Will Joe Root fix the anomaly?

England’s Joe Root bats v Sri Lanka in Manchester last month. Pic/AFP

Despite playing a meaningful innings against a moderate Sri Lankan attack, Ollie Pope needs more convincing knocks away from his home ground to prove he's a substantial number three batsman.

Otherwise, Pope is in danger of becoming the polar opposite of Joe Root - a capable captain with a feel for the job but an inconsistent batsman.

Root on the other hand, is a batsman - especially in England - who is as consistent as night follows day, but his captaincy attributes were negligible. Root is currently in imperious form but he'll be bordering on 35 years of age by the time the next Australian tour takes place in November 2025.

While Root has a passable average in Australia there's the not-so-minor fact that in 27 innings he's yet to compile a Test century in the country. Those knocks were all played when Root was at the peak of his powers so this will probably be his last chance to rectify that anomaly.

On Root's three tours of Australia, England have lost 13 of the 15 Tests played. England's former skipper is yet to experience the thrill of victory in Australia and this is another major hurdle. The scars are unhealed.

Batting in the middle-order Pope had a poor last tour of Australia and should be considered a potential weakness. It's not just Pope's renowned skittishness which should interest the Australian pace bowlers, but there are also some technical flaws that can be exploited.

Pope, a potential weakness

The Australian pace bowlers will hope to break the risk-taking opening partnership and bring Pope to the crease early. If they then dismiss Pope quickly it means the ever dangerous Root will be batting while the ball still has plenty of shine. That is a dream situation under Australian conditions.

If Australia do cause concerns for Pope and England are forced to omit him then the crucial number three spot becomes a revolving door. Currently, the English squad are limited in players who are qualified to do a sound job at number three. Without Pope, England would also be missing a suitable replacement captain if Ben Stokes suffers an injury.

That would be a crucial double blow to England. However, Australia's excellent pace attack is also at a stage where age has a diminishing effect. Only Pat Cummins, who is also a fine captain, will be at the not-so-worrying age of 32. Both Mitchell Starc who'll be 35 by the time England tour and Josh Hazlewood age 34 are at a point where skill decline and injury have a detrimental effect. Off-spinner Nathan Lyon is also in that category and aging is more of a concern for bowlers than it is for excellent batsmen like Root.

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Meanwhile, Australia received the news they've probably been expecting but were dreading - opener Will Pucovski most likely going to be missing from their ranks following medical assessment.

Who will replace Warner?

An in-form and healthy Pucovski would be a blessing for Cummins's team following the retirement of David Warner with his pugnacious skill. Australia now have a season to unearth a suitable replacement for Warner or else they'll have to continue the unsatisfactory experiment of using Steve Smith as an opener.

Unfortunately, Pucovski's technique against short-pitched bowling was laid bare at first-class level. It was absolutely disastrous by 2024 when Tasmanian quick Riley Meredith floored him in a Sheffield Shield match. Pucovski became a concern for any selection panel and by this stage nobody could risk choosing him for Australia.

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In his current cricketing and mental state, it'll be a blessing if Pucovski is left to continue his rehabilitation in virtual anonymity.

In the meantime, England are wisely pursuing a policy of choosing players who can have a positive effect under Australian conditions.

Whilst this is an admirable policy, England's bigger priority is for Pope to find consistently good form and cement the crucial number three position. If Pope is still mis-firing, then England's tour in 2025-26 could be another frivolous trip to Australia.