I f it feels like the buildup to this Ashes series has lasted 842 days that is because it pretty much has. Test cricket’s oldest rivalry resumes on Friday inside Perth’s 60,000-seat thunderdome and with it, mercifully, comes fresh fuel for the ever-raging fire.

Because on one level the Ashes never really starts or stops. Since Stuart Broad nicked off Alex Carey at the Oval on 31 July 2023 – the final act of a dramatic 2-2 draw – the sides have been tracking each other, all while their supporters chip away from afar. Ashes 2025-26: Guardian writers’ predictions for the series Read more

To the rest of the world this obsession must get a bit tiresome. In recent years, India having won in Australia in 2018-19 and 2022-23 , and lost a classic here 12 months ago, there has even been t

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