England captain Ben Stokes said an "awkward" changing room meeting with a new fan of Test cricket has underlined his faith in the team's dynamic 'Bazball' method.

Lord's will provide a fitting backdrop to this week's Ashes drama as the spiritual 'Home of Cricket' hosts the second Test between England and Australia from Wednesday.

Marnus Labuschagne said he holds himself to a "higher standard" after his struggles in the opening Ashes test and is looking to rediscover top form in time for the second match at Lord's.

Ishant Sharma stirs up a controversy during a recent interview where he stated that Zaheer Khan was a better bowler than James Anderson, hinting that the England legend probably would not have been that successful if he played in Indian conditions.

Anderson acknowledged he was below his best in the opener, posting match figures of 1-109 on his return from a groin injury, but said the wicket had done him no favours.

The International Cricket Council fined Australia and England 50 percent of their match fees on Wednesday for slow over rates during an otherwise thrilling Ashes opener at Edgbaston.

England's Bukayo Saka netted a hat-trick in a 7-0 rout of North Macedonia as they tightened their grip atop Group C in Euro 2024 qualifying on Monday with a fourth consecutive victory.

England's Stuart Broad took two late wickets to pile pressure on Australia as the opening Ashes Test at Edgbaston headed for a dramatic finish.

Stuart Broad slammed the Edgbaston surface as "soulless" and described it as one of the slowest he has encountered in England after Usman Khawaja's unbeaten century dragged Australia back into the contest and left the first Ashes test finely poised.

Kylian Mbappe put speculation over his future at Paris Saint-Germain to one side as he captained France and scored in their 3-0 win over Group B outsiders Gibraltar in Faro, Portugal

England captain Ben Stokes insists there will be no let-up in his side's dynamic approach during the Ashes series against arch-rivals Australia, which starts on Friday.

Veteran seamer James Anderson is still addicted to cricket at 40 and only getting better with age, his strike partner Stuart Broad said, with the prolific England pair expected to play key roles as they enter their ninth Ashes campaign.

The Queensland gloveman will meet up with the team in London ahead of the second Test at Lord's from June 28 at which point Inglis will return to Perth.

Veteran fast bowler James Anderson said he does not expect to play all five matches at next month's home Ashes series against Australia.

Archer, who has been ruled out "for the rest of the summer", spent 17 months on the sidelines following elbow and back injuries before returning to international cricket in January.

Khawaja has a batting average of 19.66 from six Tests in England, less than half his career average of 47.81, and was dropped after three matches of the 2019 Ashes, which Australia drew 2-2 to retain the urn.

With no series against England in the upcoming Future Tour Programme (FTP) Bangladesh ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal said that the just concluded three match ODI series was perhaps his last in the English soil.

Australian spin king Nathan Lyon dismissed concerns Monday that England could use short boundaries for the upcoming Ashes to supercharge their attacking "Bazball" strategy, saying it worked both ways.

Former Australia captain Mark Taylor has backed David Warner to play in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against India at The Oval in June and to also feature in the initial stage of the Ashes 2023 in England.

The winger created England's opener for Harry Kane in the comfortable 2-0 victory over Ukraine in Euro 2024 qualifying Group C at Wembley on Sunday, then scored an absolute beauty himself to seal the man-of-the-match award