Australia leg-spin great Shane Warne believes England could play two spinners in their quest to regain the Ashes.
Australia leg-spin great Shane Warne believes England could play two spinners in their quest to regain the Ashes.
ADVERTISEMENT
England are at home to their oldest foes in a five-match Test series starting in July.
Having won the Ashes on home soil in 2005, England were thrashed 5-0 in Australia in 2006/07.
But one area where they might have an edge on Australia is in spin bowling. Traditionally, England are reluctant to field more than one specialist slow bowler in their side when they are at home.
But off-spinner Graeme Swann, who has proved particularly effective against left-handers, has made a spectacular start to his Test career - with 33 wickets in his first six matches.
Left-armer Monty Panesar, who has troubled Australia in the past, is also available and the first Test of this year's Ashes due to be played at Cardiff, a pitch which has a reputation for taking turn.
"Now that Graeme Swann has established himself in the team and Monty Panesar is waiting in the wings, I think there's a real possibility that England will take on Australia with two spinners in their side," Warne wrote in his column in today's edition of The Times.
Commenting on the progress of Swann, 30, who played alongside Panesar at Northamptonshire before moving to Nottinghamshire, former Hampshire captain Warne said: "For Swann, it looks as though the penny may finally have dropped. "Now it seems as though his attitude has changed and he's realised that playing for England may be quite important after all.
"Swann has the added advantage that he turns the ball away from left-handers, and Australia will be bringing a few of those in their top order for the Ashes," Warne, the first bowler to take 700 Test wickets, added.
"From the way he's done against the West Indies' lefties, it seems as though he enjoys bowling at them and people such as Phillip Hughes, Simon Katich and Mike Hussey will be key wickets for England to take. Australia's batsmen have struggled against off-spin before."
Australia's spin plans were, according to Warne, not so clear-cut.
"They've yet to decide where to go with their spin options, whether to pick a specialist such as Nathan Hauritz, the off-spinner, or Bryce McGain, the leg-spinner, or whether they hope to get by with the part-time spin options offered by Katich, Michael Clarke and Marcus North.
Hughes, playing for Middlesex, has made a sensational start to his county career by scoring hundreds in his first three first-class matches in England - the first Australian to achieve this feat.
"No doubt England's coaches will be looking at footage of Hughes's Test matches against South Africa, as well as studying his performances for Middlesex," Warne said.
"I could save them the trouble and say that there are no obvious weaknesses for them to find. Most important of all, he seems to be as mentally tough as they come."
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
