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Usman Khawaja is already certain to miss the second Test for Australia after being unable to open while suffering back spasms in Perth. That of course opened the door for Travis Head to take the game away from England with a blistering century and the expectation is that the powerhouse will bat at the top of the order again in Brisbane. What time means for Khawaja – who turns 39 this month – could well be decided in the middle over the next two (please, no) to five days. Geoff Lemon has been busy pondering what it all means for the veteran and the future of this Australia outfit.
Right now Australia are saying Khawaja is still in the plan, staying with the squad in Brisbane for his treatment. If he can storm back to have a decisive influence in the final three Tests, it would be a wonderful story to round out a career that has already given us several. But there’s a point at which Khawaja becomes Homer Simpson’s giant sandwich, and the team clinging on for too long faces a health hazard.
Currently, nobody else knows what they are doing because the injured opener is the variable. Head doesn’t know if he has that job for a season or a week. Inglis won’t know if he’s coming in with licence to attack the series over four Tests, or needing a huge score from one. The argument for keeping Khawaja around since David Warner’s retirement has been stability, but right now he is the main destabilising influence on this team.
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We might have to wait to find out the Australia XI until either Pat Cummins or Steve Smith walk on to the Gabba alongside England captain Ben Stokes for the toss. But Geoff Lemon has already dived into what that call will mean for the hosts and the second Test.
Cummins, it seems, is now feeling good enough in training that waiting for the third Test in Adelaide seems excessive. But overnight nerves might get the better of anyone in the decision-making chain, pondering the fallout that would await them if that comeback turned out to be too soon. That leaves a nation of Australians in the highly unusual position of going to sleep the night before a Test match without knowing who will captain the team the next day. The stand-in, Steve Smith, took the press conference as though he would do the job, but declined to confirm that this would be the case.
If Cummins returns, the cards in the dealer’s hands could be whisked in various ways around the table. Perhaps in order to mitigate the number of overs required of him, he could be part of a four-man pace attack and replace Nathan Lyon. That might also mean bringing Beau Webster into the middle order, given he could offer spin. If Cummins plays alongside Lyon, instead replacing Brendan Doggett as one of three quicks, Webster could still be included to bowl backup seam alongside Cameron Green.
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The plot thickens at the Gabba with one of Australia’s heroes of the first Test, Travis Head, heading into the middle for a sighter of the pitch with pads on and bat in hand.
Travis Head inspects the pitch at the Gabba before play starts on day one of the second Ashes Test. Photograph: Dave Hunt/EPAShare
I promised the conjecture would continue and especially over whether Pat Cummins would be injected into the Australia XI after impressing in the nets in Brisbane. But if being left out of the squad was the first sign that the fast bowler would have to wait a little longer before playing a part in this Ashes series, Steve Smith inspecting the pitch alongside coach Andrew McDonald – rather than the formal Test captain – could be the strongest pointer yet.
Cummins arrived earlier at the Gabba wearing a polo shirt, while the other Australia players are decked out in their training shirts. This could be elite attention to detail from Australia, but feels more likely to be the end of the fun n games.
Steve Smith inspects the wicket at the Gabba alongside Australia head coach Andrew McDonald before play on day one of the second Ashes Test. Photograph: Dave Hunt/AAPShare
Preamble
Martin Pegan
We’re back! After a two-day taster of the most highly anticipated Ashes on Australian soil for years, if not decades, was followed by 12 days of fresh dissection, discussion and debate, the second Test finally begins in Brisbane this afternoon. Welcome to day one of the second Test of the 2025-26 Ashes.
The conjecture continues with Australia yet to name their XI for the pink-ball Test at the Gabba. Captain Pat Cummins is in line for a late call-up after being left out of the squad as he recovers from a back injury, while Josh Inglis is widely expected to slide into the middle order and allow Travis Head to reprise his rollicking role as opener in the absence of Usman Khawaja. All will be revealed at the toss, stand-in skipper Steve Smith promised yesterday, as the Australia outfit unusually plays their cards close to their chest.
Australia captain Pat Cummins and head coach Andrew McDonald arrive at the Gabba for a training session ahead of the second Ashes Test. Photograph: Chris Hyde/Getty Images
There are fewer surprises in the England camp as Will Jacks has already been picked in the XI. The batting all-rounder replaces Mark Wood in the side that collapsed to defeat in the Ashes opener, as the speed demon is forced out – as a precaution, we are told – due to soreness in the left knee that he happened to have surgery on earlier this year. But whether the tourists double down and roll out the same captivating yet chaotic strategy remains to be seen. It lifted England to a promising position in Perth before their own blunders with the bat and Head’s heroics loosened their grip on the first Test in a matter of hours and they quickly fell behind 1-0 in the series.
More chaos can be expected in Brisbane in the next few days – and hopefully longer – as the city again hosts a day-night Test. Australia are vastly more experienced in the varied conditions and tactics that come with the pink ball being delivered across the afternoon, dusk and early evening, and have won 13 of the 14 day-night Tests they have played. But the one blemish on that record came the last time they played with the pink ball at the Gabba, when West Indies stunned the hosts under lights in January 2024. The Gabbatoir is not quite the fortress that it once was for Australia, but they have not lost to their oldest rivals at the venue since 1986.
This iteration of England under captain Ben Stokes seeks to separate themselves from those that came before but have even more history to rewrite than they might like in Brisbane. They have lost five of their seven day-night Tests, and last played with the pink ball in February 2023, though that at least ended with a victory over New Zealand at Mount Maunganui. Of more concern might be the threat of falling 2-0 behind, knowing that only one side – under the guidance of a certain Don Bradman in 1936-37 – has overturned such a deficit to win an Ashes series.
There is still an hour to go before the toss and confirmed teams – with first ball to be bowled at 2pm in Brisbane / 3pm AEDT / 4am GMT. Plenty of time to get in touch with your thoughts and predictions for the second Test and perhaps beyond – drop me an email or find me @martinpegan on Bluesky or X.
In the meantime, I’ll help you catch up on all that has happened during the frankly painstaking 12-day fallow period between Tests, and in the lead up to the day-nighter at the Gabba. Let’s get into it …
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