinner this series, with Shoaib Bashir's role in the side having rapidly unravelled. Perhaps, if England had stuck with Jack Leach they would have had more confidence throwing an experienced hand into the side on a turning deck in Adelaide. Nevertheless, it's worth remembering that the 2021/22 series wasn't pretty for Leach. Perhaps Rehan Ahmed was the way to go, given that England made a surprise selection in Will Jacks before the series. England have still yet to decide what their best use is for Rehan, and now they've got another four-year cycle to make their minds up.
Seasonal wonders
Three players were given multiple Tests, or an entire series to prove they should be in England's plans, before falling by the wayside. Alex Lees was the one for England's first Bazball summer, but ultimately it was Zak Crawley England chose before Ben Duckett came in, with the opening partnership locked out for good. When Crawley was injured in the summer of 2024, Dan Lawrence filled the gap. However, his difficulties opening the batting meant he slipped down the pecking order as England's spare bat, with Jacob Bethell, Will Jacks and several others now likely above him. Spare a moment for Tom Hartley as well, who, after the series in India has yet to make another England squad.
One and done
Lastly, there are the flash in the pan, quick judgement rejects. The most memorable of these is probably Josh Hull, who was thrown in for the final Test of the 2024 summer at The Oval, and floated as a potential option for Australia down the line. In reality, he was given a game because he's six foot seven, and at 20 years old, who knew whether he actually might good or not? As it turned out, he was too raw to be a serious Ashes option, despite being included for the squad to tour Pakistan the following winter.
Among other bowlers who fell early in the quest to find an Ashes-ready bowling group were Olly Stone and Sam Cook. Stone came back from injury to prop up England's injured attack at the end of the India series, but was always to struggle to compete with the big pace guns for Australia. Cook was finally selected against Zimbabwe, after years of calls for his inclusion. However, he failed to make a significant impression for that game, and his numbers in Australia didn't fill in the gaps for what England were looking for in their fire-breathing attack.
Two other spinners round out the list. Liam Livingstone made his Test debut in Pakistan in 2022, the same series in which Jacks was last included before his Ashes call-up. Liam Dawson was also passed over after one Test match against India last summer, and was perhaps the last to lose his seat on the plane.
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