The culmination of 2021 is a bid to regain The Ashes when England head Down Under in the fall. Previous tours of Australia have not ended well for them, and time is running out for captain Joe Root and the ECB selectors to address some longstanding issues.
One major problem facing England that was again apparent during their Test series in India is consistency from those opening with the bat. This particular form of cricket requires discipline at the crease, especially in pressure situations and unfamiliar conditions overseas.
Those who cannot keep their composure and bat until the heat is off do little for England's cause. What Root and England head coach Chris Silverwood wouldn't give to have an opener of former captain Sir Alastair Cook's calm poise still available for selection at the top of the order.
The lack of consistency with the current options was perhaps no better demonstrated than in the final hour of the third day of the second Test played at Chennai against India. England's bowlers had toiled getting the tail enders of the hosts all out, and needed to keep things tight for the 19 overs that were left for them in to bat before stumps at the end of the day.
Three wickets, including a nightwatchman, fell for 50 runs. Already chasing a mammoth total, England were well and truly on the backfoot. It's not the first time those trying to stake a claim at the top of their order since Cook's international retirement have let the side down either.
In their victories and best moments of recent years, the likes of Root and all-rounder Ben Stokes have had to bear the burden of scoring runs squarely on their shoulders alone at times. Who can forget the famous Headingley last stand partnership the latter had with Jack Leach during the previous Ashes series on English soil?
That ended in an indecisive draw in 2019, something which according to the cricket betting on The Ashes of 2021-22, is 6.00 to happen again as of February 16. Australia are firm favorites to retain the famous urn on their own pitches, while England are 3.50 to pull off a shock series win Down Under.
Unless there is more on a regular basis from whatever combination of Rory Burns, Dom Sibley, Dan Lawrence and Zack Crawley makes up the top three, it is hard to see anything other than Australia winning. They only seem to be putting their best feet forward at home or against inferior opposition.
Sibley made a solid 87 in his opening innings of the first Test against India, but couldn't build on that. Even his contribution to that victory was overshadowed by a fabulous double century from Root, who spent almost nine hours at the crease before the hosts' bowlers could finally remove him lbw.
Although Sibley batted for nearly six-and-a-quarter hours himself, it was an exception rather than the rule. Getting in and staying in on a regular basis simply seems beyond England's current crop of opening batsmen.
In an era where so much limited overs cricket, including the IPL with its lucrative contracts, is played, it's probably no wonder to find discipline lacking among the modern openers. T20 competitions like that are all about smash and grab aggression.
With World Test Championship finalists New Zealand and India to also visit England this summer, some Ashes preparation can be done on home soil. The way that those in contention to open the batting have played in Asia over this winter is a mixed bag, though.
The Ashes will be some of the most keenly contested cricket matches played anywhere in the world. Root needs others to step up before he even comes to the crease if there is any chance of being competitive in Australia.
That the same issue continues to rear its ugly head for England remains a worry for their Ashes hopes. A lack of experience and nous of playing Down Under puts Australia in pole position.