Joe Root and Ian Bell are the two candidates to replace Jonathan Trott at No 3 in the England batting order for this week's second Ashes Test in Adelaide, batting coach Graham Gooch said on Monday.
Former cricketers Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton lampooned England's top order for their early collapse
From Joe Root vs Jasprit Bumrah's high-stakes chess match to the all-round brilliance of Ben Stokes vs Ravindra Jadeja, and from emerging face-offs like Shubman Gill vs Shoaib Bashir to K L Rahul's test against Chris Woakes, each duel carries weight far beyond statistics.
England's Jacob Bethell will bat at number three for the first time in first-class cricket when he makes his Test debut against New Zealand at Christchurch's Hagley Oval on Thursday.
IMAGES from Day 3 of the 1st Ashes Test played at the Gabba in Brisbane on Friday.
'I'm very passionate. I feel I've got the support of the men behind me to take the team forward. That's not changed at all.'
Keshav Maharaj took 4/22 as South Africa thrashed a woeful England side by seven wickets after dismissing the hosts for just 131 runs in the first One-Day International.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 1st Ashes Test played in Perth on Friday.
As a traditional innings by Joe Root turned it around for England, Jonny Bairstow lauded his 'talented' teammate following Day 1's play.
As the battle for semi-final berths intensifies in Group B, top-ranked South Africa will aim to assert their dominance and secure a spot in the final four when they face a struggling England in a high-stakes Champions Trophy clash in Karachi on Saturday.
The second day of the Lord's game ended with England on 118 for 3 wickets.
Siraj has attained a career-best 15th position in the latest ICC Test rankings
In vintage Bumrah fashion, the damage was quiet but clinical and unmistakably game-changing.
Who do you think should be part of the Indian team for the first Test against England?
Following Joe Root's shocking dismissal, England, after being well-placed on 224/2, lost their last eight wickets for 95 runs to be bowled out for 319
England were closing in on a crushing victory over Zimbabwe at the close on the second day of the one-off Test on Friday, despite opener Brian Bennett scoring the fastest Test century for the African side.
Indian batters are not known for their sweeping skills but they made a conscious effort to practise that shot in their opening net session ahead of the second Test against England beginning in Visakhapatnam on Friday.
Broad witnessed Gill's batting prowess and rich vein of form, but he didn't hold back from praising the 25-year-old, who continues to prove himself as a captain players would want to play for.
'Hussain was baffled by England's top three approach on Edgbaston's flat surface when the ball was slightly swinging.
Australia Test wicketkeeper Alex Carey termed India's thrilling win over England in the fifth Test as 'spectacular'.
Images from Day 3 in the second Test between England and India, at Lord's, on Saturday.
Expect nothing less than hostility, fire and close contests as Ben Stokes' England come armed with their Bazball philosophy to try and get the better of a depleted Australia.
Charismatic England batter Joe Root has advocated consistency to counter India in the upcoming five-Test series, saying "there's no hiding place" when it comes to facing such an indomitable opponent.
'I'm worried. We're going to wander in and have a little game with the 'A' team. (It will be) 'Alright mate, how are you? Good on ya' and we're going to go and perform?'
Joe Root delivered a T20 masterclass to steer the Royals to an equally thrilling eight-wicket victory over Pretoria Capitals at Centurion.
Daryl Mitchell's runs had steered the hosts to their victories in Tauranga and Hamilton and when he departed for 44 to leave his team still 27 runs from their target on 196-8, the English scented an unlikely victory.
India all-rounder Shardul Thakur on Thursday lauded Rishabh Pan't "unmatched" courage and pain threshold after the latter came out to bat on day two of the fourth Test against England with a broken foot.
Root and all-rounder Moeen Ali (28) stitched together a patient 91-run partnership to steady the ship.
Saud Shakeel missed out on a hundred but Salman Agha smashed a brisk 79 not out to propel Pakistan to a commanding 515 for eight at tea on the second day of the contest on Tuesday.
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 2nd Ashes Test played at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide on Tuesday
Captain Joe Root has already plundered an English record 1,630 Test runs in 2021 and has two half-centuries in the Ashes series so far with 89 in Brisbane and 62 in Adelaide as his side slipped to two heavy defeats.
Yashasvi Jaiswal was "disappointed" on missing a century by a whisker, but amazed by Test captain Shubman Gill's "incredible" effort that powered India to a comfortable position at the end of the opening day of the second Test against England, at Edgbaston, on Wednesday.
England captain Joe Root is under no illusions about his batting slump and recognises if his side are going to win the second match in Hamilton and level the two-Test series against New Zealand then he needs to make a substantial contribution.
Maybe Shubman Gill didn't want Shardul Thakur , wanted Kuldeep Yadav: Sunil Gavaskar questions captain's say in XI
England have already announced their 11-man team for the match against Ireland. Pacer James Anderson has been ruled out of the match as he was unable to recover from his calf injury.
IMAGES from Day 4 of the fourth Ashes Test between England and Australia at Old Trafford in Manchester on Saturday.
Australia dominated day two of the second Ashes Test on Friday with a punishing batting assault on a lifeless Gabba pitch as England fumbled their chances in the field.
Gill earns glory with maiden double hundred, puts India on top in second Test
England were 301/3 in pursuit of 374 when the 26-year-old Brook's dismissal triggered a collapse on the fourth day of the fifth Test in London that the home side lost by six runs on Monday. With that result, India tied the series at 2-2.
India's Bumrah produced a devastating spell in the morning, dismissing Ben Stokes, Joe Root and Chris Woakes before Archer struck with his third delivery to remove Yashasvi Jaiswal in his first test for four years.
