Overview

• Josh Hazlewood rates England’s top order as the strongest he has faced in an Ashes, calling the batting lineup “unbelievable.”
• Harry Brook heads to his first Test tour of Australia with minimal red-ball experience there, which Hazlewood says could free him to adapt quickly.
• Joe Root arrives as the ICC’s No. 1 Test batter and in prolific form, though he has yet to score a Test hundred in Australia.
• Hazlewood plans at least one Sheffield Shield outing to sharpen red-ball intensity before the series opener in Perth.
• He has kept match tempo through recent white-ball games against South Africa and prefers continuous play over long breaks as preparation.