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The historic Ashes series may offer a reason to cheer, but this series will also see the Australian team host more birthday parties than Timezone in the 90s. Recent addition Jake Weatherald celebrated his thirty-first birthday a day prior to the team was named. Nathan Lyon turns 38 the day preceding the Test in Perth. Beau Webster turns 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 out.

Older Squad Fascination Builds

For a couple of years there has been mounting fascination with the age of this side and especially the bowling unit. It is rare to have almost every player in a Test side being above thirty, except for young mascot Cameron Green and custody-weekend visitor Sam Konstas. But it didn’t logically follow that older age was a problem: a Test team featuring a four-man attack with 1,568 wickets between them is hardly a disadvantage, and it stands to reason that all of those bowlers are well into their careers.

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Perhaps what most amplified the discussion is that the reserve players over that time, Scott Boland and Michael Neser, are also deep into their 30s. Younger bowlers have briefly joined teams – Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson – before disappearing for years with injury, meaning there has been no clear line of succession.

Change Imposed by Setbacks

So far, that hasn't been an issue, as the Big Four plus Boland have kept on backing up. Any team knows that having a batch of same-generation players might mean a group of simultaneous departures, but so far change has remained theoretical: a process that would certainly be arriving the mountain when she comes, but one that hadn’t yet steamed into view.

Now, abruptly, change is upon them, forced upon this Aussie team in the space of a few weeks. The spinal issue to Pat Cummins was greeted with equanimity: he would likely only miss the opening match, was the Cricket Australia assessment, and as the first bowling change behind Starc and Hazlewood, he could comfortably be covered for by Boland.

But now that Hazlewood has gone down with a hamstring injury, the team balance undergoes a much more significant shift with two players missing rather than a single one. Cummins and Hazlewood as the two accurate right-arm bowlers give the balance and control that allows Starc’s left-arm speed and movement to be used more as a attacking option. Losing both of them means a fundamental shift in the composition of the team. Boland handling the new ball is not unusual in his first-class career, but he has been so effective in Test matches entering the attack after seven or eight overs of initial onslaught. Now he’ll probably have to be the man up front.

Debutant Confronts Expectations

Behind him will come Brendan Doggett, who at thirty-one years of age himself won’t be an overawed youth, but he might become an nervous thirty-one-year-old. A packed stadium, partly English, for the opening Test of a deliriously anticipated Ashes series will not make for an simple first match, no matter how many media stories portray him as laid-back. He could be wheeled onto the field on a banana lounge and still be anxious.

Register to The Spin

Who knows, it might all go smoothly for this new attack. It might not. What is striking is how quickly Australia have moved from the surety of Starc, Lyon, Cummins, Hazlewood to the unknown of Starc, Lyon, and others. Who knows what further injuries the opening match may cause. It's unknown whether Cummins will be fit for Brisbane, and able to continue after Brisbane, given how complicated stress fractures can be. Who knows how long Hazlewood might be sidelined, with a track record of going down early in tournaments and a history of initially small injuries becoming longer layoffs.

Outlook Unclear

The latter part of the contest may see the primary four bowlers back together and all performing well. Or it might experience transition beginning much earlier than the long-term aim of 2027 in England. Not through Neser, who is seemingly next in line and could be a excellent pink-ball Brisbane option, but after that with choices unclear. Sean Abbott was in the initial squad, though he’s now also hurt and has not yet played a Test match. Richardson has just had his crash-test-dummy arm repaired, and this level is no place for easing into one’s work. Beyond them lies the true uncertainty, and throughout it opportunity for the opposing side. You can sense that train approaching, rolling round the bend, and England hasn't seen the sunshine since they can't recall when.