Australia's chairman of selectors has told England now is not the time to dismiss his side's chances of regaining the Ashes, despite the controversy currently engulfing the tourists. Title-holders Australia's early exit from the Champions Trophy tournament in the UK, which included a defeat by arch-rivals England, was compounded when David Warner was suspended until next month' first Test for a bar-room attack on home batsman Joe Root and fined Aus$11,500 (£7,000, $11,000).
It all raised fresh questions about the squad's discipline, particularly in the light of the 'homework' incident in India earlier this year when four Australia players were made to miss a Test for failing to provide feedback requested by team management during the course of a 4-0 series loss. Meanwhile captain Michael Clarke, now Australia's best batsman, hasn't played a competitive match since March due to a recurrence of a back injury he suffered in India and was absent again as the team's Champions Trophy exit was confirmed by Monday's 20-run loss to Sri Lanka at The Oval.
Australia's 16-man Ashes squad lacks the stellar names of recent times, with Ricky Ponting, now playing for English county Surrey, among the absentees. But John Inverarity, Australia's chairman of selectors, insisted the Ashes squad contained the "best players available" and that history showed Australia teams written off before a tour of England had a habit of making critics eat their words.
"In 1968 it was said that we had one of the weakest squads, that was 1-1," former Test batsman Inverarity, last man out when a Derek Underwood-inspired England won the final Test at The Oval but Australia retained the Ashes, told BBC Radio's Test Match Special. "And another time I remember the English press said it was most certainly the weakest team to come to England was in 1989 and Australia won the series 4-0. "We have got in that squad of 16 the best players available. "We are looking forward to them acquitting themselves well and we will see what happens."