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Michael Vaughan may have hung his boots as a player a long time ago, but when it comes to Ashes the fire of a true Englishman comes back to life in him. Something of a similar sort happened in the studios of the Herald Sun Sport. After the end of the Test match against New Zealand, the former captain of the England cricket team came up with a combined XI of Australia and England for the next Ashes series.
Michael Vaughan picks an interesting combined XI with several Aussies
Away from bias towards his own nation, Vaughan added several Australians in his preferred combined XI squad. Taking a jibe at the selection capabilities of Vaughan, his co-host Kerry O’ Keeffe, a popular broadcaster and former Australian cricketer calls it a ‘ridiculous selection.’ ‘The skull’ as he is popularly called, O’Keeffe was particularly amused at the selection of Jacob Bethell at no.3.
O’Keeffe also disagreed with Vaughan’s reasoning behind picking Harry Brooks over Travis Head and excluding Steve Smith. While the former England captain included a number of English batters, he did pick up a number of Australian pacers in his squad including the likes of Mitchell Stark, Josh Hazelwood and Pat Cummins.
Also Read: Former Australian cricketer criticizes umpires for their handling of rain delays in AUS vs IND 3rd Test
Here’s the video:
Skull absolutely roasted Michael Vaughan for his combined XI for next year's Ashes series. 😂 pic.twitter.com/SQTTCapv1N
— Herald Sun Sport (@heraldsunsport) December 17, 2024
Michael Vaughan’s Combined XI for Ashes 2025
Ben Duckett, Usman Khawaja, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Jamie Smith (WK), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
Ashes drama to continue in Australia next year
After a like-for-like outcome in the Ashes last time around, the epitome of Test cricket action is set to resume in Australia towards the end of next year. Ashes next year will commence on November 21, 2025 in Perth followed by a day-night encounter in Brisbane between the two nations. The third test will take place in Adelaide after which a boxing day clash is set to take place in Melbourne. The Ashes will finally conclude in Sydney on January 8, 2026.
