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The Ashes may offer one cause for celebration, but this series will also witness the Australian team celebrate a greater number of birthdays than Timezone in the 90s. New boy Jake Weatherald celebrated his 31st a day prior to the team was announced. Nathan Lyon turns 38 the day before the Perth Test. Beau Webster reaches 32 just ahead of the Brisbane match, Usman Khawaja will be 39 on the second day in Adelaide, Josh Hazlewood becomes 35 on the fifth day in Sydney, and Mitchell Starc will be 36 before January is over.

Ageing Squad Interest Builds

For two or three years there has been growing curiosity with the average age of this side and especially the bowling attack. It is rare to have nearly all player in a Test side being over 30, aside from novelty-sized mascot Cameron Green and custody-weekend visitor Sam Konstas. But it wasn't necessarily true that older age was a disadvantage: a Test team boasting a four-man attack with 1,568 wickets between them is hardly a weakness, and it makes sense that all of those bowlers are deep into their careers.

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Perhaps what really highlighted the discussion is that the reserve players over that period, Scott Boland and Michael Neser, are also deep into their thirties. Younger bowlers have floated into squads – Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson – before vanishing for years with injuries, meaning there has been no clear line of succession.

Transition Forced by Injuries

So far, that hasn't been an issue, as the Big Four plus Boland have continued performing. Any side knows that having a batch of similarly-aged players might mean a batch of simultaneous departures, but so far change has remained hypothetical: a process that would certainly be arriving the mountain when she comes, but one that had not become visible.

Now, suddenly, change is upon them, imposed on this Aussie team in the span of a few weeks. The spinal issue to Pat Cummins was greeted with equanimity: he would likely only miss the first Test, was the Cricket Australia view, and as the first-change bowler behind Starc and Hazlewood, he could easily be covered for by Boland.

But now that Hazlewood has been sidelined with a hamstring strain, the balance undergoes a far greater shift with two players missing rather than one. Cummins and Hazlewood as the two tight-line right-armers give the balance and control that allows Starc’s left-arm speed and movement to be used more as a attacking option. Missing both of them means a major adjustment in the composition of the side. Boland handling the new ball is nothing new in his domestic career, but he has been so effective in Tests entering the attack after seven or eight overs of early pressure. Now he’ll probably have to be the man up front.

Newcomer Faces Expectations

Behind him will come Brendan Doggett, who at 31 years old himself isn't an intimidated youngster, but he might become an overawed 31-year-old. A full stadium crowd, half of it English, for the opening Test of a eagerly awaited Ashes series will not make for an easy debut, no matter how many media stories describe him as laid-back. He could be wheeled onto the ground on a banana lounge and still be anxious.

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Who knows, it might all go swimmingly for this new attack. It might not work out. What is striking is how rapidly Australia have transitioned from the certainty of Starc, Lyon, Cummins, Hazlewood to the uncertainty of Starc, Lyon, and others. Who knows what new injuries the opening match may bring. It's unknown whether Cummins will be good to go for Brisbane, and able to continue after Brisbane, given how complicated stress injuries can be. It's uncertain how long Hazlewood might be sidelined, with a track record of going down early in tournaments and a pattern of minor injuries turning into extended absences.

Outlook Uncertain

The back half of the contest may see the primary four bowlers back together and all performing well. Or it might see transition setting in much sooner than the long-term aim of 2027 in the UK. Not through Neser, who is seemingly the next option and could be a great day-night Brisbane choice, but beyond that with options unclear. Sean Abbott was in the initial squad, though he’s now also injured and has not yet played a Test. Richardson has just had his injury-prone arm put back on, and this format is no place for easing into one’s work. Beyond them lies the real unknown, and throughout it a chance for the visiting team. You can sense that change approaching, coming around the bend, and England ain’t seen the sunshine since they can't recall when.