With the series scoreline reading 2-0 to Australia, everything needs to be perfect from now on for England to regain the Ashes down under.

That starts with their team selection for the Boxing Day Test, and with several players underperforming and the need to rest and rotate and locate the right bowling combination, that will be no easy task.

There has been plenty of speculation about who will make the cut for the third Test, with most outlets reporting that Chris Silverwood and co. are considering as many as four changes for the festive encounter.

What the papers say

According to the Mirror’s Dean Wilson, the Surrey pair of Rory Burns and Ollie Pope are the most likely to pay the price, with Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow the likely beneficiaries. He also reports that Mark Wood is set to come in for Chris Woakes, with Stuart Broad and Jack Leach battling it out for one spot, as they have done for the first two Tests.

However, while the Evening Standard’s Will Macpherson also reports that a bowling attack of James Anderson, Wood, Leach, Ollie Robinson and Ben Stokes looks likely, he says that the decision between Pope and Bairstow is yet to be made. He had reported that England were still deciding between which of Haseeb Hameed or Burns should make way for Crawley, but now says it is Burns that is set to step aside.

Aside from some debate over the two batting decisions, most reporters agree about the likely make-up of the England XI.

Probable England XI: Zak Crawley, Haseeb Hameed, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wk), Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Jack Leach, James Anderson.

What the pundits say

Even if the thinking of the England team management is becoming clearer, that doesn’t mean that everyone is in agreement. In fact, there are a whole host of preferred XIs out there.

Four Wisden writers picked their England XIs for the next Test. None matched England’s probable XI, with some preferring Hameed to drop out over Burns, and others picking Dom Bess or Woakes to bat at No.8. There were some experimental shouts, with Wisden India editor Aadya Sharma plumping for Jonny Bairstow as an opener, while three of the four picked Dan Lawrence to bat at No.6.

Speaking after England’s second-Test defeat, former captain Sir Alastair Cook suggested that he would lean towards sticking with the same batting line-up, while bringing in Bess for Woakes to give England a spin option without overly weakening the tail. Bess’ ability to turn the ball away from left-handers, of whom Australia have four in the top seven, was also raised as a reason for his recall.

David Lloyd advocated for a double change atop the order, with both Burns and Hameed making way for Crawley and Bairstow. Steve Harmison suggested that Hameed should be dropped for Crawley, and that Bairstow should be picked ahead of Pope.

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