The second Ashes Test between Australia and England will be played at the historic Gabba ground in Brisbane from 4 December. Before that, the Australian team has suffered a setback, because Usman Khawaja has been ruled out of the second test due to injury. Khawaja suffered a back injury during the first Test match played in Perth. The Kangaroo team has not yet announced the replacement of Khawaja. On the other hand, England has declared its playing eleven for the Gabba Test, in which there has been a major change.

Usman Khawaja was able to score only 2 runs while playing in an innings in the Perth Test. When he came to practice on Tuesday, he was seen struggling with back pain. This was a clear indication that Khawaja has not yet recovered from the injury. Josh English or Beau Webster can come in the playing eleven as his replacement. Although this has not been confirmed yet.

Josh English can be included in Australia’s playing eleven for the second test, who is coming after scoring a century against England Lions last week. The English can bat opening, allowing Travis Head to return to the middle order. Due to Khawaja’s injury, Travis Head opened in the second innings of the first Test.

England made a change

England, coming after losing the first test by 8 wickets, has made a major change in its playing eleven. Injured Markwood is out, spin bowling all-rounder Will Jacques has come in his place in the final-11. Jacques made his Test debut in the year 2022 against Pakistan in Rawalpindi. In the very first match, he created a sensation by taking a 6-wicket haul.

England’s playing eleven for the second test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer.

Also read:

8 sixes, 13 fours and Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s explosive century went in vain; Prithvi Shaw won with stormy batting

The Ashes 2025-26: The excitement of Ashes 2025 is continuously increasing. After the crushing 8-wicket defeat in Perth, England has now announced its playing XI for the second test. This match will be played in day-night format at Gabba ground in Brisbane from 4th December. The biggest change in the team is the return of spin all-rounder Will Jacques, who will replace the injured Mark Wood.

Mark Wood injured, Will Jacques gets big chance

Mark Wood had increased pain in his left knee while bowling in the series opener. After complete investigation, he has been dropped from the second test. England have included Will Jacques in his place. Who made headlines by taking 5 wickets in his Test debut on Pakistan tour in 2022. Jacques will provide additional balance to the team with both ball and bat.

No other changes have been made in the team for the second test. England are currently trailing 0-1 in the series, as the Perth Test was over in just two days and Australia had won easily.

Stokes’ statement

Despite the disappointing defeat of the first Test, captain Ben Stokes says that the team is ready to make a comeback with full strength. He said that there are still four matches left and England has full potential to win back the Ashes.

The real test for both teams in the day-night test

Gaba’s fast pitch and pink ball will make this match more challenging. England will be eyeing to level the series after the initial defeat, while Australia would like to take the lead to 2-0. This series is also a part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27, so every match is important.

England’s playing 11

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Will Jacques, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is not only known for explosive batting but also for excellent bowling. It is considered very difficult for a bowler to take 5 wickets in T20 format, because batsmen always enter the field with the intention of playing aggressively. In such a situation, the bowlers who accomplish this feat have the ability to change the outcome of their team’s match. Know who is the bowler who has taken the most 5 wickets in an innings..

James Faulkner

Australia’s James Faulkner created his own dominance in the IPL. Playing for many teams including Rajasthan Royals, he took five wickets in an innings twice. His best figure was 5/16. Faulkner’s specialty was his slower balls and deceptive line-length, which confused the batsmen many times.

Jaydev Unadkat

Experienced Indian bowler Jaydev Unadkat played for many teams but wherever he went, he maintained his ability to take wickets. He achieved the feat of taking five wickets twice in IPL. His best performance was 5/25. Even though his economy rate was a bit high, his strike rate and wicket-taking ability always made him a useful bowler for the team.

Jasprit Bumrah

Mumbai Indians star Jasprit Bumrah is considered one of the most lethal bowlers in IPL history. His yorkers, precise lines and neck-hitting bouncers spoil the batsmen’s game. Bumrah has also taken five wickets twice in the IPL, with his best performance being 5/10, which is considered to be one of the most lethal spells in the league.

mark wood

Apart from these, Mark Wood is also a part of this special club and his name appears twice in this list. Wood, known for his speed at the international level, performed brilliantly while playing for two different teams in the IPL. Be it his spell of 5/19 or 5/14 for CSK, Wood has left his mark with his pace and pace.

The 2025-26 Ashes series will be played between Australia and England from 21 November. This historic test series of five matches will start from 21st November, while the final match will be played from 4th January 2026. England has announced a 12-member team for the first test of the Ashes series. England has included five fast bowlers in the team along with off-spinner Shoaib Bashir.

The first test match is to be played between Australia and England in Perth. In such a situation, the picture of England’s playing eleven has also become almost clear. Perth is expected to get momentum and bounce. In such a situation, the English team can only stick to its strategy of relying on fast bowling attack. The England team has players like Mark Wood, Joffra Archer, Gus Atkinson, captain Ben Stokes and Brydon Carse, who can bowl at a speed of 90 miles per hour.

History of Ashes Series

The Ashes series started in the year 1882. Since then, a total of 345 matches have been played between Australia and England under this historic series, in which Australia has won 142 matches, while England has won 110 matches.

England’s 12-man squad for the first Ashes Test- Ben Duckett, Jack Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer and Shoaib Bashir.

Full schedule of 2025-26 Ashes series

First Test, November 21 – Perth, 8:00 AM IST

Second Test, December 4 – Brisbane, 9:30 am IST

Third Test, December 17 – Adelaide, 5:30 am IST

Fourth Test, December 26 – Melbourne, 5:30 am IST

Fifth Test from January 4 – Sydney, 5:30 am IST

Where to watch live in India?

Indian viewers will be able to watch the live telecast of Ashes 2025-26 on Star Sports Network. Live streaming will be available on JioHotstar app and website.

England storm bowler Mark Wood has given a big statement about Indian batsman Rohit Sharma. In a podcast, Rohit was asked which Indian batsmen had to face more difficulties in bowling. In response, Wood took the name of India’s ODI captain Rohit Sharma.

England’s speed star Mark Wood says that it is the most difficult to bowl Rohit Sharma among the Indian players who have bowled in their career so far, because when he is in rhythm, it becomes difficult to stop them.

I used to think that Rohit’s bat is getting wide- Mark Wood

Talking on ‘The Overlap Cricket’ podcast, Mark Wood said that while playing against India, he was most difficult to face. Wood said, “I will choose Rohit Sharma according to the different stages of my career. It is difficult to bowl him because while bowling the short, you feel that he has a chance to dismiss, but if he is in form that day he is in the form, he batting. So he was difficult to bowl. I always felt that ‘his bat is just widening”. “

Mark Wood is one of the fastest bowlers in recent years, who has the ability to bowl at a speed of more than 145 km per hour. He also described Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant as a tough competitor. He said, “Surely Kohli is incredible competitive. Players who I felt that the fourth and fifth stump is his weakness, but whenever I bowled him on this line, he never missed it. So he was difficult to bowl.”

Talking about Rishabh Pant, Wood said, “I think he maintains restraint. He can be so unexpected that if you always bowl the same bowling then his eyes are very fast. He hits according to will. So while bowling, you should try slow ball, high bouncer or sharp yorker.”