England and Australia will today renew cricket’s oldest rivalry in the first match of the 2025 Ashes, though some worry the heat has gone out of the biennial contest.
In a series of five-day Test matches, held since the 19th century, the two nations compete for a trophy so named because an early, thumping Australian victory prompted a sports journalist to pen an “obituary” for English cricket.
Over the past decade, England’s struggles have resumed — it has not won the Ashes since 2015. As a result, this year’s edition is especially critical for the cricketing side, The Guardian wrote: “Win the series and stay relevant. Or lose the urn and with it… the claim to Australia’s greatest rivalry.”