Glenn McGrath has predicted a five-nil clean sweep for Australia against England in the 2025-26 home Ashes. The legendary former pacer said he’d be interested in seeing if the visitors can win a single
Test on the tour, against the home side’s quality bowling attack and with their own record Down Under.
England haven’t won an Ashes Test in Australia since 2010-11. The last three series here ended with scorelines of 5-0, 4-0, and 4-0 in favor of Australia. The same thing that has always worked for the Aussies is what McGrath believes in too: the well-set bowling combination, which is in the final phases of their international careers together but still firing on all cylinders.
“It’s very rare for me to make a prediction, isn’t it? And I can’t make a different one – 5-0,” McGrath declared on BBC Radio, as quoted by PTI. “I’m very confident with our team. When you’ve got Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon firing in their home conditions, it’s going to be pretty tough. Plus, that track record England have had, it’d be interesting to see if they can win a Test,” he added.
The difference from the English side is that of BazBall. This will be the first away Ashes under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, the two metronomes credited not as much for changing the team’s results as for bringing in a new, attacking philosophy to get the best out of the team.
“Brook’s the one that I’ve enjoyed watching,” McGrath said. “He just goes out there, plays his game, and takes it on. The Australians will need to get on him pretty early. Ben Duckett is such an aggressive opener. Zak Crawley would be keen to score a few more runs than he has previously. I love seeing sportspeople go out there and play without fear. That’s what Baz is looking to bring into this England team – play without fear. I’d like to see a bit more accountability and the mental side of the game, just them switched on a bit more. It’s exciting.”
The series would also be a big test for Joe Root, the recently-minted second-highest run-scorer in the format’s history who is yet to score a Test century in Australia.
“This series will be a big one for Root. He’s never really done that well in Australia; he’s not even got a 100 over there, so he’ll be keen to get out there. He’s in fine form,” McGrath said.
